Country / Territory
Related offices
Related offices
Immigration New Zealand (INZ) has adopted a new policy interpretation for dependent visa holders. Effective immediately, Work Visa holders’ dependent children under five years of age will be eligible to obtain a Visitor Visa only, whereas previously they were eligible for a Student Visa.
A Visitor Visa does not allow the dependent child to attend school in New Zealand. As children approach the age of five, they must obtain a Student Visa allowing them to attend school in New Zealand.
Previously, INZ issued Student Visas to children under four years old if they would be turning five years old at some point during their visa validity period. With this change, new Student Visa applications must be lodged as the child approaches the age of five to enable him or her to attend school in New Zealand.
What This Means for Foreign Nationals
Foreign nationals planning to move to New Zealand under a Work Visa with dependent children should anticipate applying for a Student Visa as their child approaches five years of age to be able to attend school. Foreign nationals on Permanent Residence status will not be affected by this policy change.
Fragomen will continue to monitor the situation and will provide updates as they become available.
The content of this alert is provided for information purposes only. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen in New Zealand or send an email to [email protected].
LIA 201500192
Country / Territory
Related offices
Related offices
Explore more at Fragomen
Media mentions
Partner Daniel Pierce discussed the implications of the US Supreme Court's latest Temporary Protected Status ruling.
Blog post
In this blog, Senior Counsel Jo Antoon explores what multinational employers need to know about pay transparency, cross-border workers and mobility-related compensation differences as implementation unfolds across the EU.
Media mentions
Immigration Supervisor Sanjay Parmar discussed how recent UK Basic Compliance Assessment changes are driving universities toward more data-led, proactive compliance management.
Blog post
In this blog, Fragomen’s Nadine Barnole, Jonathan Hill, Anastasia Vasiljeva and Nicole Williams examine how higher Skilled Worker salary thresholds, rising sponsorship costs and proposed Graduate Route changes are making it harder for employers to attract and retain international engineering talent.
Media mentions
Practice Leader Colm Collins explains how Ireland's employment permit updates can help employers address workforce shortages while strengthening the country's ability to attract global talent.
Blog post
Senior Associate Arta Djahanschiri and Associate Iris Barthel discuss how EU-Turkey Association Law, including Association Council Decision No. 1/80, can provide Turkish employees and their family members in Germany with residence and labor market rights that may extend beyond protections available under the German Residence Act.
Media mentions
Poland Immigration Strategy Director Tomasz Rogala and Senior Associate Tomasz Rdzanek explain Polish legislative changes affecting residence rights, employment authorization and long-term immigration pathways.
Media mentions
Partner Marius Tollenaere and Associate Jamela Sharrock examine how employers in Germany can strengthen immigration compliance by embedding it into every stage of the employment lifecycle.
Podcast
In this episode of The Immigration Conversation, Partner Chad Blocker, Senior Counsel Mitchell Wexler and Associate Alex Kim discuss what prospective EB-5 applicants should know now, including source-of-funds documentation, project selection, concurrent filing, retrogression and upcoming program deadlines.
Blog post
In this blog, Partner Jo Antoons and Senior Manager Marina Ocariz discuss the EU’s provisional agreement on revised social security coordination rules and what employers should know about the expected changes to A1 certificate requirements, posted worker rules and short-term cross-border work compliance.
Blog post
In this blog, Partner Rahul Soni explains the EB-5 grandfathering provisions under the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 and why prospective investors should consider filing before the September 30, 2026 deadline to help preserve statutory protections and reduce exposure to future program uncertainty.
Video
In this video, Practice Leader Kate Praphakornphiphat explains the key requirements, documents, fees and processing time for a Thailand tourist visa, as well as stay duration and extension options for short-term travel.
Media mentions
Partner Daniel Pierce discussed the implications of the US Supreme Court's latest Temporary Protected Status ruling.
Blog post
In this blog, Senior Counsel Jo Antoon explores what multinational employers need to know about pay transparency, cross-border workers and mobility-related compensation differences as implementation unfolds across the EU.
Media mentions
Immigration Supervisor Sanjay Parmar discussed how recent UK Basic Compliance Assessment changes are driving universities toward more data-led, proactive compliance management.
Blog post
In this blog, Fragomen’s Nadine Barnole, Jonathan Hill, Anastasia Vasiljeva and Nicole Williams examine how higher Skilled Worker salary thresholds, rising sponsorship costs and proposed Graduate Route changes are making it harder for employers to attract and retain international engineering talent.
Media mentions
Practice Leader Colm Collins explains how Ireland's employment permit updates can help employers address workforce shortages while strengthening the country's ability to attract global talent.
Blog post
Senior Associate Arta Djahanschiri and Associate Iris Barthel discuss how EU-Turkey Association Law, including Association Council Decision No. 1/80, can provide Turkish employees and their family members in Germany with residence and labor market rights that may extend beyond protections available under the German Residence Act.
Media mentions
Poland Immigration Strategy Director Tomasz Rogala and Senior Associate Tomasz Rdzanek explain Polish legislative changes affecting residence rights, employment authorization and long-term immigration pathways.
Media mentions
Partner Marius Tollenaere and Associate Jamela Sharrock examine how employers in Germany can strengthen immigration compliance by embedding it into every stage of the employment lifecycle.
Podcast
In this episode of The Immigration Conversation, Partner Chad Blocker, Senior Counsel Mitchell Wexler and Associate Alex Kim discuss what prospective EB-5 applicants should know now, including source-of-funds documentation, project selection, concurrent filing, retrogression and upcoming program deadlines.
Blog post
In this blog, Partner Jo Antoons and Senior Manager Marina Ocariz discuss the EU’s provisional agreement on revised social security coordination rules and what employers should know about the expected changes to A1 certificate requirements, posted worker rules and short-term cross-border work compliance.
Blog post
In this blog, Partner Rahul Soni explains the EB-5 grandfathering provisions under the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 and why prospective investors should consider filing before the September 30, 2026 deadline to help preserve statutory protections and reduce exposure to future program uncertainty.
Video
In this video, Practice Leader Kate Praphakornphiphat explains the key requirements, documents, fees and processing time for a Thailand tourist visa, as well as stay duration and extension options for short-term travel.
