Temporary Retirement Visitor Visa

Visa details

You can stay for up to 2 years on a Visitor Visa if you are over 66 years old and have NZD $750,000 to invest in New Zealand. You also need an additional NZD $500,000 to live on and an annual income of NZD $60,000 or more.

Length of stay
Up to

2 years

Age range

66 years or over

Cost
From
NZD $3790
Processing time
90% within
44.5 weekdays
With this visa you can
  • Include your partner in your visa application.
  • Travel in and out of New Zealand during your stay.
Things to note
  • You can’t bring dependent children with you.
  • If we approve your application in principle, you may wish to apply for a 3-month multiple entry visitor visa to come to New Zealand to investigate investment opportunities.
  • If you’re an Australian citizen or permanent resident, you don’t need a visa to come to New Zealand, but you’ll still need to meet our requirements for entry permission.

What you need to apply

Check if you are eligible to apply for this visa and what supporting documents and information you need to provide.

View All Evidence

Identity

You must provide proof of your identity

You must provide proof of your identity:

Acceptable photos

You may provide your original passport, or a certified copy when you submit your application. If you provide a certified copy we may request your original passport to complete your application.

Tips

If you are a citizen of China and you submit a paper application form in China, you must also complete a supplementary form.

Supplementary form for Chinese citizens (INZ 1027) PDF 338KB

If you are submitting a paper application form, you must provide a supplementary form for Hong Kong and Macao visitors, workers and students.

Supplementary form for Hong Kong and Macao visitors, workers and students (INZ 1220) PDF 240KB

Also provide your:

  • Hukou (household registration book)
  • Chinese identity card.

Also provide a copy of your Identity card.

Health

You must be in good health

We may ask you to have a chest x-ray, a medical examination or both as proof of your good health.

If you are staying less than:

  • 6 months you do not normally need a chest x-ray. 
  • 12 months you do not normally need a medical certificate. 

Who needs an x-ray or medical examination

When we process your application we let you know if we need you to have a chest x-ray or medical examination.

Acceptable standard of health criteria for visa approvals

Please only provide medical certificates if requested

Tips

You must provide a chest x-ray completed in the last 3 months, even if you've provided one to us previously, if:

  • you have spent 6 consecutive months in China since the last x-ray certificate was issued, and
  • you are now coming to NZ for more than 6 months.

Character

You must be of good character

If you have a criminal conviction or are a security risk to New Zealand we may not be able to grant you a visa.

Good character for temporary visas

You must provide police certificates if your total time in New Zealand will be 24 months or longer across all visits. This includes any time you have spent in New Zealand in the past on other visas, even if you have been out of the country since then.

You also must provide police certificates if we ask for them.

If you are 16 years old or younger you do not need to provide police certificates.

Providing police certificates

How to get a police certificate

If you have already sent us Police Certificates with a previous visa application and they are less than 24 months old, you do not need to send them again.

Police certificates must be less than 6 months old when you submit your application. They must be from any country you are a citizen of, or have spent more than 5 years in since you turned 17.

Genuine intentions

You must genuinely intend to meet the conditions of your visa

When we decide if your intentions are genuine, we consider all the information:

  • you provide to support your application
  • we have about your personal circumstances, and
  • you provided in any previous applications.

Genuine intentions to visit, study or work in NZ

Age

You must be 66 years or over

Evidence can include original or certified copies of:

  • your full birth certificate
  • your passport or certificate of identity
  • an identity card that confirms your birth details.

Investment funds

You must have NZ $750,000 or more to invest in New Zealand for 2 years

You must nominate the type, location and value of the funds and/or assets you intend to invest. Evidence may include:

  • bank statements
  • title deeds
  • property valuations
  • share certificates
  • business ownership documents
  • asset valuations.

The value you can claim for your nominated funds, depends if they are owned by you, or jointly by you and another person.

If you own an investment jointly with:

  • your partner, you can claim the full value of the investment, as long as you and your partner are in a recognised partnership
  • someone who isn’t your partner, you can only claim for the part of the investment that you own.

Partnership

Tips

We don’t normally accept investment funds that are borrowed, or have a loan or bond against them.

Source of investment funds

You must have earned or acquired your funds lawfully

You’ll need to explain how you came by your funds and provide evidence to support your explanation, which may include:

  • tax returns or certificates
  • pay slips
  • business financial statements
  • business shareholdings
  • dividends
  • receipts for property sales
  • bank certificates
  • share trading profits
  • evidence of gifted money
  • probate and other evidence of inherited money.
Tips

It’s OK if your funds were gifted to you, as long as the gift was unconditional and lawful, and was earned or acquired lawfully.

If the funds were earned or acquired in a way that isn’t lawful in New Zealand, we won’t be able  to approve your visa application.

Transfer investment funds

You must transfer your investment funds to New Zealand

You must transfer your investment funds to New Zealand.

You must transfer your investment funds directly from your bank account to New Zealand through the banking system.

If we approve your application in principle, you’ll have 3 months from that date to transfer and invest your funds.
 
Transferring funds to New Zealand

Tips

You can apply for a temporary visa to come to New Zealand and investigate investment opportunities.

Specific Purpose Work Visa

We cannot extend the timeframe for transferring and investing your nominated funds.

Applicants must ensure their funds meet currency exchange and transfer requirements in place in China.

The following organisations have previously demonstrated they have acceptable QDII products:

  • Bank of China
  • China Construction Bank
  • ICBC
  • Guosen Securities Company Ltd

Maintenance funds

You must have NZ $500,000 or more to live on

You must provide evidence you have the funds and/or assets to cover the required maintenance funds, which may include:

  • bank statements – you must be able to access  the funds from New Zealand
  • title deeds
  • property valuations
  • share certificates
  • business ownership documents
    asset valuations.

The value you can claim for your maintenance funds, depends if they are owned by you, or jointly by you and another person.  If you own your settlement funds jointly with:

  • your partner, you can claim the full value of the investment, as long as you and your partner are in a recognised partnership
  • someone who isn’t your partner, you can only claim for the part of the investment that you own.

Partnership

Tips

Your maintenance funds must be on top of your annual income and your investment funds.

Annual income

You must have an annual income of NZ $60,000 or more

You must provide evidence of your income. This may include documents that show you have:

  • a pension
  • earnings from rental properties
  • dividends from share portfolios
  • interest from investments
  • profits from owning a  company
  • share market trading profits.
Tips

Your income can be earned by you alone, or together with a partner you’ve included in your application.

Bring partner

Your partner must meet the requirements for this visa

To bring your partner:

  • you must provide evidence of your relationship with them, like marriage and birth certificates
  • you must provide proof of their identity
  • they must be of good character
  • they must be in good health.

Partnership

Tips

You should provide copies of family members Hukou (household registration book) included in your application.

You should provide copies of identity cards for family members included in your application.

Acceptable investments

You must invest NZ$ 750,000 in acceptable investments in New Zealand for a minimum of 2 years

You must provide documents from a trusted professional like a chartered accountant or solicitor that confirm:

  • your full name
  • the amount invested in NZD
  • the date you started your investment
  • the investment type
  • the names of any organisations you invested in
  • the number of shares or bonds you bought in any organisations.

Acceptable investments: parent and temporary retirement visas

Process and costs

The information below will help you understand the process, timeframes and costs involved in applying for this visa, so you can plan ahead and have the best chance of submitting a complete application.

Notes

We cannot display any process or costs information until you have provided your country details. Enter your country details in the panel above to view information relevant to your situation.

Enter country details

How to submit

Payment methods and receiving centre details if applicable.

Notes

We cannot display any receiving centre or payment method information until you have provided your country details. Enter your country details in the panel above to view information relevant to your situation.

Enter country details

Conditions

These are the conditions that you must meet once you have your visa.

Entry permission

You must apply for entry permission when you arrive in New Zealand. You can do this by completing a paper arrival card or a digital traveller declaration. If you are completing a paper arrival card you will be given this on the way to New Zealand.

New Zealand Customs and Biosecurity also check that you meet their entry requirements.

Arriving in New Zealand

Notes

You can be refused entry permission if:

  • you don’t meet our character requirements
  • your circumstances have changed since you were granted a visa
  • you refuse to let us to take your photo, or provide us with your fingerprints or an iris scan, if we ask you for them.

Travel

After your first arrival, you can travel in and out of New Zealand for 2 years.

Invest in New Zealand

You must keep at least NZ $750,000 invested in acceptable investments in New Zealand for 2 years.

Acceptable investments

Notes

It’s OK to transfer funds between acceptable investments.

If you already have funds invested in New Zealand when you apply for your visa, we can start your investment period from the time we approve your application in principle.

Insurance

You must maintain acceptable travel and/or health insurance while in New Zealand.

Contact details

You must provide us with your address and other contact details and let us know if these change while you’re in New Zealand.

Study

You can study for up to 3 months in any 12-month period.

Work

You cannot work in New Zealand on this visa.

Visa expiry

You must leave New Zealand before your visa expires.

Notes

If you want to stay longer, you can apply for another Temporary Retirement Visitor Visa if:

  • you still meet all the requirements for this visa
  • you can show us that you maintained your insurance and kept your funds invested during your 2-year stay.