New Zealand Permanent Resident Visa

People who have held a New Zealand resident visa continuously for at least two years and meet the permanent residence requirements.

• Two years as a resident

  You must have held a resident visa continuously for at least two years before applying. The two years start when you first arrived in New Zealand from overseas, or when the visa was issued if you were already in New Zealand.

  immigration.govt.nz · checked 5 minutes agoSource

• Current or recently expired visa

  You must have a current resident visa, or a resident visa that expired 90 days ago or less.

  immigration.govt.nz · checked 5 minutes agoSource

• Meet existing visa conditions

  You must provide evidence that you have met the conditions of your current resident visa, if it has any.

  immigration.govt.nz · checked 5 minutes agoSource

• Show commitment to New Zealand

  You must provide evidence of at least one of five ways to show commitment: time spent in New Zealand, New Zealand tax residence, an acceptable investment, a New Zealand business, or an established base in New Zealand. Each way has its own conditions.

  immigration.govt.nz · checked 5 minutes agoSource

• Be of good character

  You and anyone included in your application must be of good character. Immigration New Zealand will tell you if police certificates are needed.

  immigration.govt.nz · checked 5 minutes agoSource

• Provide identity documents

  Provide a high-quality scan of the details page of each applicant’s passport or certificate of identity, scans of pages containing visa records or entry and exit stamps, and one acceptable photo for each person.

  immigration.govt.nz · checked 5 minutes agoSource

• Translate non-English documents

  If documents are not in English, provide certified English translations and scans of the originals.

  immigration.govt.nz · checked 5 minutes agoSource

• Provide further evidence if asked

  After you apply, Immigration New Zealand may ask for medical examination or chest X-ray evidence, police certificates, or proof that children are dependent. Police certificates must be less than six months old when submitted.

  immigration.govt.nz · checked 5 minutes agoSource

• Check added family members’ eligibility

  A family member who was not included in the original resident visa application must independently have held a resident visa continuously for at least 24 months and meet the other standard requirements, including identity, character and commitment to New Zealand. The page states an exception for certain dependent children of Active Investor Plus or Investor 1 or 2 Resident Visa holders.

  immigration.govt.nz · checked 5 minutes agoSource

• Permanent Resident Visa application fee — applying in New Zealand or from outside New Zealand as a citizen of a country in fee Band Cimmigration.govt.nz · checked 5 minutes agoSource$315 once
• Permanent Resident Visa application fee — applying from outside New Zealand as a citizen of a country in fee Band Bimmigration.govt.nz · checked 5 minutes agoSource$260 once
• Decision timeThe resident visa wait-times page says 80% of Permanent Resident Visa applications were completed within two weeks, based on applications processed in the last four weeks. It does not publish a separate timeframe for applications made from outside New Zealand. Its figures are calculated using workinAbout 2 weeks

1. Get ready

   • Check your resident visa history

     Confirm that you have held a resident visa continuously for at least two years and that your visa is current or expired no more than 90 days ago.

     You’ll need: Resident visa or residence permit

   • Check your visa conditions

     Gather evidence that you met any conditions attached to your resident visa.

     You’ll need: Evidence that resident visa conditions were met, if applicable

   • Choose how to show your commitment

     Check the conditions for the five recognised ways to show commitment and gather evidence for at least one.

     You’ll need: Evidence for the chosen commitment route

   • Prepare identity documents

     Scan the required passport or identity-document pages and obtain one acceptable photo for each applicant.

     You’ll need: Passport or certificate of identity scans, Visa-record and entry or exit stamp scans, One acceptable photo per person

   • Translate documents if needed

     Provide certified English translations and scans of the originals for documents that are not in English.

     You’ll need: Certified English translations, if applicable, Scans of original documents

2. Apply

   • Apply online and pay

     Log in or create an account, complete the application, upload your documents and pay the applicable fee.

     You’ll need: Completed online application, Supporting documents

   • Respond to requests and check your status

     Provide any further information Immigration New Zealand requests and check your application status online; it will email you its decision.

     You’ll need: Any further evidence requested by Immigration New Zealand

3. Visa

   • Check your eVisa

     If your application is approved, Immigration New Zealand will send you an eVisa, valid from the date it is granted.

     You’ll need: eVisa, Valid passport

4. Travel

   • Complete your traveller declaration

     If travelling into New Zealand, complete a New Zealand Traveller Declaration; the earliest you can submit a digital declaration is 24 hours before starting your travel.

     You’ll need: New Zealand Traveller Declaration

Most people may be able to apply for New Zealand citizenship after five years of living in New Zealand as a resident; a Permanent Resident Visa is not required first.

• Resident visa wait times :: Immigration New Zealandimmigration.govt.nzOfficial
• INZ 1028 Fees Guideimmigration.govt.nzOfficial
• Permanent Resident Visa » Immigration New Zealandimmigration.govt.nzOfficial
• Showing your commitment to New Zealand for permanent residence :: Immigration New Zealandimmigration.govt.nzOfficial

Japper is an AI immigration assistant. It gives general information from official sources, not legal advice, and it can be wrong. For your own case, ask a licensed advisor.