Who Can Sponsor a New Zealand Visa Applicant?
Depending on the visa a person applies for, people or organizations can sponsor them to apply for a New Zealand visa. You can sponsor a visitor to come to New Zealand if you are:
- A citizen of New Zealand
- A resident of New Zealand
- A refugee (if you are sponsoring a family member)
- A community organization (if the visa applicant is a refugee)
- An organization registered as a company, charitable organization, or incorporated society
- A government agency (including government departments and crown entities)
Who Cannot Sponsor a Visa Applicant?
An individual or organization does not qualify as a sponsor if they:
- Have not met sponsorship obligations in the past
- Are rewarded financially for sponsoring you
- Were convicted of a crime under immigration law
- Owe debt to the New Zealand Government or other third parties because they sponsored other visas
What Are the Eligibility Requirements for Individual Sponsors?
If you sponsor a person to travel to New Zealand, you must:
- Be a citizen of New Zealand or have a residence visa, and
- Reside in New Zealand while they sponsor you
As an individual sponsor, you can’t be:
- Officially bankrupt or insolvent
- Likely to be deported
- In prison or waiting to be sentenced
Individual Sponsors for Student Visa Applications
If you sponsor a student visa, you must be the student’s friend or family member. If a visa applicant applies to extend their NZ student visa, they cannot:
- Change their sponsor
- Have a sponsor unless a friend or family member sponsored their first student visa
Individual Sponsors for Resident Visa Applications
If you are sponsoring a person applying for a resident visa, you must:
- Have been a citizen or resident of New Zealand for a minimum of three years
- Have spent 184 days in New Zealand in every last three years
- Live in New Zealand
When someone applies, your records will be checked to see how much time you have spent in New Zealand.
Refugees Sponsoring a Family Member
If you are a refugee who wants to sponsor a family member to come to New Zealand, you must:
- be in New Zealand
- be 18 or older
- be registered as either a tier one or tier two sponsor
- have been granted New Zealand residence for being a refugee, a protected person, an Afghan interpreter, or the partner or dependent child of an Afghan interpreter
- not have sponsored someone who has been granted a resident visa under the Refugee Family Support Category (or the Refugee Family Quota)
Sponsors of Pregnant Women
The sponsor of pregnant women must show that they are an acceptable sponsor and can pay a minimum of NZD $9,000 for their care. The sponsor or guarantor must complete a form to submit with your visa and provide proof of how the sponsor will meet the cost of the maternity care.
What Are the Eligibility Requirements for Organizations?
The organization that sponsors a New Zealand visitor must:
- be registered in New Zealand as a company, incorporated society, or charitable trust
- show a clear link between their activities and why they want to sponsor the person to come to New Zealand, and
- authorize a contact person to represent them and be responsible for sponsorship
What Are the Sponsor’s Responsibilities?
As a sponsor, you must provide information online or via paper application, depending on the visa the person is applying for. To show you are an acceptable sponsor, you must complete an online form if the visitor is applying for a visitor visa. However, you must complete the paper form ‘Sponsorship Form for Temporary Entry (INZ 1025)’ if the person you are sponsoring is applying for a:
- Visitor Visa but are traveling from the Pacific
- Group Visitor Visa
- Partnership-based Visitor Visa
- another type of visa, or
- visa on paper
What Other Application Forms Must I Complete?
You must complete a separate form for each applicant you are sponsoring. You must complete one of the following application forms to sponsor a person coming to New Zealand, depending on their visa:
- If someone else applies on your behalf, they must complete a Sponsor and Supporting Partner Declaration (INZ 1256)
- If you are sponsoring a work-to-residence visa, you must complete the form Talent (Arts, Culture, and Sports) Sponsorship Form (INZ 1091).
- If you are sponsoring a work or resident visa under the Religious Worker Temporary Entry or Residence instructions, you must complete the Sponsorship form for Religious Workers (INZ 1190).
- If you are sponsoring someone affected by the Christchurch Attacks, you must complete the form Christchurch Response (2019) Category Application for Residence (INZ 1245)
- If you are sponsoring an applicant for New Zealand residence under the Parent Category, you must complete the form Sponsorship for Residence under the Parent Category (INZ1024)
- If you are sponsoring someone under the Refugee Family Support Category, you must complete the form Refugee Family Support Category Tier One Sponsor Registration (INZ 1094) or Refugee Family Support Category Tier Two Sponsor Registration (INZ 1192).
Note: If the visitor applies online, they must scan and upload the sponsorship form on the online application. If they apply in person, they must submit the sponsorship form with their application.
Sharing ID
You must give your sharing ID to the applicant to complete the application. You must follow the process below:
- Log into Immigration Online by using a RealMe account
- Give you their sharing ID in their Immigration Online dashboard
- Confirm their email address
How Must I Provide Support as a Sponsor?
You must ensure that once the visa holder is in New Zealand, they have what they need for their well-being. As a sponsor, you must:
- provide them with food, clothing, and healthcare
- provide them with a place to stay (their own place of residence or they can pay for their accommodation)
- pay for their travel to their home country unless the visitor pays for it themselves
- pay their deportation costs if they are about to be deported
If the visitor holds a multiple entry visa, you are responsible for them only when they are in New Zealand.
What Are the Required Documents to Prove that I Am a Sponsor?
You must provide proof that you are a New Zealand citizen or resident to be able to sponsor a visa holder in New Zealand. You must:
- Prove that you have enough money to cover the financial costs of the visitor if you will cover them financially, pay for their accommodation, healthcare, or pay their return airfares. You must have:
- At least NZ$1,000 per month for each person (if you don’t pay for their accommodation)
- At least NZ$400.00 per month for each person (if you pay for their accommodation)
- Prove that you own a property or have a rental agreement on the property where the visitor will stay (if you will provide the accommodation)
You must provide bank statements or wage slips from the last three months or letters from your employer as evidence that you can support a visitor.
Can I Support Visa Applicant’s Family Members?
If the visa holder has brought their partner and dependents to New Zealand, you can sponsor them as well. You must cover the exact costs as for the principal applicant.
For How Long Is the Sponsorship Valid?
Your sponsorship starts when the person you are sponsoring arrives in New Zealand. If the visa holder is already in New Zealand, your sponsorship starts when their visa application is approved. Your responsibilities as a sponsor end when the person you are sponsoring:
- leaves New Zealand, or
- gets a new visa
A sponsor cannot withdraw their sponsorship in any circumstances. Even if the person you are sponsoring is staying in New Zealand without a valid visa, you are still their sponsor.
What Happens If I Do Not Honor the Sponsorship?
If you do not support the person you agreed to sponsor for going to New Zealand, the applicant will get deported. If you do not pay the costs, but the New Zealand Government or a third party does, then the amount becomes your debt.