[Tania]

Does anyone know of some good lawyers who can help me. I'm from NZ and my husband isn't. I want to know how we can apply for residency before going back to NZ. What kind of info do they ask for. etc. etc.

[kanatakiwi]

I'm Canadian, married to a Kiwi, and I applied for residency and was granted. I am wondering if you really need a lawyer, it will just cost you a lot of money. The process is quite straightforward, and any questions you have, can most likely be answered by the many people on this forum who have "been there, done that".

Welcome to the Foru, by the way, if you tell us a bit about your situation, where you are from etc, in an Introduction email, you will probably finds lots of helping hands on here.

[wiki]

I'm a Kiwi who successfully sponsored my British parther to NZ residency and it was remarkably easy (certainly easier and fewer forms than going the EOI/ITA route)

All you need to get is have your partner get a police certificate(s), a medical and then fill out a pretty straightforward form and the Kiwi needs to sign a statutory declaration (in front of a lawyer) to say they're telling the truth about the partnership.

The other thing you need is evidence of 12 months' of a stable relationship together - joint bank accounts, joint lease or mortgage details, holiday itineraries and photos are great for that.

We applied in Feb and got the blue stickers in June - but we had some health issues that needed an extra medical report or two and often partnerships can be processed with six to eight weeks.

You won't need a lawyer, just a bit of common sense.

[Oregonkiwi]

I'm a kiwi, brought my American husband home with me last year. As the others said, it's pretty straightfoward, you don't need a lawyer.
Here's a link to get you started:
http://www.immigration.govt.nz/migrant/stream/live/partner/canisponsormypartner/

[swissmissdesigner]

Ami, where are you with your familie? Already back to US?

[Tania]

I'm a kiwi, brought my American husband home with me last year. As the others said, it's pretty straightfoward, you don't need a lawyer.
Here's a link to get you started:
http://www.immigration.govt.nz/migrant/stream/live/partner/canisponsormypartner/


Were you both living in America when you started the process or did you go to NZ and start it? I talked to a lawyer about a year ago who said that he would go on a visitor visa and then apply once we got there and not be able to apply from another country which sounded really weird.

Anyway thanks for all your replies.

[dharder]

I talked to a lawyer about a year ago who said that he would go on a visitor visa and then apply once we got there and not be able to apply from another country which sounded really weird.

Weird indeed. We contacted a lawyer years ago just to get an idea about the process, and they quoted us a few thousand dollars (!) and quite the long time frame.

We are both in the UK, and as others have said beforehand, the process is remarkably easy and straightforward (and can be really quick, I think ours took a month to come back approved in principle) once you fulfill their main crirterion, which is having lived together for 12 months (months, not years, I paid attention this time :))

Good luck,

Daniela

[Oregonkiwi]

Tania - my husband came to NZ on a work visa and applied in Auckland, but that was mainly because we didn't want to pay American prices for the medical, and the fees are cheaper if you apply in NZ. I think most people apply from outside NZ because it's simpler to get all the paperwork taken care of before you move.

[kanatakiwi]

I did my medical and police checks in Canada (because I was told it would 6 months to get a Canadian police check from within NZ....it took 10 minutes at the RCMP office in Canada) and then came to NZ as a visitor and filed my residence application within a month. I applied for a work permit at the same time. If you go this route you have to get your timelines right as the medical information is only good for a few months. I got my work permit in about 6 weeks, (longer than most because they were looking at my medicals) but that was still before my visitors visa ran out. Residence came through in 8 months for me, because of medical issues.
I found it easier to lodge the application from within NZ, because when they had questions, or needed more info, I just went to their office and gave them the info or met with them to talk about it.
kanata kiwi