One-off residence visa

This residence visa is closed now so no new applications are being received

If your situation has changed or if you have received a PPI letter challenging your elgibility we can help turn things around and get a positive outcome.

Feel free to email us for more information.  adviser@immigrate.kiwi.nz 

Archived information

 The most important thing to note with this visa is that it is aimed at clearing the backlog of SMC applications, so it is set up as a one-off chance that will remove applications from the residence queue. This means that there is only one chance at success, a poorly made application will fail, and if it fails there is not enough time to resubmit anything. All applications must be submitted before 31 July 2022, so if it takes 12 months to process, once an application is declined, the submission deadline will have passed. We recommend that all migrants who are serious about gaining residency in NZ through this category have their applications done professionally - by a licensed immigration adviser or immigration lawyer.

Initial points to keep in mind

From experience with previous special one-off visas there are several factors which we are keeping in mind.

• Streamlned / fast track processing means a quick decision but it does not mean that all will be approved quickly. For INZ a quick decline is as beneficial to the goals of this visa as a quick approval. The Government's purpose is to reduce the backlog of applicants, so whether an application is approved or declined, the result is the same for them
• The application criteria will still be assessed strictly, and the qualifications or restrictions that will come with the immigration instructions will mean that a high level of proof will still be required and tricky solutions to not meeting the visa criteria will cause difficulties in the application.
• This is a residence visa, so assessment will be at a residence level of assessment. Things that may not have been picked up before such as undeclared criminal offences, health, job details and so on, may be more carefully examined and require higher thresholds to pass.
• The clearer you meet the eligibility criteria the better the chances of success. Applications with multiple claims to eligibility may be stronger, but as long a sone criteria is clearly met then this should be fine.
• The processing is likely to get stricter as time goes by. As INZ pick up that people are exploiting loopholes, or that they are running out of the allocated 165,000 places (including partners and children) then they will tighten up the assessment criteria to decline more applications
• If you have a partner you need to get the process started now. If you partner is currently offshore (not in New Zealand) then this is even more urgent as partnership criteria is strict, and the whole application may be declined on this point.
• This visa is not going to be an automatic approval. The INZ application fee gives an indication of the amount of assessment INZ intends to do. For example a work visa fee is $495, so at $2160 for this R6 residence visa we expect that INZ will spend about 4 times the time and effort on assessment for this visa than they would on a work visa. We then prepare and present this visa accordingly.

Overall, we think this is a great opportunity for many people, but we alraedy see that many people are not taking it seriously, and may waste the opportunity by trying a rough and ready application.

What we are seeing in the March application stage

The March phase (phase 2) is very different from the December phase. In phase 2 we are not able to submit all the important parts of the application until INZ has triaged the applications and allocated an order to them. The application form by itself is not the application, it is full of leading questions for INZ to be able to specify what documents you will need next. This means that the application part of phase 2 will almost be like a big PPI letter.

The phase 1 applications alredy had the strengthening documents and cover letters submitted with the application so when the applications were looked at, explanations for any unusual entries were already explained, preventing immigration officwers from jumping to incorrent conclusions. In Phase 2 this isn't possible.

To get in early, please send your details of how you meet the initial criteria to us at admin@immigrate.kiwi.nz or licensed.migration@gmail.com  We will then contact you and give you a definite decision on your eligibility and costs.