New Zealand: Immigration Update June 2025
The New Zealand Government have announced a new ‘Parent Boost’ Visitor Visa. With the announcement made on Sunday 8th June 2025, this new long-term visitor visa is designed to help provide working parents with additional family support, enhancing New Zealand’s appeal to highly skilled migrants and help unite families.
Traditionally, skilled migrants have been hesitant to relocate to New Zealand due to the difficulty of leaving parents behind. This new visa provides an encouraging pathway for parents to join their families, making the transition and settlement process in New Zealand much smoother.
What’s changing?
In support of increasing family connections without additional burdens being placed on public services, this multiple-entry visitor visa will allow parents of New Zealand Citizens and residents to visit for up to 5 years.
Additional to this, applicants have the option to apply for a second visa, allowing a total stay for up to 10 years, provided eligibility requirements continue to be met. Although this visa is not a pathway to residency, it does offer a valuable way for families to spend long term time together.
Eligibility requirements
Sponsorship
- Applicants must have an eligible sponsor who is their biological or adopted child and who is either a New Zealand citizen or resident
- The sponsor must also take on responsibilities such as covering essential costs, for example accommodation, daily living costs, access to health and financial support as well as costs related to repatriation or deportation (if required)
Financial Requirements – applicants must meet one of these financial requirements:
- the sponsor earns at least the New Zealand median wage (or 1.5 times the median wage for joint sponsors) to sponsor 1 parent, with the amount increasing by 0.5 times the median wage for additional parents being sponsored, or
- the parent(s) have a personal income equivalent to New Zealand Superannuation currently NZD $32,611.28 gross per annum for a single parent and NZD $49,552.88 for a couple, or
- the parent(s) have sufficient personal funds: NZD $160,000 for a single applicant or NZD $250,000 for a couple.
Health Insurance
Applicants must hold at least 1 year of health insurance and maintain the insurance throughout the full duration of their stay in New Zealand. Health insurance must cover:
- Emergency medical care (minimum NZD $250,000.00 a year), repatriation, return of remains and cancer treatment (minimum NZD $100,000.00)
What to be aware of?
Applications for this visa can be lodged from Monday, 29 September 2025. Applicants will need to meet the acceptable standard of health in alignment with residence, although this is a temporary application.
Not maintaining valid health insurance while in New Zealand, may impact a person’s eligibility for future visas.
Median wage and superannuation rates change annually.
Applicants cost for the visa will be NZD $3000.00 plus an additional processing fee at the third-year health check of $325.00. Cost for Applicants eligible for the Pacific fee band will be NZD$2450.00 and the additional processing fee at the third-year health check will be $240.00.
There will also be a NZD100.00 International Visitors Conservation and Tourism Levy.
This visa does not provide a pathway to residence, which should be considered carefully. Parents would need to be eligible under the existing parent category (or investor or similar). Current detail does not confirm whether there is a stand down period after the initial 5+5-year period.
Additional details on the process for applications will be made available closer to 29 September 2025.
For more detailed information about the changes and how they might impact your people, connect with our team of fully licensed advisers by contacting Crown World Mobility at crownworldmobility.nz@crownww.com
This summary was prepared using information obtained from INZ. Information is subject to change without notice.
