Working on a student visa
You may be allowed to work part-time for up to 20 hours a week, and full-time during all scheduled holidays and the Christmas and New Year holiday period.
Check your visa conditions
If you are allowed to work in New Zealand, your work rights are recorded on your eVisa, the visa label in your passport, or explained to you in a letter.
If you work when you are not allowed to, it is a breach of your visa conditions. This can affect your ability to stay in New Zealand, or our decision on your next visa application.
Deportation and how you can appeal
Types of students who can work
You may be able to work part-time or full-time if you are:
- a tertiary student
- a PhD or Masters student
- some English language students
- secondary school students in Years 12 and 13 who have school and parent permission
- completing practical experience for your study.
Read the following information to see if you meet the criteria to work.
Tertiary students
Part-time work while studying
You can work up to 20 hours a week if you are doing a full-time course that:
- is for at least 2 academic years
- results in a New Zealand qualification that gains points under the Skilled Migrant Category, or
- is at least 1 academic year long and is part of an approved tertiary student exchange scheme.
Skilled Migrant Category Resident Visa
You can also work up to 20 hours if you are aged 18 or older, enrolled full-time and are included in a 2021 RV application as a dependent child.
You cannot work part-time if you are:
- a study abroad student, or
- a tertiary exchange student studying a course with a duration of less than 1 academic year.
Full-time work during breaks and holiday
Your visa conditions will allow you to work full-time during scheduled breaks in study if all of these apply:
- you study full-time for at least 1 academic year
- your course is worth at least 120 credits, and
- your course has a minimum of 2 semesters during at least 8 months.
You can work full-time during the Christmas and New Year holiday period if:
- you study full-time, and
- your course has a minimum of 2 semesters during at least 8 months.
PhD and Masters by research students
There are no restrictions on the hours you can work if you are enrolled in a Research Masters or doctoral degree programme (PhD) awarded by a New Zealand tertiary institution.
English language students
If you are an English language student, you can work for up to 20 hours a week while you have a valid Student Visa, if your course meets the following conditions.
Courses of at least 24 teaching weeks
You can work part-time if all of these apply:
- your study is full-time
- your programme of study is at least 24 teaching weeks
- we believe the main purpose of your study is to improve your English, and
- you have an acceptable English language test result that is no more than 2 years old, such as an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) certificate, with an overall band score of 5.0 — you must provide your test result with your application.
Courses of at least 14 teaching weeks
You can work part-time if all of these apply:
- your study is full-time
- your study is for at least 14 consecutive weeks
- you are studying English language, and
- your study is with a university, or an education provider that has been assessed by the New Zealand Qualifications Authority as a Category 1 provider.
When we assess if you are eligible for work rights, we will look at any English language study you have done on previous student visas.
We can count your previous English language study towards the 14 consecutive weeks if:
- your new study follows on from your previous study, and
- the study is with the same education provider.
Secondary school students
Your visa conditions will allow you to work for up to 20 hours a week during the school year, and full-time in the Christmas and New Year holiday between school years if:
- you are 16 or older, and
- studying in year 12 or 13, the last 2 years of secondary school.
If you are under 18, you must have written permission from your school and your parents or legal guardian to work. You do not need written permission to work full-time in the Christmas and New Year holiday period if you are over 18.
Practical experience
If practical experience is a requirement of your course, we will grant you a Student Visa with conditions that allow you to work to complete it.
Work you cannot do
International students are not allowed to be self-employed. You must work for an employer and have an employment agreement.
You cannot provide commercial sexual services. This means you cannot:
- work as a prostitute
- operate a New Zealand prostitution business
- invest in a prostitution business.
If your visa does not allow you to work
If you meet the criteria to work but the work conditions on your eVisa, passport label or letter do not match, contact us for assistance.
Working when your course ends and you still have a visa
You must only work in line with your visa's work conditions — even if your course ends and your visa is still valid.
If your course has ended and your visa says you can:
- work 20 hours per week, then you must only work for this long until your visa expires
- work full-time over the summer vacation — then you must only work during this time and only while your visa is still valid.
Find out about staying in New Zealand to work.
Staying to work after study
Contact us
If you have questions about your ability to work, contact us.