Pacific Access Category Resident Visa

Visa details

If you are from Kiribati, Tuvalu, Tonga or Fiji you can register for a ballot. If your registration is drawn from the ballot we may invite you to apply for residence.

Length of stay

Indefinitely

Age range
Between

18 – 45 years

Quota
Each year

See below

Cost
From
NZD $1385
With this visa you can
  • Live, work and study in New Zealand.
  • Include your partner, and dependent children aged 24 and under, in your residence application — if you first included them in your ballot registration.
Things to note
  • You or your partner must have a job offer that pays enough to support you and your family in New Zealand.
  • You must be able to read, write and speak English.
  • The visa quotas have been increased for the 2022 and 2023 ballots. They are now up from 75 to 150 Kiribati citizens, 75 to 150 Tuvaluan citizens, 250 to 500 Tongan citizens and from 250 to 500 Fijian citizens.
Closed

This visa is closed for 2022. The draw for the Pacific Access Category took place on Wednesday 7 December. 

2022 Pacific Access Category ballot results

Who can apply

The criteria and evidence below will provide you with the information you need to meet the requirements of this visa.

View All Evidence

Ballot registration

You must register for the Pacific Access Category ballot by the closing date

You must register your Pacific Access Category ballot using the online form if you are in Fiji and Tonga.

If you are in Kiribati or Tuvalu you can register online or use the paper Pacific Access Category Registration Form (INZ 1375).

Your ballot registration must include:

  • a copy of your birth certificate
  • copies of birth certificates for your partner and dependent children.

Pacific Access Category Paper Registration form for Kiribati and Tuvalu (INZ 1092) PDF 411KB
Partnership
Dependent children

Tips

  1. Don’t send original birth certificates, as we may not be able to return them to you.

    If you don’t include your partner or children in your ballot registration, they won’t be included in an invitation to apply for residence later.

Age

You must be at least 18 but no older than 45 when the registration for the ballot closes

We’ll use the birth certificate you send with your ballot registration to confirm your age.

Invitation to apply for residence

You must be invited to apply for residence

If invited to apply for residence, you must apply within 8 months of being invited to apply.

Health

You must be in good health

You must have a chest x-ray and a medical examination as proof of your good health.

Getting an x-ray or medical examination

Tips

  1. You don’t need to have an x-ray or medical examination until you’re invited to apply for residence.

Character

You must be of good character

If you are 17 or over, you must provide a police certificate from:

  • your country of citizenship
  • any other country where you have spent 12 months or more over the last 10 years, even if you did not spend that 12 months all in one visit.

Good character

How to get a police certificate

Tips

  1. Police Certificates must be less than 6 months old when you apply.

  2. You don’t need to provide any Police Certificates until you’re invited to apply for residence.

Citizenship

You must be a citizen of Fiji, Kiribati, Tonga or Tuvalu

If you’re invited to apply for residence, you’ll need to provide a valid passport from your country of citizenship.

Country of birth

You or one of your parents must be born in the country you are a citizen of

If you were born in the country you are a citizen of, you must provide your birth certificate.

If you were born overseas, you must provide the following documents for your parent:

  • their birth certificate
  • their passport or certificate of identity showing they share your country of citizenship.
Tips

  1. You don’t need to provide any evidence until you’re invited to apply for residence.

Location

You must apply for residence while in your country of citizenship or while in New Zealand on a valid temporary visa

Any documents that prove where you’re living. Examples include:

  • letters sent to your home address
  • references from your employer.
Tips

  1. You can also apply from Fiji.

English language

You must be able to speak English

If invited to apply for residence, we’ll test your English by talking to you about yourself, your family and your background.

Tips

  1. You’ll need to be able to read and answer questions in English to pass the test.

New Zealand job offer

You must have a job offer

If you’re invited to apply for residence, you must provide evidence of a current offer of full-time work that is for 12 months or more.  

Evidence must include certified copies of your:

  • job offer
  • job description
  • employment agreement
  • registration, if it’s work you need to be registered to do.

We can’t grant a visa if your employer is included on the list of non-compliant employers maintained by the Labour Inspectorate.

Employment agreements and rights

List of non-compliant employers

Tips

  1. The job offer can be for you or for your partner.

Partner and dependent children

You can include your partner and any dependent children up to the age of 24 in your application

If invited to apply for residence, you must provide evidence:

  • of your relationship with your partner and dependent children
  • that your partner and dependent children meet the health, character and identity requirements for this visa.

Partnership
Dependent children

Tips

  1. If your partner or dependent children have, or applied for, a New Zealand temporary entry visa based on their relationship with you, you must include them in your residence application.

Minimum income

You must earn enough money to support your children

If you are invited to apply for residence, you need to provide evidence, such as employment agreements, that you and your partner will earn NZD $49,159 or more between you each year.

We review minimum incomes each year.

Process and costs

The information below will help you understand the process, timeframes and costs involved in applying for this visa, so you can plan ahead and have the best chance of submitting a complete application.

Notes

We cannot display any process or costs information until you have provided your country details. Enter your country details in the panel above to view information relevant to your situation.

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How to submit

Payment methods and receiving centre details if applicable.

Notes

We cannot display any receiving centre or payment method information until you have provided your country details. Enter your country details in the panel above to view information relevant to your situation.

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Conditions

These are the conditions that you must meet once you have your visa.

Entry permission

You must apply for entry permission when you arrive in New Zealand. You can do this by completing an arrival card, which you are given on the way to New Zealand.

Arriving in New Zealand

Notes

  • You can be refused entry permission if:

    • you don’t meet our character requirements
    • your circumstances have changed since you were granted a visa
    • you refuse to let us to take your photo, or provide us with your fingerprints or an iris scan, if we ask you for them.

Arriving in New Zealand

When we grant your visa, you’ll have 3 months to come to New Zealand.

Your partner and dependent children will have 12 months to come to New Zealand.

If you and your family are unable to come to New Zealand by these times, your visa will expire and you’ll have to apply for a new visa.

Notes

  • Your family must have been included in your resident visa application for them to come to New Zealand.

Keep your visa in a valid passport

If you want to travel, your visa must be in a valid passport.

If your passport expires, you must apply to transfer your visa to a new passport before you can travel.

Transferring my visa to a new passport

Notes

Travel

You can travel in and out of New Zealand as often as you like until your travel conditions expire.

To travel after that, you will need to apply for and be granted either:

  • a Permanent Resident Visa
  • a variation of your travel conditions, which would allow you to return to New Zealand at a later date. 
Notes

  • Your travel conditions will expire 2 years from the date you first arrive in New Zealand as a resident.

    If you’re outside of New Zealand when your travel conditions expire, your visa will expire as well.