Post-Study Work Visa New Zealand

Apply online with Immigration New Zealand once you have completed your qualification and before your deadline. You upload your passport, proof of NZD $5,000, police certificates and medical results if requested, then pay the fee. From 16 November 2026 paper applications end, so every application is made online.

You must have recently completed a qualifying New Zealand qualification. A degree at level 7 or higher (bachelor's, postgraduate diploma, master's or doctorate) requires at least 30 weeks of full-time study in New Zealand. A non-degree qualification at level 7 or lower must be on Immigration New Zealand's eligible list and studied full-time for its full duration. You also need good health, good character and enough money. If you applied for your student visa on or before 11 May 2022, different rules may apply, so ask an adviser.

No later than 3 months after your student visa expires. Doctoral students have 6 months and can apply after submitting their thesis. Some back-to-back study situations have different deadlines, so check before your student visa ends.

Immigration New Zealand may not approve your application. The qualification you complete should be the one recorded on your student visa. If you changed courses or are close to your end date, speak to a licensed adviser before you apply.

No. You can only be granted one Post Study Work Visa, even if your next study is at the same or a higher level. If you want to stay longer, you need a different visa, such as an Accredited Employer Work Visa or Skilled Migrant Category residence if you qualify.

If your qualification is degree level 7 or higher, yes. You can do any legal work in any job anywhere in New Zealand, with any registration the job requires. You can be self-employed or own a business, but you cannot employ others. With a non-degree qualification at level 7 or lower, you can only work in a job related to your study, as stated in your visa conditions.

Yes, for up to 3 months in any 12-month period. Study your employer requires as part of your job may also be allowed. Longer study needs a variation of your visa conditions.

Student visa work rights are tied to your study, so do not rely on your student visa for full-time work once your course ends. Apply for a Post Study Work Visa or another work visa, and check your visa conditions before you start full-time work. A licensed adviser can confirm what applies to you.

An open work visa lets you work for any employer instead of one named employer. A Post Study Work Visa is open for degree level 7 and above. For non-degree qualifications, work is limited to a job related to your study, so it is not fully open.

Yes, if you are 17 or older and your total time in New Zealand, including time on earlier visas, will be 24 months or longer. The certificate must be less than 6 months old. You need one from each country you are a citizen of and each country you have lived in for more than 5 years since turning 17. You do not need a new one if you gave one, issued within the last 24 months, with an earlier application.

You may be asked for a chest X-ray, a medical exam or both, and Immigration New Zealand will email you if so. For stays under 6 months a chest X-ray is not normally needed, and for stays under 12 months a medical certificate is not normally needed. For longer stays, a chest X-ray is required if you are a citizen of, or have spent more than 3 months in the last 5 years in, a country without a low TB incidence.

At least NZD $5,000 in total for your stay, shown with documents such as bank statements in your name. This applies to stays of 1, 2 or 3 years, and Immigration New Zealand may ask to see the documents again when you arrive.

Prepare your passport, evidence that you completed your qualification, bank statements showing NZD $5,000, police certificates if required and medical results if requested. Immigration New Zealand can ask for more, so read the checklist on your online application.

The fee starts from NZD $1,670, according to Immigration New Zealand's visa page. Fees change, so check the current amount before you apply. Medical checks and police certificates are separate costs.

Immigration New Zealand reports that 80% of applications are decided within 3.5 weeks. Yours may take longer if the application is incomplete or you are asked for more information.

Up to 3 years, depending on your qualification level and how long you studied. A master's degree may give up to 3 years, a postgraduate diploma 1 year, and a level 7 graduate diploma the length of your study up to a maximum of 1 year.

Eligibility extends to graduates with a level 7 graduate diploma who studied full-time in New Zealand. If you also hold a bachelor's degree, from New Zealand or overseas, you can get a visa for the length of your study up to 1 year. If you have no bachelor's degree, you are only eligible if your diploma is on Immigration New Zealand's list, and you must then work in the listed occupation.

It is a new 6-month open work visa for graduates whose qualification does not make them eligible for a Post Study Work Visa. You need at least NZD $5,000, a medical certificate and chest X-ray depending on your length of stay, and you cannot have held a Short-Term Graduate Work Visa or Post Study Work Visa before. Apply within 3 months of your student visa expiring. The qualification cannot be an English language, foundation or bridging course.

Yes, if requirements are met. Your partner can apply for a work visa and your children can apply for student visas to study in New Zealand. Immigration New Zealand has also said partners and dependent children can be supported on visitor visas. Each person must meet their own requirements.

The Post Study Work Visa does not lead to residence automatically. Common routes are an Accredited Employer Work Visa with an accredited employer, or the Skilled Migrant Category if you meet its requirements. The best route depends on your job, pay and qualification, so plan it before your visa runs out.

No, you can apply yourself. If you want immigration advice, New Zealand law says only a licensed immigration adviser, or an exempt person such as a New Zealand lawyer with a current practising certificate, can give it. You can check any adviser on the Immigration Advisers Authority register. Kiwiana Immigration is a licensed immigration advisory firm based in Auckland.