Permanent Resident Visa - Earliest application date

[junaidmaq]

Dear Forum Members,

I was issued a Residence Visa in January 2018 (visa start date 19 Jan 2018) and my first entry in New Zealand was on 30 June 2018 (expiry date travel 30 June 2020).

I have already completed all requirements for the "established base" option under commitment to New Zealand. Currently I am not in NZ and was planning to travel next month to submit my Permanent Residence application but now it seems that it will unfortunately not be possible due to COVID situation. As I understand, my Residence Visa will now expire on 01 July 2020 because I will be overseas with expired travel conditions.

I am now planning to submit my application from overseas and noticed the below statements in Guide INZ 1176:

You must:
• hold a resident visa, or have held one in the last three months
• hold, or have held, that resident visa for at least two years continuously, and it has been at least two years since your first day as a resident in New Zealand

Can someone please confirm if in my case, given the dates mentioned above, is 1st July 2020 the earliest date when I can submit the Permanent Residence visa application after my Residence Visa has expired?

Is there any possibility to submit my application earlier given that I have already completed all other conditions for showing commitment to New Zealand? To be noted that I have also held other residence visas in the past and if those visas are considered my first day in NZ goes as far back as Jan 2015.

My main concern is that I don't want to face a situation that I am overseas without having any valid visa for returning NZ. Please do share your advice.

Regards,
JM

[JandM]

Is there any possibility to submit my application earlier given that I have already completed all other conditions for showing commitment to New Zealand?

No, given that one of the requirements for eligibility for PR is to have held a valid residence visa for at least two years. https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-...anent-resident The other criteria are AS WELL AS that.

Can someone please confirm if in my case, given the dates mentioned above, is 1st July 2020 the earliest date when I can submit the Permanent Residence visa

No, the earlest date is the 30th June. Your day of arrival in New Zealand is counted. (This is a long-established practice, as can be seen in the Note after RV 1.15.1 in this previous version of the operational manual."Note: Periods during which a person has been in New Zealand as a resident are calculated inclusive of both arrival and departure dates.")

You will be eligible to apply for PR with no problem, as long as you do so within three months of the unavoidable expiry of your resident visa (and, obviously, meet the other criteria). You have quoted the confirmation of that in your own post. There is no way to avoid the expiry of your residence visa, since the NZ borders are closed even to residents if they aren't qualified in some job which would help in combating the pandemic. Notice, there is no sign of any early opening of the borders, even to those with a fully valid visa.

[junaidmaq]

Thank you JandM for the quick follow-up and clarification !

Indeed the other criteria is already met but in this case I need to ensure that the application is received at the Visa Application Center within a short, specific window (30 June earliest to 10 July latest) otherwise the day count of my family members included in the application will fall below the required 184 days. Currently the VAC I need to submit to (London) is closed and not even accepting applications sent via courier. Hopefully the situation will improve in coming weeks and I will try to courier the application 4,5 days before 30th June to accommodate for the international transit time.

Thanks again for your help.

Regards,
JM

[Kelerei]

There is no way to avoid the expiry of your residence visa, since the NZ borders are closed even to residents if they aren't qualified in some job which would help in combating the pandemic.

This may not be entirely correct in junaidmaq's case.

The border remains open unconditionally to:

• New Zealand citizens; and
• Holders of a Permanent Resident Visa; and
• Holders of a Resident Visa granted in New Zealand, provided that the travel conditions have not yet expired; and
• Holders of a Resident Visa granted outside New Zealand, where the holder is travelling to New Zealand for a second or subsequent time as the holder of that Resident Visa, and provided that the travel conditions have not expired.

In all of the above cases, entry permission must be granted at the New Zealand border: see Sections 13 and 108 of the Immigration Act 2009, which the Epidemic Management Notice and recent Immigration Amendment Bill does not amend in any way. (There is, however, government-mandated quarantine for 14 days upon arrival.)

For holders of a Resident Visa granted outside New Zealand where the holder is travelling to New Zealand for the first time as the holder of that Resident Visa, and all temporary class visa holders, entry permission must be applied for at the border, and owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, the default position is currently to deny entry permission except under limited circumstances.

[JandM]

That's right. Of course I was remembering the restrictions for temporary worker visa holders. So I guess the non-availability of flights would be the hindrance in junaidmaq's case.

[junaidmaq]

Thank you very much Kelerei for the additional comments !

I will also get in touch with INZ to seek further confirmation and check where to submit the Permanent Residence application as the VAC in United Kingdom is currently closed.

Regards,
JM

[junaidmaq]

That's correct JandM.. that hurdle is surely there + the fact that I would certainly not want to put myself or my kids under any unnecessary risk by traveling in the current situation. If it can be done remotely, that will definitely be my preferred option!

Regards,
JM

[Kelerei]

Thank you very much Kelerei for the additional comments !

I will also get in touch with INZ to seek further confirmation and check where to submit the Permanent Residence application as the VAC in United Kingdom is currently closed.

Regards,
JM

This is an educated guess on my part, but submitting your application to the Manukau office (as if you were onshore) may be an option; that office has reopened, albeit with reduced capacity.

[mara_visa]

Hello, any recent applications for Permanent Residence (i.e. post lockdown)? Just trying to gauge the time they take these days... Thanks.