RA4.10 Who is deemed to hold a resident visa without travel conditions

1. A person in New Zealand is deemed to hold a resident visa without travel conditions if they:
   1. held a residence permit granted under the Immigration Act 1987 and did not hold a returning resident’s visa; or
   2. were considered to hold a residence permit under the Immigration Act 1987 (see RA4.10.1); or
   3. were exempt under the Immigration Regulations 1999 from the need to hold a residence permit in New Zealand; or
   4. held New Zealand citizenship and renounced or were deprived of their citizenship.
2. A person who holds or is deemed to hold a resident visa may continue to stay in New Zealand indefinitely, however if they wish to leave New Zealand and return as a resident they must have a resident visa with valid travel conditions in their travel document (RV3).
3. If a person is deemed to be the holder of a resident visa because they held a residence permit granted under the Immigration Act 1987, and that residence permit was subject to requirements imposed under Section 18A of that Act, their resident visa is deemed to be subject to conditions equivalent to those requirements.

RA4.10.1 People considered to have held a residence permit under the Immigration Act 1987

See also Immigration Act 1987 s 44, Immigration Act 2009 s 415

Even though a person in New Zealand was not the holder of a permit granted under the Immigration Act 1987, they are deemed to hold a resident visa if they:

1. arrived in New Zealand lawfully to take up permanent residence at any time before 2 April 1974 other than under a permit granted under the Immigration Act 1964 or any corresponding earlier Act; and
2. have been in New Zealand continuously from the day they arrived, apart from any period or periods spent in:
   1. Cook Islands, Niue or Tokelau; or
   2. Australia, if during any such period they were a Commonwealth citizen or citizen of the Republic of Ireland and were able to live in either New Zealand or Australia without restriction; and
3. were in New Zealand immediately before the commencement of the Immigration Act 1987 (ie, were in New Zealand at midnight on 31 October 1987); and
4. were not exempt under the Immigration Act 1987 from having to hold a residence permit.

   Note: If a person who meets these requirements requests confirmation of their residence status, an immigration officer must endorse their passport with a residence class visa (see R7).

Effective 29/11/2010