Parent Resident Visa ballot system – Bringing parents to New Zealand

By Elly Fleming

8 May 2023

The Parent Resident Visa Category allows New Zealand citizens or eligible New Zealand residents to sponsor their parents to relocate permanently to New Zealand. To be eligible parents must be invited to apply for residence, have a sponsor, and meet health, character, and English language requirements. The sponsor must live in New Zealand and meet specific salary requirements, which have been increased from 1 May.

In order to be invited to apply for residence, an expression of interest (EOI) first needs to be selected from the pool. The government recently implemented a new system whereby EOIs submitted on or after 12 October 2022 are to be drawn randomly by ballot every three months starting from August this year.

All EOIs submitted before 12 October 2022 will be selected in the order they were submitted, in semi-regular selections starting on 9 May. While INZ has promised to make the EOI application available online during May to make the process more user-friendly, we have yet to see this come to fruition.

We highly recommend that professional advice is sought prior to submitting your EOI.

Pitt & Moore provides expert advice on immigration, employment, and visa rules and processes, so please contact us for some expert guidance.

The case for an overhaul of the parent resident category

New Zealand desperately needs skilled migrants, to look after our rapidly aging population in hospitals, general practices, and aged care facilities, to teach our children, contribute to the construction and engineering efforts in our cities, fill critical gaps in our ICT, telecommunications, primary industries, science and trades sectors and more.

Policymakers should factor in that a proportion of people will inevitably want to bring their parents to New Zealand once they have settled here. And that they deserve this opportunity to live a normal family life.

But if decision-makers are less inclined to consider the human story here they should at least consider the evidence about the economic benefits.

Happier families invest in New Zealand

A 2019 report by MBIE found that migrants who sponsored parents made a more substantial commitment to New Zealand than those who didn’t. Migrants whose parents live with them are more likely to find a job and work longer hours, especially when they have young children.

An insistence on an income threshold raises questions about how the government, and New Zealand society (as voters for that government), perceive and then evaluate the contributions of migrant families.

The fact is that studies show that family reunification has a positive economic impact on countries that reduce the barriers to this. While older parent immigrants may not bring immediate economic gain, they bring emotional, social, and cultural capital to their children and grandchildren which can create economic opportunities later.

The changes to Australian citizenship rules could have serious consequences

The announcement that New Zealanders will soon have access to Australian citizenship after four years makes it more important than ever to make our own immigration settings fair and appealing.

In order to counteract the potential escalated loss of highly-skilled workers to Australia, we need to urgently maximise the numbers of skilled workers moving to, and remaining in, New Zealand.

And yet the Parent Resident Visa is laden with off-putting criteria that will have skilled workers looking to better opportunities in other countries. New Zealand is missing an opportunity to attract and retain the people with the skills we need to move forward, and each day skilled workers who have been trying to bring their parents to New Zealand are leaving, moving to countries like Australia, Canada and the US where it is easier for them to be together.

A case for change

Policymakers should urgently consider establishing an additional option under the current Parent/Grandparent Visitor visa category, like the successful Australian Sponsored Parent (Temporary) Visa. This is a long-stay, non-residential visa for 3-5 years, possibly extending your stay up to 10 years.

This would mean that when you apply, your application goes in the queue and you have the certainty of a place in the queue. Applicants can see the path towards a more rounded life and opportunities to settle and invest in New Zealand.

Talk to us

We offer an initial 15-minute free consultation to all new clients to discuss your particular circumstances and what services we can provide.

Disclaimer: The information contained in this publication is of a general nature and is not intended as legal advice. It is important that you seek legal advice that is specific to your circumstances.