Chronological selection process for Parent Resident Visa confirmed

New Zealand's Immigration Minister Erica Stanford announced that the Parent Resident Visa selection process will shift to a chronological queue starting in November. This change aims to reduce the uncertainty of the current ballot system for applicants.
Why it matters
This policy shift significantly impacts families seeking to reunite with parents in New Zealand by providing a more predictable pathway to residency.
Immigration Minister Erica Stanford. Photo / RNZ, Samuel Rillstone
Immigration Minister Erica Stanford has confirmed that expressions of interest for the Parent Resident Visa will mostly be selected in chronological order from November.
Currently, expressions of interest are randomly selected every three months by ballot, leaving many applicants waiting in limbo.
Under the new model, 90% of all expressions of interest would be selected from the queue chronologically, while the rest would continue to be selected by ballot to reach the annual cap of 2500 places, Stanford said today.
“The new model prioritises people who have already been waiting for years, while maintaining a balanced way of allocating places in a high-demand residence pathway,” she said.
“There is no perfect way to allocate places when demand is higher than the number of visas available, but this approach strikes a fairer balance.”
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