Applicants for all New Zealand visas will need to meet a set of ‘good character’ requirements in addition to the specific eligibility criteria for the visa they are applying for.
Good character requirements for all New Zealand visas
All New Zealand visas have the following good character requirements:
- you must never have been convicted of a crime and given a prison sentence of more than five years
- you must not have been convicted of a crime and given a prison sentence of 12 months or more within the past 10 years
- you must never have been prohibited from entering New Zealand
- you must never have been deported, excluded or removed from New Zealand or any other country
If any of the above are true, your visa application will be denied.
In addition, your application may be denied if Immigration New Zealand determines that:
- you are planning to commit a crime in New Zealand which would be punishable with a prison sentence
- you may be a risk to New Zealand’s security, public order or public interest
Good character requirements for temporary New Zealand visas
In addition to the overarching good character requirements above, temporary visas (such as work or study visas) are also usually subject to the following additional good character tests:
- you must not have been convicted of a crime which carried a prison sentence, or for which you could have been been given a prison sentence of three months or longer
- you must not be under investigation for serious criminal activity, or have been charged with a serious criminal offence
- you must not have given misleading or false information in a previous application for a New Zealand visa
- you must not have given misleading or false information to support somebody else’s application for a New Zealand visa
Good character requirements for New Zealand resident visas
Applications for resident visas are subject to the overall good character requirements for New Zealand visa applications, plus the following additional tests:
- you must not have been convicted of a crime in any country which relates to:
- passport, citizenship or immigration law
- fraud or dishonesty
- violence
- sexual crimes
- illegal drugs
- dangerous, drunk or drug driving (within the last five years)
- you must not have been convicted of any crime in any country which typically carries a prison sentence of three months or longer, even if you yourself did not receive such a prison sentence
- you must not have given misleading or false information in a previous application for a New Zealand visa
- you must not have given misleading or false information to support somebody else’s application for a New Zealand visa
- you must not have made racist statements, either in public or in published comments
- you must not be a member of a group which promotes hostility and discrimination against other groups because of their ethnicity, race or nationality
Applying for a ‘character waiver’ or ‘special direction’
If you do not meet one or more of the good character tests, you may be able to get a character waiver or special direction in order to still obtain a visa. Whether you will be granted a character waiver or special direction typically depends on:
- the nature and severity of the issue that caused you not to meet the good character test
- how long ago the issue occurred
- the precise circumstances of the issue and how it came about
- your personal circumstances, particularly any past, current or future ties to New Zealand
You should ensure that you provide New Zealand Immigration with all relevant information relating to a possible failure to meet good character requirements, as well as an explanation of why you would like to request a character waiver or special direction.
If you are considering applying for a character waiver or special direction, or have any general concerns about meeting good character requirements, you may wish to discuss your circumstances and requirements with a qualified advisor.
Mohamed Anas Sirajur Raheem
BA (Political Studies), LLB (VUW)
Mohamed is an enrolled Barrister and Solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand, specializing in immigration law.
He is a former New Zealand Immigration Officer (Visa Services) and Border Officer at Auckland International Airport. He has several years of experience working in various Government Departments in New Zealand and has also worked as a Licensed Immigration Adviser at a prominent New Zealand Immigration firm.
His areas of expertise and interest are in the fields of General Skilled Migration, Temporary Work (Long and Short Stay), Business visas, Partner, Parent and Child Visa streams.
Mohamed was inspired to pursue a career in immigration by his own migration experiences. Over the years he has assisted individuals, families, large corporations, Professional sportspeople, and Entertainers (singers, speakers, and actors) to come to New Zealand.
