Immigration to New Zealand can take place following specific steps that can be influenced by the nationality of the foreign applicant, steps that are ratified at an international level, between New Zealand and the countries from where foreigners arrive.
When we refer to foreigners who immigrate to New Zealand from Belgium, we must mention that visa formalities do apply, as most foreigners must have one type of visa in order to arrive here (visa exemptions can be prescribed in certain cases, but they are the exception, and not the rule).
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When does a foreigner need a New Zealand visa?
A New Zealand visa is required for all types of arrivals in the country. In general, the law of immigration in New Zealand prescribes visas for the following scenarios:
- tourism visas;
- study visas;
- visas for temporary work;
- work holiday visa (address to young persons who can work, travel and study in New Zealand);
- permanent visas, which can be issued for family reunification, business/investment, employment (many people, including those opting for immigration to New Zealand from Belgium, arrive here for these purposes).
Therefore, when arriving in this country, the foreigner must apply for a visa that is suitable for the purpose of stay. Please mind that the legislation on immigration to New Zealand prescribes visas that grant the right to relocation based on humanitarian reasons as well.
For all the categories of visas presented above, you can rely on our immigration lawyer in New Zealand, who can present you the necessary information for the application process, and can help you prepare your visa application file.
Please mind that in the case in which your visa application is denied, you have the right to make an appeal in the conditions prescribed by the legislation currently applied here. We can represent clients even if they have not been our clients since the initial stages of their immigration process, therefore, if you are currently dealing with a visa refusal, you can always contact us for advice. Persons who move to New Zealand from Belgium who are in this situation can contact us as well.
Meeting the language requirements in New Zealand
If you arrive here as a tourist, you will not be asked to provide evidence on your language skills in the national language of the country (English). However, if you migrate to New Zealand for studies, employment, business or other purposes where you will need to be integrated in the society, you need to present evidence on your language abilities.
This is especially required if you want to obtain a visa that grants residency in New Zealand. There are many international English tests that are recognized in New Zealand and the minimum requirements vary based on the type of visa you want to obtain.
In the list below, you can discover the differences imposed for the Global Impact Work visa and the general visa requirements applicable to entrepreneurs and persons who relocate for employment:
- one can immigrate to New Zealand from Belgium under the 1st visa program with an IELTS test if the person has a minimum score of 6.5 points, while for the 2nd, a score of only 4.0 is required;
- for the TOEFL test, the 1st program requires a score of 70, and for the 2nd, a score of minimum 31 is sufficient;
- for the Pearsons test, the 1st program requires a score of 58, while for the 2nd, an applicant can have minimum 29 points;
- for the Cambridge English test, 176 points are required for the 1st program and 142 for the 2nd.
Other thresholds must be met in case of other types of visas. Please mind that if you immigrate from USA to New Zealand you will not have to provide evidence on any of the above tests, as the USA has the same national language as the one of New Zealand.
We invite you to contact our immigration lawyer in New Zealand for more information on other criteria you must fulfill when preparing a visa application file. Please know that you must provide certified translations of documents, signed only by entities recognized by New Zealand authorities.