Trafficking Child Victim Visitor Visa
A child may be given this visa if they are 17 or younger, in New Zealand, and certified by the New Zealand Police as a suspected victim of people trafficking.
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Length of stay
Stay for
12 months
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Cost
NZD $0
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Age range
Identified as a victim
17 years or younger
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Processing time
is a
high priority
To apply you must:
- show the New Zealand Police has certified that the child is believed to be a victim of people trafficking
- show the child was aged 17 or younger when identified as a victim of people trafficking
- meet the other requirements of this visa.
This visa lets the child:
- stay in New Zealand as a visitor
- study up to 3 months in any 12-month period.
The child cannot work in New Zealand.
The child can apply for the Trafficking Victim Resident Visa.
There is no fee for this visa.
Who can apply
Check if you are eligible to apply for this visa and what supporting documents and information you need to provide.
Identity
You must provide proof of the child's identity.
You must provide:
- 2 acceptable photos of the child
- the
or
If your photo does not meet all of our requirements we will ask you for a new photo. If you are applying for a visa, we will stop processing your application until we receive an acceptable photo. If you are requesting an NZeTA, your request may be delayed or refused. Use the photo examples on this page to check your photo is correct and meets our requirements. Alert Do not use the New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs website or other online tools to check your photo as those tools are for passport photos only. Your photo is more likely to be accepted if you use a professional photographer or business that takes passport photos. Give the photographer our instructions to make sure you get a photo that meets our requirements.
The photo you submit with a paper application must be 35 mm wide and 45 mm high. Further instructions are on the paper application forms. Note You can only apply for an NZeTA online. The photo you submit with an online application must be: Alert We are unlikely to accept your photo if it is not the right size. If you request an NZeTA using the web app, you can either upload an existing photo or take one using your device's camera. If you use the mobile app, you can only take a photo using your device's camera. Your photo must be: If you take a photo with your device, the camera must have a minimum resolution of 540 x 720 pixels. Large photos will be automatically formatted. If there is an issue with your photo you will receive an error message when you submit your visa or NZeTA photo online. To help you, we have provided a list of online errors and how to fix them. Your photo must: It may be easier to remove them.
Visa and NZeTA photos
Your photo must be less than 6 months old and clearly identify you. It must also meet all of our technical requirements.
Meeting our photo requirements
Visa and NZeTA photos are not passport photos
Using a professional photographer
Paper applications for visas
Online applications for visas
Online requests for NZeTAs
Online photo error messages
Taking your visa photo
Be in portrait, not landscape
Be of you, not a photo of a photo or your travel document
Have even lighting with minimal shadowing
Be in colour, showing natural skin tones
Be in focus, not blurry
Not contain red-eye
Be an original photo, not changed by photo-editing software
Not be a selfie
Be taken 1.5 metres from the face
Be taken against a plain, light-coloured — but not white — background with no patterns or objects
Only contain plain clothing patterns
Be of one person
We need to clearly see your face
Face the camera and keep your head straight
Keep your eyes open and mouth closed
Do not smile or frown
Show your face clearly and that long hair is tucked behind your ears
Position yourself in the middle of the photo
Remove sunglasses and hats
If you wear prescription glasses
Make sure your eyes show clearly through the lenses, with no reflected light
If you wear a head covering for religious or medical reasons
Make sure that your face and hairline can be seen in the photo
If the passport or certificate of identity is unavailable, the original or certified copy of the birth certificate or another identity document may be provided.
Citizens of China applying from China
Also provide a copy of:
- your child's Hukou (household registration book)
- your child's identity cards.
If you submit a paper application form in China, you must also complete a supplementary form.
Applicants from Hong Kong or Macao applying within Hong Kong or Macao
Also provide copies of your children's identity cards.
If you are submitting a paper application form, you must provide a supplementary form for Hong Kong and Macao visitors, workers and students.
Citizens of Indonesia
Also provide the child's
Applicants applying from French Polynesia or Wallis and Futuna
If the child is not a French national, also provide a copy of their carte d’assuré
Applicants applying from New Caledonia
Also provide a copy of their livret de famille. If the child is not a French national, also provide a copy of their carte d’assuré.
Health
The child must be in good health.
The child may need to have a chest X-ray and a medical examination as proof of their good health.
Character
The child must be of good character.
If they are 17 years or over, the child may need to provide Police Certificates as proof of their good character.
Anyone applying for a New Zealand visa must meet the character requirements. When you apply, you must tell us about any issues or activities, both current and in your past, that could affect our decision, including whether you have been: If there is an issue, we may: You can request a character waiver or special direction when you apply. If your request is approved, we can give you a visa if your application meets all other requirements. Visas are given by special direction only in rare circumstances. You may need to provide us with police certificates to show your good character. Whether you need to give these certificates depends on how long you plan to stay in New Zealand and the visa you are applying for.
Character requirements for New Zealand visas
To be given a New Zealand visa, you must be of good character. If you have a criminal history, have provided false or misleading information, or could be a risk to New Zealand, we can decline your application.
Being of good character
Providing police certificates
Genuine intentions
You must genuinely intend for the child to meet the conditions of this visa.
When we decide if your intentions are genuine, we consider all the information:
- you provide to support your application
- we have about your personal circumstances, and
- you provided in any previous applications.
When you travel to New Zealand on a temporary visa, your intentions must be genuine. This means that you: We use all the information we have, including the information you give us in your application, to confirm that you have genuine intentions. Alert You must answer truthfully when you complete your visa application or NZTD. If you are travelling on a visitor visa or visiting from a
If you have a visitor visa for a specific reason, you must be coming to New Zealand for that reason. For example, if you have a Medical Treatment Visitor Visa, your reason for visiting must be getting medical treatment. If you are travelling on a student visa, you must have genuine intentions to study in New Zealand. You can only work if the conditions of your student visa allow you to. If you are travelling to New Zealand to work, you must have a visa that will allow you to. Unless your visa allows you to work in any job, you must plan to work in the job, for the employer, and in the location specified in your visa. You may be asked to provide evidence of your genuine intentions: Here are some examples of evidence to show that you have genuine intentions in coming to New Zealand. To show your travel history, you could show a copy of your current and recent passports, including: If you live in a country that is not your country of citizenship, provide a copy of the visa allowing you to live in that country. If you have ever had a visa application declined by any other country, provide: If you plan to visit family or friends in New Zealand, provide their: Evidence of your travel plans while in New Zealand could include copies of: You may also need to show that you have plans to leave New Zealand at the end of your stay. This evidence could include: If you are applying for a student visa, you could provide evidence that you have: If you do not need to pay tuition fees, or if you can pay by instalment — where you make smaller payments over a period of time — you must provide confirmation from your education provider. You can also write a cover letter or statement of purpose explaining why you want to study in New Zealand. This will help us decide if you are a genuine student. If you are using an education agent or licensed immigration adviser, they cannot write the letter for you. Examples of things you could write about in your letter or statement include: If you plan to apply for another visa — for example, a work visa — after you finish your studies, include this in your cover letter or statement of purpose.
To show that you have genuine intentions to work, you will in most cases need to provide: If your visa requires you to have enough money to live on during your stay, you will need to provide evidence. This could include: Depending on your situation, you may need to provide: We consider each application based on the information and evidence we receive. If you do not provide enough evidence, it may take us longer to process your application, or we may decline your application. You must provide genuine evidence. If you or your agent provide evidence that is false or misleading, we may also decline your application. False, misleading or withheld information in visa applications Check the translation requirements for the visa you are applying for. All non-English documents must be translated when you apply for visitor and resident visas. Providing English translations of supporting documents If you are applying online, make sure your evidence is in an acceptable file format. To decide if your intentions are genuine, we look at: We look at evidence you provide with your application to check that it: When we consider information about your personal circumstances, we look at: We also look at information from your previous applications and travel to New Zealand. This can show us if you have: We might not give you a visa or allow you to enter New Zealand if we:
Genuine intentions to visit, study or work in New Zealand
Before you can get a visa or enter New Zealand to visit, work or study, we check that your reasons for coming here are genuine.
What it means to have 'genuine intentions'
Visitor visas
Student visas
Work visas
Evidence to show you have genuine intentions
Evidence of your travel history
If you live in a different country to your citizenship
Declined visa applications
Evidence you are visiting family or friends
Evidence of your travel plans
Evidence of your study plans
Evidence of your work plans
Evidence you have enough money
Evidence of your home country circumstances
evidence of your relationships with close relatives in your home country
Providing good-quality evidence
How we decide if your intentions are genuine
Evidence you provide with your application
Your personal circumstances
Your previous applications
If we decide your intentions are not genuine
Police certified victim of people trafficking
The child must be certified be New Zealand Police as a victim of people trafficking.
A people trafficking report must have been made for the child, and after their report was assessed by New Zealand Police they were certified as a victim of people trafficking.
Get help for victims of people trafficking
We will check that the child is certified as a victim of people trafficking. Evidence of certification must be provided in the application.
Note
The child victim can be in New Zealand unaccompanied or may be a victim of people trafficking together with their parents.
Age of the victim of people trafficking
The child must be aged 17 or younger when they were identified as a victim of people trafficking.
We will use the documents provided as proof of the child’s identity to confirm their age.
English translations
You must provide certified full English translations of any documents that are not in English.
Documents must be translated by someone who meets our requirements for providing English translations.
All supporting documents submitted with your resident visa application must be provided in English or include an English translation. Visitor visa requirements are changing From 26 May 2025, supporting document translations for visitor visa applications will no longer need to be certified. Examples of documents that require full translation include: You must provide us with full certified English translations of all medical and police certificates. This includes police certificates that record no convictions. Note If your other evidence is not in English, you should provide a translated copy, as this will help us to process your application faster. Immigration New Zealand does not translate documents on behalf of visa applicants. You must pay for certified translations. You can provide certified translations completed by: We do not accept translations completed by the applicant, family members, or the immigration adviser assisting with your application. We will accept translations from a licensed immigration adviser (LIA) who is: Check your passport to see if it has your name written in English. Ask your translator to use this spelling when they translate your documents. If a translator used a different spelling of your name in your translated documents, then include this spelling of your name in the 'other names' section of the visa application form. We need to know if you have used other names that are in your translated documents. For example, if: In your visa application form, enter all other names that you have used in the section called 'other names'. Each translation must: When you apply for your visa, the supporting documents that you provide us are the: How you provide the documents depends on if you are applying online or on a paper form. We may not need an original document or its certified copy in the following situations: When we process your application, we will contact you if we need you to send us a document.
Providing English translations of supporting documents
Check the requirements of the visa you are applying for. Provide certified translations of your documents to avoid delays processing your application.
Check the visa application requirements
Residence visa applications
Visitor visa applications
All other visa applications
Our requirements for translated documents
Who can complete a certified translation
Using the English spelling of the name in your passport
Include your 'other names' in the application form
Check your translated document
Submitting your original foreign language documents
If applying online, make sure all scanned copies are clear and readable.
How to pay and submit
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While the child is in New Zealand
These are the conditions that must be met once the child has their visa. The child's visa conditions are recorded in their eVisa.
Travel
If travelling in and out of New Zealand, a valid
Check or change your Visitor Visa conditions
Note
Visa expiry dates are printed on a visa label or included in a visa letter.
Work
The child cannot work in New Zealand on a visitor visa.
Study
The child may study for up to 3 months in any 12-month period.
Note
School-aged children can study for up to 3 months in any calendar year. Children studying for more than 2 weeks must attend a school that is signatory to the ‘Code of Pastoral Care for International Students’.
Visa expiry
The child must leave New Zealand before their visa expires.
Note
Visa expiry dates are printed on a visa label or included in a visa letter.