PR visa and now have new UK passport

[ian5708]

Hi,
I am a British Passport Holder with Permanent Residency in NZ.
I havent been in NZ for the past 2.5 years and I have since got a new UK passport.
I understand that I am required to apply to have a new PR Visa sticker to be applied into my new passport but processing times are up to 50 days for 90% of applicants. I'm in UK for the next 6 weeks and I'll be applying for a Thailand tourist visa and will be send my passport off for that very soon.
Once in Thailand I will remain there for 60-90 day before travelling to Australia on a Tourist visa and then visiting NZ for a couple of weeks.
I do not see how it's going to be practicable for me to get a new PR Visa sticker in my new UK passport before I intend to arrive in Queenstown, NZ.
If I present my old passport containing my NZ PR visa along with my new passport, will NZ Immigration let me into the country, or will the airline bringing me into NZ actually let me board?
I'm sure my PR status will be on the NZ Immigration system.
TIA. Ian

[Kelerei]

You're looking at the Permanent Resident Visa timeframe, and not the "Transfer of visa to new passport" timeframe. This is considerably shorter: 90% of applications completed within 20 days.

Beware though: I fell in the remaining 10% a few months back -- it took six weeks, plus an official complaint lodged.

If you do not transfer your visa into your new passport, it will pretty much be at the border officer's discretion to allow you into NZ or turn you around.

[Kelerei]

I was giving this some more thought while on the train to work this morning, and this is what I would do in your situation:

As soon as your passport comes back from the Thai authorities, submit your application for a visa transfer immediately. Request an eVisa rather than a physical label, and include a cover letter stating that you require your passport back urgently for travel.

INZ, for all their recent faults, are quite good at returning passports if the applicant needs them for travel -- so, as soon as they've sighted your new passport, they should send it back to you, particularly if you state that you need it for travel. Requesting an eVisa rather than a physical label means that INZ are (in theory, anyway!) unlikely to ask you to send your passport back or retain it, since they won't be placing a label in it; they'll grant the visa electronically and email you a confirmation letter that you can then use for checking in to your NZ flight and at the NZ border. So long as this email comes through before your flight to NZ, you'll be fine; you'll just need to find somewhere whilst on your travels to print the confirmation letter out. If you prefer having a physical label, you can always request this later, after your travels.

[ian5708]

Thank you for your advice kelerei.
👍🏼😊