Thai nationals, as well as foreign persons who have their permanent residency in Thailand, can immigrate to New Zealand from Thailand. Visa formalities are imposed in all situations, including when arriving here as a tourist.
In order to obtain a tourist visa, one of the simplest visas foreigners can obtain, it is necessary to present a set of documents, including the return ticket to Thailand. For other visa types, more complex documentation is required and our immigration lawyer in New Zealand can help you with in-depth information.
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How can a person move to New Zealand from Thailand?
Persons who arrive from Thailand can migrate to New Zealand based on any of the following reasons:
- tourism;
- business;
- temporary work;
- Thai nationals can also relocate to New Zealand from Thailand for the work holiday program;
- study, training;
- permanent relocation.
For each of the above, there are specific conditions to comply with (the applicant must provide documentation that show the eligibility for the visa type of interest). Please mind that the law on immigration to New Zealand imposes a fee-based system for the processing of the visas.
The visa processing falls under the responsibility of the Immigration Office New Zealand, which provides the necessary forms and guides for the applications, charges the fees established under the local legislation, processes the documentation (including medical documents that can be required for many visas – to testify that the applicant is in good health), etc.
Our immigration lawyer in New Zealand can assist you with in-depth information on all the above, and can also guide you in addressing the suitable immigration institution (depending on your location, you can initiate the application with the embassies and consulates available in your region, or you can address institutions inside New Zealand).
How long does it take to process a New Zealand visa?
All foreigners who immigrate to New Zealand must complete their visa application process prior to the arrival in the country. The same applies to those who immigrate to New Zealand from Thailand. As such, the duration of the visa processing is of crucial importance when relocating here.
The duration of the processing is highly influenced by the visa type of interest (short-term visas are processed faster compared to long-term visas that grant the right to permanent residency in New Zealand for instance).
Below, we invite you to discover the average time necessary for the processing of various visas:
- visitor visas can be processed in around 20 days (regular working hours – Monday to Friday), but in practice, 90% of the applications are processed in around 31 days;
- visas for students can be processed in minimum 24 days, but most of them (90%) are processed in 49 days;
- visas for the work holiday program are processed in 30 days (most of the applications);
- persons who immigrate to New Zealand for skilled work can expect their visa to be processed in 5 months (but in practice, 90% of the applications are processed in 7 months).
As mentioned above, New Zealand provides the Work Holiday program, which is opened for several nationalities. It must be noted that this is available for persons who immigrate to New Zealand from Thailand as well.
The program is created based on the same foundation for all nationalities, in the sense that it offers residency, the right to work, study and train in this country for a period of 1 year. However, differences can appear and thus, persons who are moving from USA to New Zealand can have different rules compared to those who arrive from Thailand.
For instance, for Thai nationals, there is a yearly quota of 100 visas. For US nationals, the law does not impose a quota. Considering these, we invite you to address our immigration lawyer in New Zealand, who can assist with further details.
