New Zealand visa guideYour course level decides your family's options
New Zealand ties partner rights to the main applicant's qualification level or job skill band. A student on a higher-level qualification on the relevant list can support a partner work visa; a student on a lower-level course generally cannot, and the partner applies as a visitor with no work rights.
That difference reshapes a family's entire budget. One household income versus none. It should influence which course you choose, and it is why we establish it before anything else.
Children and the fee question
Children of some eligible visa holders are treated as domestic students at primary and intermediate level rather than international ones, which changes school costs dramatically. Eligibility follows the parent's visa and the rules are revised, so we verify for your exact case rather than assume.
What "genuine and stable" means in practice
New Zealand asks for evidence of living together in a genuine and stable relationship. Married couples still have to demonstrate this: the certificate is one document among several. Officers look for the ordinary residue of a shared life across time: tenancy, joint accounts, correspondence, remittances. Assembled early, it is straightforward. Assembled the week before, it reads exactly as what it is.
Official sources
- Immigration New Zealand: https://www.immigration.govt.nz/
Fees and rules change; the official page always prevails. The guide above was written from our filing experience for Indian applicants; check the current requirements on the authority’s site before you book.
