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  • INZ working to improve immigration outcomes for international students

    In keeping with New Zealand’s International Education Strategy 2018-2030, Immigration New Zealand (INZ) is placing greater emphasis on striking the right balance between facilitating migration and protecting migrants and New Zealand.

    Jeannie Melville, Assistant General Manager, Education and Tourism says, “INZ is committed to ensuring the right level of scrutiny is applied to visa applications to ensure the right decisions are made for New Zealand. INZ is processing visa applications as fast as practicable and we generally do a good job; however, processing times will always depend on the complexity of an application.”

    Since the start of the peak student visa processing season in November 2018, INZ has seen an increase in applications from students who require a greater level of assessment and verification. These applications take longer to process and, as a result, people have not received visas within the period of time they expected.

    In terms of application numbers, there has also been a noticeable increase in the volume of student visa applications. From India alone, there was a 42 per cent increase over the peak period of November 2018-February 2019, compared to the previous year, and applications from China increased by 21 per cent.

    INZ has been engaging regularly with education providers, sector peak bodies and Education New Zealand to update them on processing times and the reasons why some student visa applications are taking longer to process than expected.

    “INZ is committed to ensuring that education providers have confidence in our systems and processes. We want to support education providers and students to use the immigration system effectively, efficiently and appropriately,” says Jeannie.

    “We are taking action to address the increased time required to process some applications. INZ’s Mumbai office is the primary hub for first-time student visa applications, and is boosting processing capacity to manage the increase in volume, with additional staff already recruited.”

    INZ will continue working with peak bodies to improve guidance for students around the documentation requirements for student visa applications.

  • US student Fox Meyer has received a $5,000 Think New Grant for his research.

    A Bachelor of Science student at the University of Otago, Fox’s research is looking at how South Dunedin's geology will change over time and respond to dramatic events such as earthquakes – in particular, how the harbour water flow will impact South Dunedin.

    “South Dunedin is built on reclaimed land, meaning the land had to be significantly modified by humans to accommodate our support infrastructure and housing,” said Fox. 

    “Instead of trying to deny ground water its natural course, I’ve set out to help explain how to balance living in South Dunedin while allowing that water to flow freely beneath our feet.”

    Fox’s research earned him a Think New Grant, administered by ENZ. The $5000 grant supports international students working on innovative research or study projects in New Zealand.

    Along with his supervisor, Dr Virginia Toy, Fox is planting water sensors in Otago Harbour in order to understand how water flows between the inner harbour and the porous sediments of South Dunedin.

    The pair currently have three sensors and will use the grant to purchase more, which will expand the scope of the project.

    ENZ’s Chief Executive, Grant McPherson, said Fox’s application was a stand-out entry in a very strong field.

    “We had 61 applications, and it was extremely difficult to choose the winner. There was an amazing range of very high-quality applications,” said Grant.

    “In order to create a better future for New Zealand, we need new approaches and solutions. Our education system, and Kiwi culture more generally, encourages creativity, innovation and critical thinking – and this brings some exceptional international students here to help us with this.”

    A total of 2,732 international students from the US studied at New Zealand universities in 2017, up nine percent on 2016.

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