[Rusty]

Ok, I know I should know this, but my brain is freezing the more I think about this.
My MiL is looking at the grandparents visa - I understand this one.But...for a standard visitor visa, is it as simple as they take the last 18 months and as long as you have been outside NZ for longer than you have been in NZ then you can go back? Or do they only look at more recent visits?
She has been in NZ for 7 months in the last 18 and 3 of the last 6 months. She wants to go back next month while waiting on a grandparents visa and then hopefully sponsored parent. Is this OK?

thanks.
I'll be hiding in the corner when the obvious answers come back - I think I have spent too much time on the complicated procedures :exit

[IanW99]

Ok, I know I should know this, but my brain is freezing the more I think about this.
My MiL is looking at the grandparents visa - I understand this one.But...for a standard visitor visa, is it as simple as they take the last 18 months and as long as you have been outside NZ for longer than you have been in NZ then you can go back? Or do they only look at more recent visits?
She has been in NZ for 7 months in the last 18 and 3 of the last 6 months. She wants to go back next month while waiting on a grandparents visa and then hopefully sponsored parent. Is this OK?

thanks.
I'll be hiding in the corner when the obvious answers come back - I think I have spent too much time on the complicated procedures :exit

How long can I stay?The maximum stay under a visitor visa is nine months. As visa-free conditions only last for three months (or six if you are from the United Kingdom), you will need a visa for any longer stay.

We only allow visitors to come for nine months in any 18-month period. This means, for example, if you visited for five months a year ago, you could only stay for another four months on a trip now.

From this, it would appear that as your MIL has already been in NZ for 7 months out of the 9 allowed in the 18-month period, that she has 2 months left.

Ian