A16.1 General Instructions as to the order and manner of... (28/07/2008)

A16.1 General Instructions as to the order and manner of processing residence applications

Immigration Act Section 13BA

Pursuant to section 13BA of the Immigration Act 1987 and acting under delegated authority from the Chief Executive of the Department of Labour, I hereby give the following general instructions as to the order and manner of processing residence applications under Government residence policy:

1. The following types and categories of residence applications will be processed in preference to any other types and categories of residence application:
   1. Skilled Migrant Category (SMC); (applications with job offers will have priority);
   2. Refugee Policy;
   3. Partnership and Dependent Child applications where the sponsor is,
      • a New Zealand citizen, or
      • the holder of a an Indefinite Returning Resident Visa, and
        who has been absent from New Zealand for a period of at least two years prior to the date of the application being accepted for consideration apart from short visits within that period. (Note that in the case of a partnership application the New Zealand sponsor must have been living together for 12 months or more in a partnership that is genuine and stable).
2. Subject to instruction (a) above, applications in the following categories of residence under Government residence policy will be processed concurrently in preference to any other categories:
   1. Partnership policy (other than those in instruction (a))
   2. Dependent Child policy (other than those in instruction (a)).
3. These instructions do not prevent visa and immigration officers according urgency to the processing of any particular residence application when the individual circumstances so warrant that.
4. The previous General Instructions made pursuant to section 13BA of the Immigration Act 1987 are revoked.

___________________

Mike Christie

Acting Group Manager, Service Delivery

___________________

Date: 28 July 2008

Effective 28/07/2008