Background In 2003, the Government amended immigration policy to allow for the granting of a visitor visa for a culturally arranged marriage for people intending...
Read MoreThere is so much that attracts aspiring Immigrants globally every year.
The land of the Kiwis and rare wildlife, aquatic life and forests is home to the top renowned cities like Christchurch and Wellington. It is a dream for many to live and work in one of the least populated regions in the world – New Zealand.
All You Would Like to Know About New Zealand
New Zealand has reputed educational institutes and universities that are accredited internationally. They give quality education and training. Professionals with experience in specific fields of expertise have good opportunities to take up work or employment. Various sectors like medicine, sciences, engineering, oil and natural gas, tourism and hospitality, agriculture, etc. are a great boon. New Zealand is known for the even economy and those who would like to go to this place and enjoy freedom of movement have to clear strict requirements. Each visa type has various eligibility criteria but the basic is to have a clean character, sufficient funds for onward travel and living expenses, health clearance, etc.
What are the Benefits of New Zealand PR?

- You can leave and enter New Zealand any number of times within the initial period of two years after that it can be renewed if you meet the criteria.
- You can apply for citizenship after spending initial years on permanent residency status.
- It gives you unrestricted rights to study, live and work in New Zealand.
- For Education you need to pay domestic fees and not international fees.
- You can sponsor your relatives to become permanent residents if they meet the residency and assurance of support requirements.
- You will be entitled to get medical and social security benefit.
- Children born in New Zealand will be New Zealand citizens by birth.
New Zealand immigration eligibility criteria
New Zealand is known for its organized immigration system and uncomplicated immigration policies. Skilled migration and sponsored/nominated visas are the most common immigration pathways for New Zealand.
To be eligible a candidate is required to meet with the eligibility criteria as below:
- You should be under 55 years of age
- You need to prove your English language proficiency (IELTS, PTE, TOEFL)
- Need to be of good health and character
- Get the minimum score on the point assessment grid
- A job offer is required (if applying for Skilled Migration Category)
- Meets with the visa category requirements
New Zealand immigration process & processing time
Processing times can vary
We are committed to delivering the fastest possible service for visa applicants. How long it takes us to process your application depends on how complex it is. We consider every application separately to make sure it aligns with New Zealand’s immigration policy and regulations.
Check your status online
If you applied online, you can check the status of your application and find out if we need more information from you.
Average processing times
Find out how many calendar days it has taken us to process applications for our most common visas in the 3 months to 1 October 2019. For applications that take more than 90 days we have rounded that number to the nearest month. For example, if applications take 110 days, we say it takes 4 months.
If your application is taking longer to process than the normal time frame for that type of visa, you can contact us.
Visitor visa
Visa | 50% of applications completed within: | 75% of applications completed within: | 90% of applications completed within: |
---|---|---|---|
Visitor (holiday) | 8 days | 13 days | 20 days |
Find recent processing times for other types of visitor visa, for example business and group visitor visas.
Student visas
Visa | 50% of applications completed within: | 75% of applications completed within: | 90% of applications completed within: |
---|---|---|---|
Fee Paying Student | 20 days | 51 days | 3 months |
Variation of conditions on a student visa | 15 days | 20 days | 24 days |
Find recent processing times for other student visas.
You can also find out how long it takes to process visas for international students depending on the type of education provider they study with.
Work visas
Visa | 50% of applications completed within: | 75% of applications completed within: | 90% of applications completed within: |
---|---|---|---|
Essentials Skills | 33 days | 70 days | 3 months |
Partner of a New Zealander | 33 days | 88 days | 5 months |
Partner of student | 34 days | 76 days | 5 months |
Partner of worker | 30 days | 57 days | 3 months |
Post-study work visa | 16 days | 29 days | 43 days |
Variation of conditions on a work visa | 22 days | 37 days | 49 days |
Find recent processing times for other work visas.
Residence visas
Visa | 50% of applications completed within: | 75% of applications completed within: | 90% of applications completed within: |
---|---|---|---|
Partner of a New Zealander | 8 months | 9 months | 11 months |
Permanent Resident Visa | 19 days | 30 days | 46 days |
Skilled Migrant | 5 months | 9 months | 13 months |
Transfer of visa to new passport | 11 days | 17 days | 31 days |
Variation of travel conditions on a resident visa | 16 days | 27 days | 44 days |
Find recent processing times for other residence visas.
Step wise New Zealand immigration process
Emigration Process | |
Step | Process |
Step 1: Eligibility | To be eligible for emigration to New Zealand under the Skilled Migrant category, you must:
In addition, further points are awarded if an eligible partner has any relevant skills, work experience, qualifications or a job offer. |
Step 2: Expression of Interest | An Expression of Interest allows the NZIS to assess your health, character, age and English language ability as well as other relevant information. |
Step 3: Selection of Expressions of Interest | Expressions of Interest are pooled and ranked from highest to lowest points. Regular selections are made from the pool and successful applicants will be invited by the NZIS to lodge an application for residence. |
Step 4: Application for Residence | In your application you will need to supply evidence to support all claims made in your Expression of Interest. The date that you make your residence application with the NZIS determines the policy that your application will be assessed against. It is therefore vital to lodge your application as soon as possible to avoid any potentially negative changes to migration legislation. |
Step 5: Assessment | The NZIS assesses the evidence provided in the application, as well as your ability to make a valuable contribution to New Zealand’s social and economic development. |
Top Reasons to Live in New Zealand
- The country is less populated. Hence, it gives peace of mind and there would be lesser pollution too!
- New Zealand is real life ‘Middle Earth’ with all the breath-taking scenes from Lord of the Rings around every corner…
- Because of its remote location and tectonic evolution, It has no poisonous spiders, no snakes, no killer jellyfish or other deadly insects/animals.
- It has all the seasons – lots of variety in the weather can break up the monotony, and means you can have beautiful hot summers, and still ski in the winter.
- It has some fantastic ski resorts, including Craigieburn Valley, Treble Cone, The Remarkables and Coronet Peak. Plus some of the best Apre-Ski in Queenstown.
- You can holiday in Australia, or Fiji, or Tonga. Or South East Asia. All are just a short flight away so you can fit them into 2 weeks with no jet lag.
- Auckland and Wellington regularly appear in the top ten cities for quality of live
- Only 5% of New Zealand’s population are human (the rest are animals)!
- There are no nuclear power plants in New Zealand, it depends mainly on hydro-electric power for its electricity.
- New Zealand was one of the first countries to give women the right to vote.
- Gisborne, situated on the east coast of New Zealand’s North island, is the first place in the world to watch the sun rise.
- Geographically speaking, New Zealand is on a continent all by itself – the last fragment of a submerged continent called Zealandia.
- New Zealand is a multi-ethnic society and home to many different national origins, of which they’re very proud.
- They have a fantastic work-life balance. It’s very normal to get outside, or do a hobby after work, and make the most of the outside on the weekends.
Which Country? Which Visa? Answer All Your Questions
+91 929 163 6666 / +91 40 27074010 / info@cosmicconsultants.in
Things to Know Before Migrating to New Zealand
Among all the popular higher education destinations for Indian students, New Zealand is perhaps the most confusing option while considering future job prospects. While many...
Read More