Visa policy of New Zealand


Foreign nationals wishing to enter the Realm of New Zealand must obtain a visa unless they are
Both citizens and permanent residents of Australia are deemed to hold resident status in New Zealand upon arrival under the Trans-Tasman travel arrangement.
Visitors must hold passports that are valid for at least 3 months beyond the period of intended stay. Visitors are required to hold proof of sufficient funds to cover their stay: NZD 1,000 per person per month of stay or NZD 400 if accommodation has been prepaid. Visitors are required to hold documents required for their next destination.
New Zealand issues eVisas to nationals of visa waiver countries and China. Applications for student, work, and visitor visas can be lodged online.

Overview

Any person who is not a New Zealand citizen may only travel to New Zealand if holding a valid visa or is a person to whom a visa waiver applies.
While there are many different categories of visa, they can be fundamentally broken down into three classes:
Holding a visa, or taking advantage of a visa waiver, does not in itself entitle a person to enter New Zealand itself: it only entitles the person to travel to New Zealand and apply for entry permission. Entry permission to New Zealand must be granted to a person for that person to be able to enter New Zealand; this is typically done by an immigration officer at the border. Refusal of entry permission results in automatic visa cancellation, and the person being made liable for turnaround if the person has arrived at the border. While most foreign nationals must apply for, and be granted, entry permission at the border, holders of a Permanent Resident Visa, a Resident Visa granted in New Zealand, or a Resident Visa granted outside New Zealand where the holder has previously travelled to New Zealand are granted entry permission as of right.
New Zealand issues electronic visas for all visa application types, though a physical label may be placed in a passport upon request. Electronic visas are linked to a specific passport, and it is necessary for a visa holder to formally request a visa transfer if a new passport is obtained.
New Zealand does not stamp passports of New Zealand citizens, residence class visa holders, or Australian citizens and permanent residents. Holders of a temporary entry class visa, or visa waiver travellers seeking a Visitor Visa on arrival may receive passport stamps if they enter through a staffed immigration counter instead of the automated eGates; however, Immigration New Zealand and the New Zealand Customs Service are investigating the possibility of removing passport stamps entirely.

Australian citizens and permanent residents

By virtue of the Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement, Australian citizens and permanent residents are granted a Resident Visa on arrival if they are of good character. This Resident Visa expires when the holder leaves New Zealand; a variation of travel conditions may be sought if the holder later intends to re-enter New Zealand on that same visa. This then allows the holder’s residence in New Zealand to be considered continuous, which is an important factor if the holder intends to later apply for a Permanent Resident Visa or the grant of New Zealand citizenship.

Visa policy map

Visa waiver travellers

As of 1 October 2019, a visa waiver applies to, but is not limited to, the following people:
Date of visa changes

  • Australian, British, Canadian and Irish citizens have never needed a visa to gain access to New Zealand
  • 1 December 1947: France
  • 1 July 1948: Sweden
  • 1 August 1948: Liechtenstein and Switzerland
  • 1 January 1949: Denmark
  • 1 April 1949: Netherlands
  • 1 January 1950: Norway
  • 1 July 1951: Luxembourg
  • 15 November 1951: Belgium
  • 1 July 1952: Monaco
  • 15 June 1970: Japan
  • 1 August 1972: Germany
  • 1 April 1973: Finland
  • 1 February 1974: Iceland
  • 1 January 1986: Italy
  • 1 November 1987: Austria, France, Greece, Malaysia, Malta, Portugal, Singapore, Spain and United States
  • 1 July 1993: Brunei, South Korea and United States
  • 23 March 1995: France
  • 16 July 1998: Israel
  • 1 October 1998: Hong Kong and British Nationals
  • 30 October 1998: Argentina
  • 1 January 1999: Brazil, Chile and Uruguay
  • 1 July 1999: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates
  • 1 March 2000: Andorra, Hungary, San Marino, Slovenia and Vatican
  • 1 December 2000: Mexico
  • 1 October 2001: United Nations laissez-passer
  • 1 January 2003: Czech Republic
  • 1 April 2005: Cyprus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Slovakia
  • 30 July 2007: Bulgaria and Romania
  • 30 November 2009: Taiwan
  • 1 July 2013: Croatia
  • 30 June 2014: Macao
  • 21 November 2016: Mauritius and Seychelles
Cancelled:
  • Fiji, Samoa and Tonga: 18 February 1987
  • Indonesia: 21 October 1998
  • Czech Republic: 1 January 2001
  • Thailand: 1 January 2001
  • Zimbabwe: 21 February 2003
  • Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu: 8 December 2003
  • South Africa: 21 November 2016

New Zealand Electronic Travel Authority

Since 1 October 2019, travellers that are visa waiver must request a New Zealand Electronic Travel Authority prior to travel. The NZeTA is mandatory for all sea and air arrivals, including transit, unless exempt. When issued, it remains valid for the period of two years. NZeTA is priced at NZD 9 or NZD 12 depending on whether the applicant applies through a mobile app or online.
The New Zealand government expects the NZeTA to cause visitor numbers to drop and reduce visitor spending by NZD 51 million.
;Exemptions from the NZeTA
The following visa waiver travellers are exempt from the requirement to hold a NZeTA before travelling to New Zealand:
Many tourists, people on working holidays, and some students and workers coming to New Zealand must pay an International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy of NZD $35. This fee is payable at the time of applying for a visa or requesting an NZeTA.
;Exemptions from the IVL
Additionally, exemptions exist for transit passengers arriving at and leaving from Auckland International Airport, holders of a Business Visitor Visa, and holders of an APEC Business Travel Card. Applicants for specific visas also do not need to pay the IVL.

Unacceptable travel documents

Any travel document issued by the countries or sources listed below are unacceptable for travel to New Zealand, and visas will not be endorsed in them:
Holders of passports issued by the following countries who possess an APEC Business Travel Card with the "NZL" code on the reverse that denotes it is valid for travel to New Zealand can enter visa-free for business trips for up to 90 days.
ABTCs are issued to nationals of:

Transit

Eligible passengers who are transiting through Auckland Airport for less than 24 hours, and not leaving the transit area of the airport, do not need a transit visa. Eligible passengers are:
The associated states of the Cook Islands and Niue, and the dependent territory of Tokelau, have visa policies separate to that of New Zealand.

Cook Islands

All visitors to the Cook Islands, irrespective of nationality, are visa-exempt for a maximum stay of 31 days. Visitors travelling for tourist purposes may extend their stay, for periods of 31 days, up to a maximum of 6 months.

Niue

Visas are required for all visitors to Niue, except for nationals of New Zealand who are Niueans or descendants of Niueans and nationals of other countries who are bona fide visitors staying 30 days or less. Visitors must have sufficient funds for the length of their stay together with a confirmed reservation for accommodation and those not holding return or onward tickets could be refused entry. Extensions of stay are possible.

Tokelau

All visitors must obtain a permit to enter Tokelau from the Tokelau Apia Liaison Office in Apia, at least 2 weeks prior to travel. Tokelau can only be reached by boat from Samoa and a permit from the Samoan Immigration Authorities is required to leave and re-enter Samoa.

Statistics

New Zealand issued 262,033 general visitor visas in the 2016/17 fiscal year. Top nationalities were:
Applicant nationalityNumber of general visitor visas issued
183,692
45,906
14,378
13,511
17,730
15,074
11,232
10,216
9,918
9,438
5,036

Most visitors came from the following countries of residence:
Country201220132014201520162017Change
2016-17		2018
1,155,7921,218,0161,247,7601,326,8001,409,2001,472,160 1,494,541
197,024228,928264,864355,904409,008417,872 448,189
177,680201,424220,512243,104291,392330,128 13.3352,074
189,648191,632194,416203,952220,976249,264 12.8237,166
63,77669,80878,91284,54496,848104,864 102,087
72,08074,56081,13687,328100,736102,048 99,784
52,89650,99255,48864,99282,38491,168 10.787,853
46,44848,19248,80052,35259,76067,280 12.671,261
29,85630,97637,39246,00052,01661,440 18.167,953
36,40042,25646,84849,58457,34458,544 61,464
26,27228,08031,45636,28844,76854,688 22.258,763
29,42428,97631,53634,24051,79253,840 56,430
Other countries487,322503,855518,280546,839623,715670,411
Total2,564,6182,717,6952,857,4003,131,9273,499,9393,733,707 3,863,217

History

Before 1881

In the early years New Zealand was seen by Europeans as the most remote country on earth. For most Europeans New Zealand was an unappealing prospect, a strange and lonely land reached after 100 days on dangerous seas; its coasts were thought treacherous, its inhabitants bloodthirsty. Only exceptional reasons led people to set off for such a distant corner of the globe. Many of New Zealand's early immigrants first spent time in Australia, and most of them were only temporary visitors in search of items to trade.
Among the earliest visitors were sealers, attracted by the promise of high-quality oil, and fur for hats. As early as 1792, whalers came to the northern end of the country, also as temporary visitors. Also missionaries arrived in New Zealand. By 1839 the total non-Māori population was about 2,000.
Until 1839 there were only about 2,000 immigrants in New Zealand; by 1852 there were about 28,000. The decisive moment for this remarkable change was 1840. In that year, the Treaty of Waitangi was signed. This established British authority in European eyes, and gave British immigrants legal rights as citizens. Most of the people who moved to New Zealand Company settlements were British.
From 1853 to 1870 the non-Māori population of New Zealand rose from just under 30,000 to over 250,000. As with the inflow of the 1840s, there were three main groups – assisted families coming directly from Britain; individuals from across the Tasman Sea looking for a better life; and military settlers.

1881–1914

Restrictions on immigration were first imposed in 1881. Until then, anyone who arrived in New Zealand had been able to remain in the country.
The Chinese Immigrants Act 1881 was the first to restrict the entry of a specific group of people. The number of Chinese who could arrive on one ship was limited to one for every 10 tons of the vessel's weight. A poll tax of £10 was also imposed on each Chinese person entering the country. Unlike the Chinese, most Indians were British subjects and free to enter New Zealand until the very end of the 19th century. From 1896, despite objections from the British government, New Zealand tried to pass more comprehensive legislation restricting the immigration not just of the Chinese but also of Indians and other Asians.
The 1899 act prohibited the entry of immigrants who were not of British or Irish parentage and who could not fill in an application form 'in any European language' – which in practice meant English. These rules were in place for the next 20 years. The fear of economic competition was one reason why the entry of Chinese, Indians and other 'race aliens' was restricted.

1914–1945

Under the War Regulations of 1916, during the First World War, no person over the age of 15 could land in New Zealand without a passport or other document establishing his or her nationality or identity.
Under the Undesirable Immigrants Exclusion Act 1919, Germans and Austro-Hungarians were prohibited from entering without a licence issued by the attorney general. The act also gave power to the attorney general to prohibit the entry of any person not resident in New Zealand – including British subjects – who was disaffected or disloyal, or of such a character that his presence would be injurious to the peace, order and good government' of New Zealand.
The Immigration Restriction Amendment Act 1920 was passed primarily to restrict possible Asian immigration, but Asians were not its only targets. It was also used to curb the entry of other non-British people, particularly Southern Europeans such as Dalmatians and Italians.
The 1931 Immigration Restriction Amendment Act, passed during the Depression period of the 1930s, prevented aliens from Europe entering New Zealand. The only exceptions were if they had guaranteed employment, a considerable amount of capital, or knowledge and skills.

After 1945

From 1961 only Australians had unrestricted entry to New Zealand. This was a long-standing right, established in 1840 when New Zealand became a British colony like Australia. Reciprocal travel arrangements, beginning in the 1920s, formalised this free movement from one country to the other. In 1973, the Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement allowed Australian and New Zealand citizens to enter each other's countries to visit, live, work, or remain indefinitely without having to apply for a permit.
Under the 1961 Immigration Amendment Act, British and Irish immigrants, along with other non-New Zealand citizens were required to have a permit before entering New Zealand. In practice, the permit was only a formality for Britons and Irish; they were issued with permits on arrival. Nevertheless, for the first time, the 1961 act put British and non-British people on the same footing when they sought to enter New Zealand. After the immigration policy review of 1974, British migrants, like all others, were required to obtain a permit before they left their homelands. The British and Irish were now on the same footing as the nationals of other countries.
Between the 1940s and the 1970s, New Zealand concluded visa-free agreements with countries of Western Europe.
Visa-free access for citizens of Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Tuvalu, Indonesia, Thailand, Zimbabwe, Samoa, South Africa and Tonga has been cancelled because of illegal immigration.
As of 2017, under the Immigration Act 2009 and the Immigration Regulations 2010 passport holders of the 60 jurisdictions may travel to New Zealand without obtaining a visa for up to 90 days.