Visa types

Please click below to view information on each NZ visa category. This information is a brief overview only, please Contact me to discuss your individual circumstances.

Visit immigration.govt.nz for all the current information on allowable visa types

Work Visas Family Visas Skilled Migrants Student Visas Visitor Visas Business Visas

Work Visas

If you’re looking to work in New Zealand, the main categories you might qualify under are:

Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV)

You can apply for this visa if you have a job offer from an accredited employer. The employer must send you a link to the online application form. The AEWV lets you stay in New Zealand from 7 months to 5 years — depending on your job, skill level, how much you are paid and when you applied for your visa.

Post Study Work Visa

This visa lets you work in New Zealand soon after you have completed your studies here. It allows you to stay and work in New Zealand for up to 3 years, depending on what you studied.

To apply you must:

Have recently finished studying in New Zealand for an approved qualification
Apply no later than 3, 6 or 12 months after your student visa expires, depending on what you studied and what visa you had
Have at least NZD $5,000 to pay your living expenses
Meet the other requirements of this visa.

Working Holiday Visa

If you are aged 18 to 30, or 18 to 35 in a select few countries, and a citizen of a country that has a working holiday agreement with New Zealand, you can apply for a working holiday visa.

In most cases you can work for up to 12 months on a working holiday visa — you cannot take a permanent job.

You must be coming mainly to holiday — work should be a secondary intention.

The conditions of your employment will vary depending on where you are from. Check the details for your country’s working holiday visa scheme.

Recognised Seasonal Employer Limited Visa

On the Recognised Seasonal Employer Limited Visa, you can come to New Zealand for a short time to work in our horticulture and viticulture industries. You must have a job offer from a Recognised Seasonal Employer before you apply.

Student and Trainee Work Visa

This visa is for students or trainees wanting to get practical work experience in their field. This can include, but is not limited to, religious trainees, dental or medical trainees and apprentice jockeys.

Partner of a New Zealander Work Visa

This visa lets you work in New Zealand if you have a partner who is a New Zealand citizen or has a resident visa.

If you have lived with your partner for less than 12 months, your visa will be for 1 year and you can apply for additional visas to stay up to 3 years in total.
If you have lived with your partner for 12 months or more, your visa will be for up to 3 years.

For details of your individual circumstances please contact us for a personal assessment.

Family Visas

Under the Family category it is possible for family members to visit, work or apply for residence in New Zealand.

Here is a brief outline of those options.

Partners of a New Zealand resident or citizen may be supported by their partner for a visitor or work or residence visa.

Immigration New Zealand recognises a partnership to be :

A legal marriage
A de facto relationship (same or opposite sex)
A civil union (same or opposite sex)
You must be able to show us that you and your partner are living together in a genuine and stable relationship before we can approve a visa application based on your partnership.

Parent Resident Visa

If your child earns enough and is a New Zealand resident or citizen, they may be able to help you come to New Zealand on the Parent Resident Visa. They must have earned at least the minimum income INZ require for 2 years in the 3-year period before your expression of interest was selected.

Resident visas for dependent children

Your child is dependent if they are:

24 and under, and
single.

If they are 18 or over they must not have children of their own.

If they are aged 21 to 24 they must also rely on you or another adult for financial support (depending on which visa they have applied for).

For details of your individual circumstances please contact us for a personal assessment.

Skilled Migrants

Residence - Skilled Migrant categories

A brief overview of residence policy for skilled migration

Fast track straight to residence - Green List (tier 1)

If you have a job (or a job offer) in one of the occupations on INZ’s Green List, you can apply for residence now. You have to be 55 years or under and meet the health, character and English language criteria. Also, your job must meet the salary threshold.

https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-zealand-visas/apply-for-a-visa/tools-and-information/work-and-employment/green-list-occupations

Work to residence visa (2 years) - Green list (tier 2)

If you have a job (or job offer) in one of the occupations specified in this section of the Green List you can apply for residence after working in the role for at least 2 years.

Skilled migrant - points system

This category is a points-based system, with a minimum of 6 points needed to apply. To qualify you will need to satisfy the following basic criteria:

Qualify according to one of the following :

Have a relevant, recognised qualification - minimum of a Level 7 Bachelor degree (3 points), or a postgraduate qualification (4 points), a Masters level degree (5 points) or a PhD (6 points) OR
High income employment (1.5x, 2x, or 3x times the NZ median wage) OR
Professional occupational registration of 2 - 6+ years
Have skilled employment in New Zealand - this is essential regardless of points
Have NZ skilled work experience - 1 year = 1 point, 2 years = 2 points etc. up to 3 points
You must speak and understand English
Be of good health and character
Be 55 years old or less

Get selected

The first step in the application process is known as an “Expression of Interest” (EOI). Your EOI application is entered into a “pool” along with other potential applications. Every 2 weeks INZ select a number of applications for consideration. For obvious reasons, preference is given to applicants with a skilled job offer or current skilled employment.

The minimum threshold for selection is 6 points.

If your application is selected from the pool, it will be checked and you may be invited to apply for residence. This is the second step.

Your application can stay in the pool for up to 6 months, before it is withdrawn. You are free to submit another application at any time.

For details of your individual circumstances please contact us Contact us for a personal assessment.

Student Visas

If you want to study for more than 3 months in New Zealand, you will need an offer of place from a New Zealand education provider to apply for a student visa.

Your course of study and the education provider you choose must be Government approved to offer places to overseas students. When you have decided what subject you want to study and where, you must apply for your place to study with that education provider.

When you have been accepted for your programme of study in New Zealand, you can apply for a student visa. You will need to show evidence of financial resources ( NZ$20,000 per year or sponsorship by an NZ resident or citizen) and a credible reason to study. Your previous study and work history will be taken into account by INZ when they assess your application.

The main students visas available include:

Fee Paying Student Visa

The most common student visa for international students is the Fee Paying Student Visa. With this visa you can study full-time in New Zealand up to 4 years. You will need to pay the full cost of your courses and enrol with an approved education provider.

Pathway Student Visa

You may be able to study full-time up to 3 courses, one after the other, on a single student visa for up to 5 years. The visa is only available for study with approved Pathway Education Providers and for some courses of study.

Dependent Child Student Visa

If you have an appropriate work or student visa, you can apply for this visa to bring your dependent children aged 19 and younger to study as domestic students at a New Zealand primary or secondary school.

Exchange Student Visa

If you have been accepted into an approved student exchange scheme and are outside New Zealand, you can apply for this visa to study full-time up to 4 years.

English Language Student Visa

Apply for this visa to study an English language course full-time in New Zealand. You will need to pay the full cost of your courses and enrol with an approved education provider.

Can I work as well?

If you are enrolled in full-time study which meets the criteria you will be allowed to work for up to 20 hours each week during the academic year, and full time during semester breaks and the Christmas/New Year holiday period.

You cannot, however, be self-employed while holding a student visa.

If you study full-time (minimum 30 weeks) for a bachelor degree, bachelor honours degree, postgraduate diploma, master’s or doctoral degree you will be eligible for a Post Study Work Visa. If you study a qualification at Level 7 and below (excluding bachelor’s degrees), relevant to an occupation on the Green List you will also be eligible for it.

The duration of the visa will normally match the time you study in New Zealand, up to a maximum of three years.

If you find a job offer which is not related to your NZ qualification, you can still apply for a work visa under the Accredited Employer Work Visa category if you have relevant work experience or previous qualifications gained overseas.

For details of your individual circumstances please contact us for a personal assessment.

Visitor Visas

If your reason for coming to New Zealand, or staying longer in this country, is for one of the following, you can apply for a visitor visa.

Holidaying/sightseeing
Visiting friends and family
A single course of study (no more than 3 calendar months in duration)
Amateur sport
Medical treatment
Business consultation
In addition, there are a number of special visitor categories such as entry for a culturally arranged marriage.

If you are from a “visa-waiver” country (see note below), you won’t need to apply for a visitor visa before coming here. But you will still need to have enough funds to cover your expenses during your stay and a genuine reason for visiting; please note that entry at the border is not guaranteed.

If you are not from a visa-waiver country, you will need to apply for a visitor visa; the requirements for this will depend on your individual circumstances and it may not be a simple application.

Visitors to NZ are normally limited to a maximum stay of 9 months within an 18 month period.

Note: Citizens of visa-waiver countries do not have to apply for a visa before travelling to New Zealand.

For details of your individual circumstances please contact us for a personal assessment.

Business Visas

There are 2 main resident visa options for people wanting to invest and do business in New Zealand — the Active Investor Plus Visa and the Business Investor Visa pathway.

These options require you be of good health and character, plus require you to meet an English language requirement.

Active Investor Plus

The Active Investor Plus Visa is for migrants who can invest funds of at least:

NZD $5 million in the Growth category for a minimum of 3 years, or
NZD $10 million in the Balanced category for a minimum of 5 years.

The investments must meet the criteria for acceptable investments in the category you apply under.

Business Investor Work Visa

The Business Investor Work Visa lets you stay in New Zealand for up to 4 years. It offers a pathway to residence for experienced business people who want to invest in and run an existing business in New Zealand.

You can include your partner and dependent children in your application and will need to demonstrate you have enough money to support yourself (and your family, if applicable) in New Zealand while you are establishing your business.

There are also additional requirements to demonstrate you will be able to effectively run the business you invest in and comply with immigration, employment and business standards.

Additional business visas

Entrepreneur Work Visa

Apply for this visa if you want to work in your own business in New Zealand. You must have NZD $100,000 to invest, a business plan, and be able to claim 120 points on our points scale.

Employee of a Relocating Business

This is an opportunity for a key employee of a business which is relocating to New Zealand to obtain residence if he or she does not qualify under any other category.

Global impact permanent residence

You have had a Global Impact work visa for at least 30 months and confirmation from your provider that they will continue to support you until your programme finishes.

For details of your individual circumstances please contact us for a personal assessment.

Contact me to discuss how I can best assist you.