An interim visa keeps you lawful in New Zealand while INZ decides your next visa. It is automatic, free and lasts up to 6 months. Whether you can work, what happens if you travel, the SMC interim visa, and what happens after a decline.
Written by the ProVisas Editorial Team. ProVisas is a licensed New Zealand immigration advisory firm (IAA Licence 201301110).
An interim visa lets you stay in New Zealand lawfully if your temporary visa expires while Immigration New Zealand (INZ) is deciding your application for another temporary visa. You cannot apply for one: INZ grants it automatically if you are eligible. It is free, starts the day after your current visa expires, and lasts up to 6 months (immigration.govt.nz).
What you can do on it, especially whether you can keep working, depends on the visa you had and the visa you applied for. That is where most problems start.
INZ normally grants one if you:
“Accepted for processing” means your application is complete. INZ says to include every document it asks for, because an incomplete application may not be accepted in time. INZ emails you a couple of days before your visa expires to say whether you will be given an interim visa, so check your spam folder if nothing arrives.
An interim visa is not certain in every case. INZ’s employer guidance says one may not be granted (immigration.govt.nz), which is why applying early matters.
It depends on the combination. INZ sets the conditions from the visa you held and the visa you applied for (immigration.govt.nz):
| Visa you had | Visa you applied for | Interim visa conditions |
|---|---|---|
| AEWV, any work visa, or a student visa with term-time work rights | Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) | Work rights of the AEWV you applied for |
| Any other visa, such as a visitor visa | AEWV | No work |
| Employer-specific work visa | New work visa, same employer, job and location | Same work conditions as now |
| Employer-specific work visa | Work visa for a different employer, job or location, or an open work visa | Visitor conditions: no work |
| Open work visa | The same type of open work visa | Same open work conditions |
| Open work visa | A different type of open work visa, or an employer-specific one | Visitor conditions: no work |
| Visitor visa | Visitor or work visa | Visitor conditions: no work |
| Visitor, student or work visa | Student visa | Open study conditions |
| Student visa | Visitor visa, or a work visa other than an AEWV covered above | Visitor conditions: no work |
| Student visa | Another student visa | Open study, plus your current work conditions if you had them |
Two cases catch people out most often:
Time on an interim visa with work rights may count towards the maximum time you can stay on an AEWV, depending on the visa you held when you applied. If you varied the conditions of your last visa, the same conditions carry over when you apply for the same student or work visa.
Not and come back on it. If you leave New Zealand, your interim visa expires (immigration.govt.nz). You would then need a valid visa to return. If you must travel while a temporary visa application is being processed, get advice before you book.
The Skilled Migrant Category Interim Visa is the exception, below.
If you are left without a visa, you are in New Zealand unlawfully. Our section 61 guide explains the request you can make to INZ in that situation.
If you have applied for a Skilled Migrant Category (SMC) Resident Visa and your temporary visa expires while it is processed, INZ normally grants an SMC Interim Visa instead, as long as you have not applied for another temporary visa (immigration.govt.nz). It differs from an ordinary interim visa in important ways:
| Interim Visa | SMC Interim Visa | |
|---|---|---|
| Lasts | Up to 6 months | Up to 24 months |
| After a decline or withdrawal | Expires 21 days later | Expires 2 months later |
| Travel | Expires if you leave | Lets you leave and return as many times as you like |
| Conditions | Depend on the visa you had and the visa you applied for | Normally the same as your current visa |
The restrictions matter. On an SMC Interim Visa you cannot apply for any other temporary visa, cannot support your partner or children for a visa, and can change only some conditions. If your residence application is declined, you have 2 months and no other temporary visa to fall back on.
INZ suggests you think about whether it suits you. If it does not, apply for a new temporary visa before your current visa expires; you will then normally get an ordinary interim visa instead, and not the SMC one. People with family who need visas, or with doubts about the residence application, often prefer that route.
If you hold employer-specific conditions on an SMC Interim Visa, you may be able to change employer, job or location, but only to a job with an approved Job Check that meets the SMC requirements, including the wage rate. See our median wage guide for the current rates.
Possibly. INZ advises that if you have applied for a resident visa and your temporary visa may expire before the decision, you should also apply for a new temporary visa to work, study or visit, so you are eligible for an interim visa if you need one (immigration.govt.nz). For SMC applicants, the SMC Interim Visa may cover this, with the restrictions above.
Employers can check an employee’s visa in VisaView. An employee can keep working on an interim visa only if the job is in the same position, for the same employer and in the same location as their current visa (immigration.govt.nz). An interim visa is an eVisa; you cannot get a visa label in your passport for it.
Before your current visa expires, if any of these apply: you are changing employer, you are moving from an employer-specific visa to an open one, you need to travel, you have family members whose visas depend on yours, or your residence application may be declined. Each of these can leave you without work rights or without a visa, and most are only fixable before expiry. Our guide to renewing a visa before it expires covers the timing.
An interim visa lets you stay in New Zealand lawfully if your temporary visa expires while INZ is deciding your application for another temporary visa. You cannot apply for one; INZ grants it automatically if you are eligible and your new application was accepted for processing before your visa expired. It is free, starts the day after your visa expires and lasts up to 6 months.
It depends on the visa you had and the visa you applied for. If you hold a work visa and applied for an AEWV, you normally get the work rights of the AEWV you applied for. If you applied to work for a different employer, or for an open work visa from an employer-specific one, your interim visa has visitor conditions and you cannot work until the new visa is granted.
No, not if you want to return on it. An ordinary interim visa expires when you leave New Zealand, so you would need another visa to come back. The Skilled Migrant Category Interim Visa is different: it carries a travel condition that lets you leave and return as many times as you like while your residence application is processed.
An ordinary interim visa lasts up to 6 months. It ends when INZ grants your new visa, 21 days after your application is declined or withdrawn, or after 6 months if there is no decision. A Skilled Migrant Category Interim Visa lasts up to 24 months and expires 2 months after a decline or withdrawal.
Your interim visa expires 21 days after the decline, or 2 months later for an SMC Interim Visa. Use that time to act, because your options, including asking INZ to reconsider, are time-limited. If you are left without a visa, you are in New Zealand unlawfully and may need to make a section 61 request.
Current as at 5 November 2026, based on Immigration New Zealand’s published interim visa guidance. For advice on your own situation, talk to a ProVisas Licensed Immigration Adviser (IAA Licence 201301110).
Last reviewed . Information may have changed since this article was reviewed. For your specific case, talk to a licensed immigration adviser.
guides
Changing employer on an AEWV is a Job Change application, not the old generic VOC. Which application fits which change, the job token requirement, the NZD $325 fee, and why you cannot start the new job until approval.
Read moreguides
NZ Nursing Council (NCNZ) registration requirements for overseas nurses: IELTS 7.0 / OET English standards, recognised qualification, and the competence assessment.
Read moreguides
Who must sit NZREX Clinical, the prerequisite exams and English scores, the 12-station OSCE format, 2027 dates and fees, and the PGY1 bottleneck after passing that MCNZ itself warns about.
Read morePrefer to talk? Call +64 22 112 1112