Permanent Resident Visa - is 3 months enough?

[Kasiunut]

Hi everyone.

I am applying for the Permanent Residence visa, family class (my husband is a Kiwi and I have been married for 8 years) at the moment. I was wondering if 3 months time is enough to get it back? The reason I am asking is I am wondering if I should applying for the Temporary Work visa instead to get it faster? The reason I am asking is that I was told because of how long I've been married (and have 2 Kiwi citizen children as well) that its better to apply for the Permanent Resident Visa but I read online that it takes 6 months....

We are hoping to leave end of September/early October.


Also, is it possible for me to just enter NZ as a visitor and apply from within New Zealand? Or do they frown upon that? I'm not looking to work right away....

And ONE more question: both my kids are Kiwi citizens (I have their official certificates) however, the elder one's NZ passport has expired and the baby doesn't have one. Are they allowed to enter NZ on their Canadian passports and then we would apply for the NZ passports within NZ or should they have their NZ passports prior to going there?


Any advice would be appreciated.

Kasia

[G-Mo]

Hi, I'm a Canadian married to a kiwi with a NZ citizen child who travelled here with a Canadian passport.

You can't apply for PR directly, you have to apply for Residence and it's up to the discretion of the CO if they choose to upgrade you based on your evidence indicating you've been together over 5 years. If your partner has been out of NZ more than 2 years you are fast tracked, if you are applying from Canada through Washington it took about 2 weeks for my application to process from submission to return with visa.

If your child is traveling on a Canadian passport, they will have to get a travel endorsement from INZ in the passport that proves their NZ citizenship, I'd just renew the kiwi passport.

It's way faster applying for your visa from outside NZ as you are a priority, not so much once you are in the country.

Hope that helps!

[Dell]

I agree with G-Mo - visas processed outside of NZ are on a faster track.

My son and his wife had similar circumstances. They applied for her residency in October 2013, planning to leave for NZ in January. At the advice of NZ immigration, his wife simultaneously applied for a work visa. Good thing she did as she didn't receive her residency (permanent) until some time in April, 2014.

[Kasiunut]

So you think I should apply for both my permanent visa and my temporary work visa at the same time?

Thanks again!

[G-Mo]

So you think I should apply for both my permanent visa and my temporary work visa at the same time?

Thanks again!

Wouldn't hurt to call INZ in Washington and ask. If you have been married 5 years and your partner has lived outside NZ for more than 2 years, it should only take a few weeks to get your Residence processed.

[Karen Phillips]

Hi. Permanent residence visas are only available for the partners of ex-pat NZers who have been living outside NZ for more than 5 years and who have been partners or at least 5 years. They are given priority. I had one processed for a client in Washington branch earlier this year and it took 2 weeks from lodgement to approval. They did put the wrong visa label in the passport (a residence visa instead of a Permanent residence visa) but we got that fixed too. I would go for it. I suggest you get your children's passports sorted before you travel to make life easier. I think you can apply online. http://www.passports.govt.nz/Child-passport---form. Good luck! Karen
PS Lots of partnership evidence needed for 5 years from lodgement date backwards.

[Kasiunut]

Thanks!

I have a ton of partnership evidence - we have been together since high school, have a marriage certificate from 2006 as well as wedding photos, we own a house together, have joint banking etc. My husband hasn't lived in NZ since he was 8 years old (he is 30 now), so that won't be a problem. Unless living in Australia for 2 years counts as being in NZ?

[Karen Phillips]

No - living in Oz won't count against you! It sounds like everything should be fine!