Reopening and Restructuring of the Parent Category Residence Instructions

Policy effect

Immigration New Zealand officially reopened the Parent Category for Expressions of Interest under substantially revised criteria, establishing new sponsorship requirements, English language standards, and median wage-based minimum income thresholds.

Conditions and exceptions

Validated condition or limit: Immigration New Zealand officially reopened the Parent Category for Expressions of Interest under substantially revised criteria, establishing new sponsorship requirements, English language standards, and median wage-based minimum income thresholds.

Official source excerpt

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

This amendment circular contains the new Parent category immigration instructions, which are effective on and after 24 February 2020. The new Parent category: • has an EOI process and single tier of applications • requires sponsorship by an adult child, or an adult child and their partner • requires the adult child and their partner to both agree to sponsorship obligations if joint income is used to meet sponsorship requirements • introduces new financial measures for sponsors based on the New Zealand median income • requires sponsors to meet the income criteria for two out of the three years before the application for residence, and to provide evidence of their annual income through Inland Revenue tax statements • takes into account the total number of parents that sponsors are committed to sponsor, including previous resident visas granted under the Parent Category, when determining the income criteria for an application. … This amendment circular contains the new Parent category immigration instructions, which are effective on and after 24 February 2020. … Applicants under the Parent Category must: a. be sponsored by an adult child (see F4.20.5) that meets family relationship requirements at F4.30 or an adult child and their partner; and b. have no dependent children (see F4.30.5). … The number of resident visas that can be granted under the Parent Category is limited to 1,000 people for each year ending 30 June. … Applications under the Parent Category must be declined if any applicant included in the application has not met the minimum standard of English or the requirements to pre-purchase English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) tuition. … The sponsoring adult child and their partner (if joint income is considered) must demonstrate that their total income meets the minimum income threshold for two out of the three years prior to being invited to apply.

Review method

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite extraction with independent Gemini 3.8 Flash verification

Other New Zealand changes operative in 2020

• 2020-02-24General Instructions on Order and Manner of Processing Residence Applications (Amendment Circular 2020/4)
• 2020-04-16Relaxation and Short-Term Variation of Visa Conditions for Essential Services (Amendment Circular 2020-16)
• 2020-09-11Special Direction: Grant of Resident Visas to Offshore Persons with Expired Travel Conditions
• 2020-09-11Special Direction: Imposition of Mandatory COVID-19 Public Health Compliance Visa Condition
• 2020-09-11Special Direction: Variation of Travel Conditions for Offshore Resident Visa Holders
• 2020-10-12Special Direction: Automatic Grant of Supplementary Seasonal Employment (SSE) Visas