Knowledge base articles

Details of the visa options for partners of New Zealand citizens or residents.

Explains when and how to change information on your work visa, if you are changing jobs, moving to a different employer or relocating to a different location.

Detailed information about the different English requirements for different visa categories.

Details of what should be contained in a full birth certificate when you are required to supply one with a visa application, it also covers specific requirements for Indian birth certificates.

Information about how Australian citizens and residents can come to New Zealand and what type of visas they can get.

Here you will find advice on what to do when your passport is lost or stolen.

Here you can find information about when and how you apply for a Permanent Resident Visa.

Examples of what evidence can be used to show your residence status in New Zealand.

Advice about when you can use a certified copy of a document in support of your visa application and who can certify a copy of a document.

Details on how to contact Immigration New Zealand.

Here you can find information about when you are in New Zealand holding a Visitor Visa and wish to stay longer to explore the country more.

Detailed information on whether or not your passport is valid for travel to New Zealand.

Information about the difference between a Resident Visa and a Permanent Resident Visa.

Here you can find information about how to bring your partner and children with you if you are working in New Zealand.

Information about the difference between a New Zealand resident and a New Zealand citizen.

Information about whether you will require a new police certificate when you reapply for a visa.

Information about the biometric process for a United Kingdom visa application.

Australian citizens may be eligible for a Resident Visa upon arrival to New Zealand. Here you can find information and advice about how and when an Australian citizen can be eligible to apply for a Permanent Resident Visa (PRV).

Information about what happens once a Parent Category Expression of Interest is selected.

Information about whether your New Zealand visa can be used to enter Australia

Information regarding the correct place to contact when enquiring about obtaining New Zealand citizenship or a New Zealand passport.

Find information here about what categories of residence require sponsorship by your family.

We are not able to recommend a licensed Immigration Adviser or Agent you can use. Here you can find advice about where you can go to find a Licensed Immigration Adviser if you wish to use one.

Information about how to contact other New Zealand government departments or agencies.

Information about the Immediate Skills Shortage List and how it applies when you are applying for an Essential Skills Work Visa.

Information about the Long Term Skills Shortage List and what category of visas it can apply to.

Information on visitor visa conditions, and volunteer work while in New Zealand.

Information about different Work Visa types with a brief description of the most common types of Work Visas.

Information on where you can query about bringing goods into New Zealand.

Information about when you may or may not be able to enter New Zealand on a one way ticket

Information on where to obtain Immigration New Zealand statistics from.

Information about applying for a different type of visa while in New Zealand holding a Visitor Visa.

Find out more about applying for a Permanent Resident Visa while outside of New Zealand.

Information about what school fees you will be required to pay for a child when they are applying for a Student Visa to be in New Zealand while the parent holds a temporary visa.

If you have been granted a student visa and are thinking about changing to a different course, education provider or location you can find here here how to do this.

Find information here about how long your Skilled Migrant Expression of Interest will remain in the pool once you submit it.

If you are wanting to study in New Zealand you can find advice here about whether you will need to meet any English language requirements to be granted your student visa.

Your child may be studying in New Zealand and you want to join them to look after them. Find advice here about what type of visa you can apply for to look after your child while they are studying in New Zealand.

Information for New Zealand employers who frequently hire staff from overseas

Here you can find information about the partnership policies and whether or not you need to be married to apply for a partnership based visa.

Information about whether or not points can be claimed for qualifications when submitting an Expression Of Interest as part of the Skilled Migrant category

Here you can find information about what to do when your residence application is still processing and has not been completed but your temporary visa is due to expire soon.

Here you can find information about whether or not you are required to provide documents when you submit an Expression of Interest for the Skilled Migrant Resident Visa category.

Here you will find advice about whether you can apply for a Working Holiday Visa while in New Zealand.

Here you will find information about where you can find the current Expression of Interest selections and previous selections.

Information on how to work out how much you may have to pay for your application fee when you submit it.

If you are required to undertake a medical or chest x-ray for your visa application you may be required to undertake your medical with an Immigration Panel Physician, you can find information here about where you can search for a Panel Physician.

Advice about whether a New Zealand employer can offer you a job when you do not hold a work visa as you are in New Zealand on another type of temporary visa.

Information about travel conditions on visas and how to get travel conditions on your visa that will allow you to travel outside of New Zealand and return.

Information about how to obtain the appropriate permission to undertake some fruit picking while in New Zealand.

Detailed advice about the status of a child born in New Zealand and what you need to do.

Information about who can live in New Zealand permanently depending on what type of visa or passport they may hold.

Information about how you can explore options to become a New Zealand resident.

Information about if you can travel outside of New Zealand and still hold your Resident Visa.

Advice on how to submit an online Expression of Interest including tips for troubleshooting and payment issues.

Information about how to update your password or retrieve your username to log into your Online Services account to access your Expression of Interest, Working Holiday Visa application or Silver Fern Job Search Work Visa application.

Here you can find information about your next steps if you receive an Invitation to Apply for residence after a successful Expression of Interest.

Being selected from the pool is one of the steps in the Skilled Migrant residence process, find information here about what happens once your Expression of Interest is selected.

Once you have submitted your Expression of interest you may move or your contact details may have changed, find advice here on how to update your contact details.

Details about who can work in New Zealand depending on what type of visa they hold.

Information for employers about how they can know who can work for them in New Zealand.

Information about the visa options for people who are investing in New Zealand.

Advice about whether your should consider having medical insurance before coming to New Zealand depending on what type of visa you may hold.

Here you will find information about how to apply for a further Work Visa if you wish to work longer in New Zealand.

If you wish to tell us about an experience you had with Immigration New Zealand you can find advice about how you can provide us with feedback about our service.

If you wish to tell us about your experience with our website, you can find information here on how to provide us with the feedback.

Here you can find information about how you can report someone to Immigration New Zealand.

How to apply for a further Student Visa to continue studying in New Zealand

Here you can find information about Guardian of a Student Visitor Visa and how to apply for one.

Here you will find information about the visa options for partners of New Zealand citizens and residents who want to work when in New Zealand.

Here you can find information about becoming a Licensed Immigration Adviser.

Here you will find information about who can purchase property in New Zealand.

Find out more about coming to New Zealand to look for employment and whether or not you are able to do this.

Here you can find advice about whether or not you can travel to New Zealand as a visitor and submit a resident visa application when here.

Here you can find advice about who can be included in your application for a Permanent Resident Visa.

Here you will find information about where to go to enquire about a New Zealand passport.

Here you will find information about what a resident visa will allow you to do in New Zealand if you are granted one.

Here you will find information on what requirements you must meet to enter New Zealand visa waiver and be granted a visitor visa upon arrival.

Here you can find details about when your Working Holiday will expire once it has been granted.

Find out if you are able to extend your Working Holiday Visa, and information on how to apply.

Information for those who hold multiple passports, and which passport should be used when entering New Zealand.

Check if your job requires registration in New Zealand, and if it is required when applying for a visa.

Find out how you can apply for a Working Holiday Visa.

Find out if USA Green Card holders can travel to New Zealand without a visa

Information about when and how to pay a fee for your visa application.

Find out more about New Zealand employers offering employment to foreign workers

Find out how New Zealand citizens living overseas can return to New Zealand to live.

Information on what an open work visa is and how you may be eligible for one.

Find out if you can apply for a work visa in New Zealand if you do not have an offer of employment.

How to inform Immigration New Zealand about an employee who has left your business when they hold a work visa to work in your business.

Find out more information on processing times and if an application can be prioritised.

Find out what you can do if your employee wants to work for a different employer.

Information on how Australian citizens are eligible for a student loan from Studylink.

Here you can find advice about what to do if you have a work visa to work for a specific company or business and that business or company has closed.

Find out who the NZQA are and when you need to contact them for your application.

Find information here about where to go to if you need to renew your passport.

Find here the definition of what is seasonal work for the purpose of an Immigration New Zealand visa policy.

Here you can find information about how to employ seasonal workers to undertake work in the horticulture and viticulture industries.

When you are completing on online or manual Expression of Interest and you are including your children in your Expression Interest you can find advice here on how to do this and how to complete the Child Supplementary Form.

Find out what visa you can apply for if you are coming to New Zealand as a Tour Guide.

Find out more about the Parent and Grandparent Visitor Visa, and how to apply.

New Zealand has working holiday scheme agreements with many countries, allowing you to work in and explore our great country. Find information here about your options if your country is not on our list of available working holiday schemes.

Find out more about the process of adding an occupation to one of our Essential Skills in Demands Lists.

Find out when you can participate in a WWOOF exchange scheme in New Zealand.

Find out more about the character requirements New Zealand partners must meet to support partnership-based applications.

Find out if you can extend your Working Holiday Visa if you have already undertaken 3 months of seasonal work while in New Zealand on your Working Holiday Visa.

Find out how hearing impaired people can contact Immigration New Zealand for assistance.

Find out more on including your partner and children on your Work to Residence application

Find out more about what methods of payment Immigration New Zealand can accept, and how to calculate the fee you need to pay.

Information about how someone can complain about a matter handled by Immigration New Zealand.

Information on how to bring a child who was adopted overseas to New Zealand, after contacting Oranga Tamariki and the Department of Internal Affairs.

Information on International Surrogacy, and options on how to bring a child born via a surrogate to New Zealand.

Find more information about food products that are allowed to be brought into New Zealand and how to contact MPI

Find information here about what seas, land, and areas of Antarctica are considered to be New Zealand territory.

Find out about how much time is given to Resident Visa holders to enter New Zealand and activate their visa if they are granted a resident visa while outside of New Zealand.

Find out whether visa waiver citizens require a transit visa, who needs to apply, and how to obtain a transit visa.

Here you will find information about DNA testing and when it may be required for a visa application.

Find out more on who can witness statutory declarations, and how to find a suitable person in New Zealand to sign documents.

If you are having problems printing application forms or guides, you can find advice on how to do so here.

Here you can find information about the work exchange schemes to be able to work in New Zealand.

Find advice here about what type of visa you will need to come to New Zealand to attend a job interview.

Find about more about whether you can choose to have either a Permanent Resident Visa or New Zealand Citizen Endorsement issued into your passport if you have now obtained New Zealand citizenship.

Information about interim visas and how to remain in New Zealand when you have applied for a further temporary visa and your current temporary visa is due to expire.

Find out more about what visas are available for artists and entertainers to perform in New Zealand

Information about how long you can stay in New Zealand holding a Visitor Visa.

Find out more about travel conditions and how they may affect your visa when travelling to and from New Zealand.

Find information here about whether you can request a refund on your Expression of Interest fee and how to do it.

Find information here about what a Visa Application Centre is and when you may be using one as part of your visa application process.

If you are working in New Zealand you will require an IRD number which is a tax number. Here you can find advice about IRD numbers and how to get one.

More information for employers wanting to recruit those who are holding a Silver Fern Visa.

Find out what visas you can apply for if you are a religious worker, and how to apply for them.

Find out to get in touch with Immigration New Zealand.

As a New Zealand employer it is important that you understand your obligations when employing migrant workers. Here you can find information about your responsibilities and obligations as an employer.

Find out if you can offer employment to an overseas worker, and what your responsibilities are as an employer.

Here you can find information about whether the visa you hold may allow you to undertake a short course while in New Zealand.

Find out more about who can support family members for visas in New Zealand.

Find out how employers can find out if someone holds a visa that allows them to work in New Zealand.

If you are bringing household items and personal goods into New Zealand, you can find more information here about bringing them into the country and contacting Customs and the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) for inspections.

Find information here about whether someone who has residence in New Zealand also requires a work visa.

If you are using a Licensed Immigration Adviser, you can find more information here about who needs to be licensed, who is exempt from licensing, and how to find an acceptable Adviser (LIA) who can assist you with your application.

Find out here what is considered to be volunteering, and whether you can carry out volunteer work while in New Zealand on a temporary visa.

Find out more about VisaView, an online system that allows employers to check someone's eligibility to work in New Zealand.

If you are moving to New Zealand you may be considering bringing your pets with you, find information here about bringing pets to New Zealand.

If you wish to take your application directly into an Immigration branch for processing, you can find information here about where to go to do this.

Find out more about how a New Zealand education provider can update Immigration New Zealand when a student's enrolment has been terminated.

Find out more about where to send additional documents for your application once the application has been submitted.

Find information about whether credit, debit, Union Pay and Prezzy cards are an acceptable method of payment depending on how you are applying for your visa.

After successfully completing certain qualifications in New Zealand you may be eligible for a Post Study Work Visa - Open, however you will require evidence of your completed qualification when you apply. Find out what evidence you can supply here and what to do if you are waiting for your graduation certificate.

Find out if you need to provide evidence of a return ticket out of New Zealand when you apply for a visa.

Year 12 & 13 students can get a variation of their student visa conditions to allow them to work part-time. Here you can find information and resources for secondary school students looking to undertake employment in New Zealand.

Find out more about application fees for visas for New Zealand and whether the length of your visa is based upon the fee that you pay for your application.

Find out more about what Fijian travel documents Immigration New Zealand will accept for a visa application.

Find out more about using Visa Application Centres and how to locate the nearest one to where you are.

If you have applied for a visa as a family however there may be reasons why you are not able to all travel to New Zealand at the same time, find advice here if you are able to enter the country at different times to your family.

Find out how to print your Working Holiday Visa for New Zealand once it has been granted.

Find out more about whether your passport can be returned while your application is still in process.

Find out where Visa Application Centres are located and where the nearest one to you is.

Find out more about requirements to stay with a caregiver while in New Zealand on a Student Visa.

Details on what the Canterbury Skills and Employment Hub is, and how this applies to visa applications in the Canterbury region.

Find out more about the conditions of a Working Holiday Visa and what you can do in New Zealand

Detailed advice on how to include your child in your Expression of Interest when they do not hold a passport.

Find out more about the type of visa required when coming to New Zealand for a sports event

Find out more information about home-schooling and the types of visas available for this purpose.

As part of your visa application you may have been required to provide fees for ESOL tuition. Find advice here about how you now use these fees that you paid.

Find out more about when your New Zealand Residence Status starts depending on where you were when you were granted your residence.

Here you will find advice about what steps to take if your New Zealand passport has expired while you are overseas and you need to return to New Zealand urgently.

Find out more about using Immigration Online, and how to submit documents to support your application.

You may be required to supply information from the Inland Revenue department to support claims you have made in your application, find advice here if internet print outs from them will be acceptable.

Sometimes during the processing of your application the Immigration Officer may identify some concerns and request further information/documents to address these concerns. Find advice here as to whether you are able to request an extension to the timeframe given to supply these.

When you apply for a resident visa it will be important to you to get a decision quickly, however this is not always possible as each application is assessed on its own merit. Find information here why some partnership applications may take longer than others.

More information on how Settlement Funds can be used for the Parent Resident Visa category and how applicants can show evidence of these funds.

More information about Medical Waivers and when an applicant is eligible for one when they are applying through the partnership category.

More information on the sponsors minimum income requirement for the Parent Tier One Resident category

If you have been granted an interim visa to allow you to remain in New Zealand lawfully while we decide your temporary visa application you submitted, you can find advice here about what you can do if your interim visa is due to expire.

If an application is not complete Immigration New Zealand is unable to accept it for processing and it is returned to you advising what documents are required. Find advice here about whether a medical which has since expired can be used when the application is resubmitted with all of the required documents.

Find information here about if a client will be able to await the outcome of a IPT appeal in New Zealand.

If your visa has expired and you are in New Zealand unlawfully you can find advice here about whether or not Immigration New Zealand will recognise a persons efforts to regain their lawful status.

If you are coming to New Zealand for a holiday there may be times when you are still undertaking work remotely in relation to your usual overseas employment. Find advice here whether you are able to do this while you are in New Zealand on a Visitor Visa.

Here you can find information about what type of visas can be applied for online.

Most visa applications require photos to be supplied with the application. Find out more about acceptable colour, pose, and background requirements are for photos.

Information on who needs to send their passport for online applications

If you need to come to New Zealand for business purposes you may meet the requirements for a business visitor. Find out here if you meet these requirements and whether or not you will need to apply for the visa prior to you travel to New Zealand.

Information about Pathway Student Visa requirements and how to apply for one.

Find out here why your incomplete Working Holiday Visa application disappeared from your online account right before the schemes opening date.

More information about how to donate items to the Mangere Refugee Centre.

When you have been issued with a Working Holiday Visa, this will be activated when you enter New Zealand. Find out more here if you can request for a Visitor Visa instead.

Find out more about whether absences from classes due to illness will affect your next Student Visa application.

The Ministry regularly reviews the Essential Skills in Demand lists to ensure they meet the changing needs of the labour market. Find information here about the outcome of the 2017 review.

When you apply for a visa there may be times when you are required to provide evidence of your previous work experience. Find information here about what documents can be supplied as evidence of this.

Find information here about the selection criteria, the process for selection, and whether or not your submitted Expression of Interest may be selected from the pool.

Find out more information on what application forms to use and if they will be accepted by Immigration New Zealand.

Find out more about the need to apply for visas for New Zealand.

Some visas will have different types of conditions issued onto them. Find advice here about what these conditions mean and what they allow you to do.

Information about how an Immigration Officer will communicate with you when you have an application in process.

Information for those who need to remove the Section 49 conditions from their Resident Visa.

You can find information here about who is able to vote in New Zealand elections and how to enrol if you are eligible.

Information on how applicants apply for APEC cards, who processes them, and who to contact if you need further advice.

If you have been granted a resident visa and during the process you have had a new baby before you have travelled to New Zealand to activate your resident visa to activate your visa, you can find advise here about how you can add your child to your application.

If you would like to get in touch with us to ask a question, find advice here on how you can email Immigration New Zealand.

Information about the 2018 Samoan Quota and Pacific Access Category ballot.

Here you can find information about if you can bring your partner and children with you if you are studying in New Zealand.

Information about tertiary education options in New Zealand

Find out more about visa categories available for those aged 50 and above.

More information about standard working hours in New Zealand

Information about the requirement for New Zealand driver's license.

Some issuing authorities may require you to supply a set of fingerprints when you apply for a police certificate for your visa application, here you can find information about where to go in New Zealand to obtain a set of fingerprints for this purpose.

If you are a new migrant to New Zealand you may need advice about finding a Doctor or accessing healthcare, here you will be able to find this information.

Where can you find out about New Zealand’s health system and services as a new migrant.

Information about health care available in New Zealand.

More information about finding New Zealand employers

Details of the outcome of the Essential Skills in Demand list review for 2017.

Troubleshooting an online Expression of Interest.

Information about the New Zealand Residence Programme and how places are allocated within this programme.

If you are a new migrant to New Zealand you can find information here about how to look for work.

Opening hours for the Christmas/New Year period 2018/2019