Refugee Family Support registration, visa fees and immigration levy waived

Policy effect

From July 1, 2022, New Zealand removed the prescribed Refugee Family Support Category registration fee and residence-class visa application fee, and exempted visa applicants under that category from the immigration levy.

Conditions and exceptions

Validated condition or limit: From July 1, 2022, New Zealand removed the prescribed Refugee Family Support Category registration fee and residence-class visa application fee, and exempted visa applicants under that category from the immigration levy.

Official source excerpt

Quoted verbatim from the official source below. Ellipses indicate omitted text.

… n Regulations 1 Title These regulations are the Immigration (Visa, Entry Permission, and Related Matters) Amendment Regulations (No 2) 2022. 2 Commencement (1) Regulations 1 to 5 and 7 come into force on 1 July 2022. (2) The rest of these regulations come into force at 11.59 pm on 31 July 2022. 3 Principal regulations These regulations amend the Immigration (Visa, Entry Permission, and Related Matters) Regulations 2010. 4 Regulation 26AA amended (Prescribed fees (not imposed elsewhere by these regulations)) Revoke regulation 26AA(g). 5 Schedule 4 amended (1) In Schedule 4, under the heading Re … sidence class visa, revoke the item relating to Residence class visa application—Refugee Family Support Category. (2) In Schedule 4, under the heading Other matters—general, revoke the item relating to Registration under Refugee Family Support Category. 6 Schedule 4 replaced Replace Schedule 4 with the Schedule 4 set out in Schedule 1 of these regulations. 7 Schedule 5 amended In Schedule 5, after item 12, insert: 13 A person who is applying for a visa under the Refugee Family Support Category immigration instructions. 8 Schedule 6 replaced Replace Schedule 6 with the Schedule 6 set out in Sch … ael Webster,Clerk of the Executive Council. Explanatory note This note is not part of the regulations, but is intended to indicate their general effect. These regulations amend the Immigration (Visa, Entry Permission, and Related Matters) Regulations 2010 (the principal regulations). Regulations 4, 5, and 7, which come into force on 1 July 2022, exempt residence class visa applicants under the Refugee Family Support Category from being charged fees or an immigration levy under the principal regulations. Regulations 6 and 8 and Schedules 1 and 2, which come into force at 11.59 pm on 31 July 202 …

Review method

Two separate automated exact-claim source reviews

Other New Zealand changes operative in 2022

• 2022-01-31Immigration Online Enhancements & Automated Electronic Decision-Making Instructions
• 2022-02-21Staged early access to the 2021 Resident Visa for eligible Phase 2 applicants
• 2022-03-01General Phase 2 opening of the 2021 Resident Visa
• 2022-04-12Border Reconnection Step 3: Entry for Offshore Temporary Visa Holders, Australian Travelers, and Student Cohort 4 Border Exception
• 2022-05-092021 Resident Visa eligibility preserved for specified special-direction visa holders
• 2022-07-01Operational Manual Amendments to Refugee Family Support Category & Duration of Sponsorship (Amendment Circular No. 2022-38)
• 2022-07-04Offshore visa-application exception extended to families of work-visa applicants
• 2022-07-31Immigration fee and levy schedules revised
• 2022-09-05Operational Commencement of the Green List "Straight to Residence" Resident Visa
• 2022-09-27Annual Cap Increase for the Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) Scheme
• 2022-10-12Restart and Policy Restructuring of the Parent Resident Visa Category