NZ House Appointments?

Silversmith · I'll Hang Around A Little Joined: 19 Nov 2003 Posts: 32

Hi Everyone,

We have recieved the application pack, got the Med. Certs, Police Reports and are off to London to hand in the lot next week. Before going, it suddenly dawned on me, do i need to make an appointment at NZ house in London or can i just turn up and speak to someone while handing it in? A second thought, ive no idea how much this application is going to process - any insight into the costs of an application process for the Family/Partnership Policy??

Any help would be great!

Tanya · Posted: Fri Apr 16, 2004 2:30 am Post subject:

Hi Silversmith

Can't answer your question about making an appointment but if you are applying under family/partnership policy the cost for the application is £460.00 - no personal cheques. If you want a copy of the letter we received with our pack, let me know your email address via a PM and I will scan it and email it back.

Husband is applying through partnership policy as I am a Kiwi. Trust you have had a JP/Lawyer sign your sponsorship declaration! - so many things to do isn't there and it's a costly experience!

Anyway hope it helps, let me know if you need me to send the letter.

Tanya

Silversmith · I'll Hang Around A Little Joined: 19 Nov 2003 Posts: 32

Thanks Tanya, sent you a PM

Silversmith

karltsmith · Posted: Fri Apr 16, 2004 10:18 am Post subject:

Hi Silversmith,

The london office opens at 9:00am no appointment necessary. The Immigration ofices open at about 10:00 am and you get called through in batches of about 10 at a time. its all very efficient really and you should not have to wait long if you turn up for 10:00 am

Good Luck! Nice One

Tanya · Posted: Fri Apr 16, 2004 9:41 pm Post subject:

Hi Karl

Is there any significant benefit to putting your application into the London office in person as opposed to posting it?? eg do your get your documents back there and then, or lessen the waiting time for the application to be processed etc?

Sounds like you must have gone in person so any info would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks

Tanya

veronica · Posted: Sat Apr 17, 2004 5:31 am Post subject:

hi, our son in law took his papers for a work visa to NZ house and came back with his passport stamped and ready to go.

Tanya · Posted: Sat Apr 17, 2004 6:06 am Post subject:

Thanks Veronica

We will be applying for a partnership residency visa - anyone have any idea what happens with that application if we head to London?

Tanya

karltsmith · Posted: Sat Apr 17, 2004 3:23 pm Post subject:

The very real benefit of going to London is that the officer will wade through your documents and spot any obvious omissions and more to the point will only retain what they really want. They only retained about 1/3 of our documents + Passports and isas were issued in a matter of working days. They will tell you 6-8 weeks but if you want to speed things up fill in your expected departure date for say 4 weeks ahead and you'll be suprised how quickly they can move!

Sazzle · Posted: Mon Apr 26, 2004 1:05 am Post subject:

hmm...
They have had ours since january and we are still waiting:(

Raeven · Posted: Mon Apr 26, 2004 5:14 am Post subject: Partnership visa v. work permit

Hi, Tanya,

I'm just curious.. how come you and your partner elected to do a residency visa from the UK rather than just get the work permit for your partner and do application for residency from NZ?

I ask because I, too, am going to NZ as the partner of a NZ citizen. When we contacted the NZ consulate in Los Angeles to inquire about applying forr permanent residency for me, the officer told us that as the partner of a NZ citizen, I could apply for a work permit here, which costs nothing and takes between 2-3 weeks to process, allowing us much greater flexibility to control when we leave here. Were we to apply for PR from here, it would cost twice as much as doing it from NZ and would take up to 9 months to process. The choice seemed obvious, but maybe there are things we're not considering..?

I'd really appreciate your thoughts.

All the best, Rae

Tanya · Posted: Mon Apr 26, 2004 9:13 am Post subject:

Hi Rae

Have sent you a PM

Tanya

Silversmith · I'll Hang Around A Little Joined: 19 Nov 2003 Posts: 32

Been up and handed the paperwork in, must have taken all of 10 minutes! It was so easy, the officer had a quick look to see the 'I''s were dotted and the 'T''s crossed and we left things there, we actually brought most of our evidence back with us as we brought more than enough apparently.
The time needed to process we were advised was between 3 and 5 months so January didnt seem that bad based on this info - just wait and see now what happens next!

ewiggins · I'll Hang Around A Little Joined: 16 Jan 2004 Posts: 17

Hi Rae, I was curious as to what you were saying about applying for a work permit from outside NZ due to having a Kiwi partner? The reason I ask is that I too (!) am in the same position. If my boyfriend is a NZ citizen does this affect things and indeed make them easier??

cliff · Posted: Tue Apr 27, 2004 4:24 am Post subject:

ewiggins,
Providing you fulfill all the requirements for applying as the partner of a Kiwi, the easiest/quickest route to NZ is indeed via the Work Visa, which costs nothing for US citizens, as you do not need to have a job offer.

Raeven · Posted: Tue Apr 27, 2004 4:58 am Post subject:

Hi, ewiggins,

cliff is correct. If you fulfill the NZIS requirements as a partner of a NZ citizen, they let you right in with a work visa -- even if they'd otherwise probably have nothing to do with you! In order to qualify under the partnership policy, you need to prove you have been in a genuine and stable relationship with your partner for a minimum of 12 months. Minimum requirements for recognition of your partnership are that: a) You are both 18 years or older, b) have met prior to the application being made and c) are not close relatives (!!). There is no requirement that you be married. If you are applying from within the US, there is no cost to apply for the work visa, which is good for 2 years. You may then apply for PR once you are in NZ, which we were told costs about half as much from within NZ as opposed to applying from the US. Your NZ boyfriend must be willing to sponsor you as a partner, and you will still have to meet certain requirements for permanent residence, such as being in good health and having a clean police record. It's always possible that NZIS will change the requirements for permanent residency for partners, so some folks prefer to apply for PR before leaving their home country. This eliminates the "oh-god-what-if-they-reject-me-for-permanent-residence-after-I've-already-moved??" nightmare. However, if you feel confident that NZIS will remain stable in their requirements for the year it will take you to gain PR, obtaining the work visa through the partnership policy is without question the easiest, quickest route into NZ.

In order to prove the "genuine and stable relationship" stuff, you will need such things as marriage certificate (if married), proof of shared residence, financial dependence or interdependence (bank accounts, receipts of money transfers to or from your account to your partner's account), public or family recognition of your relationship (letters or affidavits from friends and family), correspondence to you and your partner at the same address, photographs of you and your partner together, evidence of the duration of your relationship and the like. The more you can provide, the better.

Hope this information is of use. Here is a link to NZIS FAQ for the partnership policy: http://www.immigration.govt.nz/NR/rdonlyres/7181FD6C-59EF-40B8-B54D-066761C61CA0/0/partnershipqa29sept03.pdf

Best wishes in your future residence in NZ! - Rae