Who can be sponsored for a Community Sponsored Refugee Resident Visa

To be considered for a CORS Resident Visa, refugees must be:

• referred by an international partner, or
• nominated by an approved community organisation (sponsor).

You must have an approved sponsor to support your application.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible for a CORS Resident Visa, you must:

• meet immigration requirements, including health, character, and security checks
• be living in a region where New Zealand accepts refugees (Africa, the Americas, Asia and the Pacific, or the Middle East and North Africa)
• not be eligible for residence under another Immigration New Zealand family category, including the Refugee Family Support Category.

Additional requirements for principal applicants

Principal applicants must:

• be aged between 18 and 45
• be a mandated refugee, and
• have a basic level of English.

Applications must also have either at least 3 years of work experience, or a qualification (or series of certificates or qualifications) that required at least 2 years of post-secondary study.

The criteria focus on refugees who are ready to settle in well and become independent, with support from their sponsor.

Community Sponsored Refugee Resident Visa