Suspension on temporary visas extended until 2021
Back in August, we blogged about temporary visas being closed to offshore applicants for a period of three months. Each month, the government re-evaluates the situation, and Immigration New Zealand has just announced that the suspension of overseas applications for most temporary visas has been extended until February 2021.
A consequence of the border closure due to COVID-19, the decision to stop processing overseas applications for the time being was intended to help INZ get through their backlog while slowing its growth – particularly from applicants who aren’t eligible to enter the country anyway.
As when the measure was introduced on 10 August, the following offshore temporary entry-class visa applications are not affected by the suspension:
- Relationship-based visas for partners and dependent children of New Zealand citizens and residents
- Visas for diplomatic, consular, and official staff and accompanying dependents
- Antarctic Traveller Visitor visas and Antarctic Work visas
- Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) limited visas
As always, we will alert you of further developments as they unfold.