After AIP, but resident visa not issued

[abinla]

My residence visa approved in 21st Aug. and AIP in 26th Aug, so i sent the 3 passport for sticker in the next day, today only one passport sent back with residence visa. I contacted the call center, they mentioned the remaining two passport don't have the valid visa(expired at 24th Aug.), it's illegal staying and they can't issue the residence visa. The reality is one month before the visa expiration, we submitted the new working&student visa application, they charged money and issued the interim visa as well. when our resident visa approved we contact the working visa CO ,took our passports back, now they claim we don't have valid visa? I contact the SMC CO, she just said she will look into the situation.
Have you seen this kind of situation before? any suggestion? should I hire an immigration lawyer?thanks.

[ChrisMwn]

My residence visa approved in 21st Aug. and AIP in 26th Aug, so i sent the 3 passport for sticker in the next day, today only one passport sent back with residence visa. I contacted the call center, they mentioned the remaining two passport don't have the valid visa(expired at 24th Aug.), it's illegal staying and they can't issue the residence visa. The reality is one month before the visa expiration, we submitted the new working&student visa application, they charged money and issued the interim visa as well. when our resident visa approved we contact the working visa CO ,took our passports back, now they claim we don't have valid visa? I contact the SMC CO, she just said she will look into the situation.
Have you seen this kind of situation before? any suggestion? should I hire an immigration lawyer?thanks.

If matters are as you say, then its a matter for INZ to resolve.
Your obligation was to apply for further temporary visas, before the expiry of previous ones, which it seems like you did?

Perhaps send case officer a copy of interim visa, if you haven't already.

[abinla]

Thank you!
the interim visa issued 3 days before my working visa expired, I haven't sent it to my SMC CO, but I sending now.
My guess is the working visa CO is confued, when i requested passports back for residence visa sticker, maybe she thought i want to "withdraw" working visa application? but I describe clearly in the contact email, I just said I got my AIP so I need passports back for visa sticker.I'd rather to believe this is INZ internal communication problelm.

[ChrisMwn]

Thank you!
the interim visa issued 3 days before my working visa expired, I haven't sent it to my SMC CO, but I sending now.
My guess is the working visa CO is confued, when i requested passports back for residence visa sticker, maybe she thought i want to "withdraw" working visa application? but I describe clearly in the contact email, I just said I got my AIP so I need passports back for visa sticker.I'd rather to believe this is INZ internal communication problelm.

just checking all 3 applicants applied for further temporary visas and were each issued interim visas?

[abinla]

one working visa is expired in Oct. corrsponding passport sent back with residence visa; the remaining two visa expired in 24th of Aug, the interim visa issued in 17th of Aug by email.

[abinla]

some update:
CO called back, for unknown reason, the working visa officer withdrawed my working visa application and corresponding interim visa invalid as well. Now they want me to request section 61, which kind let me stay here legally and get the residence visa eventually. I still believe the misunderstanding is coming from when we request the passports back, I still have the email, but we never ever mentioned we want to withdraw current working visa applicaiton, we simply said we need passport.
let see what gonna happened in next stage.

[ChrisMwn]

I've PM'd you

[raleigh119]

Please understand what exactly Section 61 is before filling for anything:

"Making a Request under Section 61 of the Immigration Act

We may consider granting you a visa under section 61 of the Immigration Act 2009 but only in special cases.

A request from a person who does not hold a visa is not assessed like a visa application. An immigration officer handling a request:

-has no obligation to consider the request
-does not have to provide any reasons for their decision to grant or refuse
-is not obligated to make any enquiries about the information the person has provided in support of the request, or about other information INZ may hold about the person independently of what was provided
is not obligated to grant a visa of the type or length requested (for example, they can grant a visitor visa instead of a work visa), and
-is not obligated to grant a visa even if the person requesting it appears to meet the criteria for a visa under a certain category.

Each request is handled by a senior immigration officer at the INZ Manukau Area Office. There are no processing timeframes for requests."

aside from this:

"If we approve your request in principle, you must pay NZ $365 to have a temporary visa granted, and NZ $870 for each resident visa. The fee is incurred for each person granted a visa (temporary visas for a family of four people would cost $1460)".

https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-...ection-61-visa

Please read carefully about Section 61. Read what will happen to your status if you apply for Section 61. And read IF INZ HAVE AN OBLIGATION TO APPROVE your visa, whether or not they are at fault. Read the last part where it says "is not obligated to grant a visa even if the person requesting it appears to meet the criteria for a visa under a certain category".

I think this is a case where you really need a LAWYER to support you, especially if you followed everything by the book. Also, read something about the Immigration and Protection Tribunal (IPT).

[raleigh119]

I'm a bit emotional after reading this because honestly, if everything you mentioned is as it is, I don't think you deserve a Section 61.

To put it lightly, Section 61 absolves the other party of any wrongdoing!

[ysc5]

I also think you should quickly engage a lawyer