Introduction

Immigration New Zealand requires that applicants for all visa categories must be of good character, so they do not pose any security risk to New Zealand and do not hurt the reputation of the country in the international corridors.

Now, you may have a past blemished with some character issues that may now prevent you from obtaining a New Zealand visa. Read on to see what you can do in such cases to meet the good character requirements of Immigration New Zealand.

How can you take care of character issues for your New Zealand visa application?

You will either need to furnish a Character Waiver or a Special Direction to address your character issues before Immigration New Zealand can proceed with your temporary or resident visa application.

You will need a Special Direction to take care of any serious character issues. Note that serious character issues are treated differently compared to other character issues, where you need to furnish a Character Waiver. Since both types of character issues need a different treatment, you must know which category you are dealing with.

Are you not sure if you should get a Character Waiver or a Special Direction? Our experienced immigration consultants can help. Book a time for 100% free consultation with our Auckland based immigration experts and explore your best option.

Do you need a Special Direction for your New Zealand Visa application?

If you are found to have any serious character issues, there are only a few peculiar circumstances that will be considered by Immigration New Zealand to grant you any visa to allow entry to New Zealand.

Your only way out in such cases is to obtain a Special Direction from Immigration New Zealand. They can, at their discretion, impose some conditions or waive specific requirements on your documents, visa or you for reasons of immigration.

How does Immigration New Zealand define Serious Character Issues? This is a broad definition of serious character issues, and can be expanded to cover more items on a case by case basis:

  • Removal, exclusion or deportation from any country
  • 5 or more years of jail sentence for any past conviction
  • Sentence of more than 1 year in the last 10 years
  • A ban on you entering New Zealand
  • Chances of you doing something that may lead to your imprisonment in New Zealand
  • Likelihood of your presence being a threat to public order, interest or security.

It is not easy to obtain a Special Direction, but you may not have any other option in some cases.

Work with experienced immigration consultants from Professional Visa Solutions to maximise your chances of success. We have been helping our clients get Special Directions for many years. Book a 100% free consultation to get started.

Do you need a Character Waiver for your New Zealand Visa application?

You will need to get a Character Waiver to satisfy the good character requirements of Immigration New Zealand before they can approve your visa application.

How does Immigration New Zealand define Character Issues? Here are some of the things (the list is much longer) that are considered Character Issues and can be dealt with by getting a Character Waiver. These provisions are applied differently for temporary and resident visas.

  • Guilty verdict related to passport, immigration or citizenship-related crimes in any country
  • Withholding information, providing false or misleading data on your or someone else’s visa application
  • Conviction in violence, drugs, sex or dishonesty related cases in a country
  • Any convictions leading to imprisonment

Have you received a PPI (Potentially Prejudicial Information) letter from Immigration New Zealand stating that you do not meet the good character requirements for your New Zealand Visa application? Waste no time – book a 100% free consultation with a licensed immigration adviser from Professional Visa Solutions and discuss your case.

How do you obtain a Character Waiver or Special Direction to take care of your Character Issues?

You will need to make a strong case to obtain a Character Waiver or Special Direction explaining the background, nature and resolution of your Character Issues – you will need to substantiate these with proper documents, evidence and convincing arguments.

Unless you represent your case well, Immigration New Zealand will reject your visa application citing Character Issues as the reason. You will be in deeper waters later if you fail to provide the correct information during the visa processing time.

Do not jeopardise your visa application or worse still, your immigration status later. Work with our experienced immigration experts who have been helping our clients get Character Waivers and Special Directions to deal with their complicated Character Issues for many years.

We strive to be completely transparent about the chances of your success and provide you with the best option to suit your situation. Take advantage of our experience by booking your 100% free consultation slot.