Refugee Family Support Resident Visa

To apply for this visa, you must be sponsored by a family member who came to New Zealand as a refugee or protected person.

be sponsored by a family member who came to New Zealand as a refugee or protected person

Your sponsor must register as a tier 1 or tier 2 sponsor.

Only tier 1 sponsor registration is currently available. Tier 2 sponsor registrations will be returned.

If your sponsor’s registration is selected from one of the Refugee Family Support Category queues, we may invite you to apply for residence.

If you are invited to apply for residence, you will have 12 months to send us your application.

Due to a high number of applications, processing times may take up to 12 months.

Your sponsor must arrange suitable accommodation for when you arrive. Your sponsor must also continue to make sure that your accommodation needs are met for your first 2 years in New Zealand.

For your partner and dependent children to be included in your residence application, they must have been included in your sponsor’s registration.

You do not need to provide any evidence until you are invited to apply for residence.

be invited to apply for residence by Immigration New Zealand

If we invite you to apply for residence, we will send you a letter detailing all the information you will need to provide.

Settlement service providers available to help with accommodation plans for families: Provider: Safer Ashburton/Mid-Canterbury Location: Ashburton safermidcanterbury.org.nz Provider: Kāhui Tū Kaha Location: Auckland kahuitukaha.co.nz Provider: New Zealand Red Cross Locations: Blenheim, Dunedin, Invercargill, Levin, Masterton, Nelson, Palmerston North, Wellington