Visa's & "eligible NZ citizen"
 

We are planning on moving to Australia later this year. I am a UK Citizen and a Doctor (anaesthetist). My husband is a New Zealander Builder. Both he and our 3 girls will all hold dual citizenship UK/NZ. No one seems to be able to advise us what the best visa would be. I could get a 457 but that's only temporary and for an anaesthetist, which is now off the Skilled list, this is only for 2 years. I can apply again for another 2 years but that's the max. I would need another visa to stay in Oz. A friend who is also an anaesthetist just had permanent residency turned down as they don't need anaesthetists. The other option is a Partner Visa. My husband was definitely in Australia at the required time but can't remember if he signed up for the SCV. How can we find this out? If he is an eligible citizen, can I get a Partner visa and stay and work indefinitely with him? Would it permanent residency application then be based on his New Zealandness or again is it only about Skills? Basically as an anaesthetist do I have to accept I may not get permanent residency and we will have to come back here after 4 years or does his being from New Zealand mean we will be ok to stay there? Any advice/personal experience would be much appreciated. Thank you! Xx

Re: Visa's & "eligible NZ citizen"
 

You'd be better asking an immigration agent, several of whom are active on this forum e.g. Alan Collett of www.gomatilda.com

Re: Visa's & "eligible NZ citizen"
 

A subclass 444 visa is applied for on arrival by New Zealand citizens. Providing your husband was on a subclass 444 visa and in Australia on 26 February 2001 then he would have become an eligible New Zealand citizen. How long has he been outside Australia?

Re: Visa's & "eligible NZ citizen"
 

Thanks for your replies. I had spoken to a couple of immigration experts but hadn't found the answers I needed. I have contacted Alan - thanks for the recommendation. Our query regarding the 444 is that my husband was in Australia for the right amount of time before Feb 2001 and was on a 444 but also had to have signed up for the SCV special privileges. He remembers at the time all his friends talking about it and doing it but he can't remember if he actually did or not. This is what we need to find out but not sure how we do that?! He left Australia at the end of 2000 and hasn't lived there since.

Re: Visa's & "eligible NZ citizen"
 

Hello, kiwi married to a English person here, currently in Australia and just plodding through the pr process ourselves. Quick question, did your husband arrive in Nz before September 1994? If he did he may be able to apply for a resident return visa. There is a New Zealand campaign group called Ozkiwi which has an FAQ page for people in your husbands situation.

Re: Visa's & "eligible NZ citizen"
 

New Zealand Citizens can live and work indefinitely on the Special Category Visa, and sponsor their non-NZ spouse to live here. Your NZC spouse does not need to be an Australian PR.

Re: Visa's & "eligible NZ citizen"
 

They can, but they can never become citizens on this route alone, which currently means they can never vote nor receive university loans, among other things. Also, can be deported. Fine to get a foot in the door, not a good plan long term without something else in the pipeline.

Re: Visa's & "eligible NZ citizen"
 

Hi, another UK/Kiwi partnership here - also from London, moved to Melbourne. Your husband and kids will get TR444 visas on arrival, regardless of whether he did the SVC thing. You can apply for a TR461 now, which only takes a few weeks to get and allows you full unrestricted life in Australia for 5 years. At the end of 5 years, provided you haven't become a convicted axe murderer in the meantime or contracted a terminal illness, you can get it renewed.

We did this, and then applied for and got PR once we were in Australia, using the independent migration route. TR444 / 461 are almost indistinguishable from PR on a day-to-day living basis, and give you a breathing space while you sort out PR.

Hope that helps.

BB

Re: Visa's & "eligible NZ citizen"
 

BB thank you so much that's really helpful. I wasn't aware of the 461. We had it confirmed today that husband is an eligible NZ citizen. We spoke to an immigration official who said we can go down the Partner visa route BUT Pete has to prove he is "usually resident" in australia which in real terms means we have to travel to australia together with me on a visitor visa for 3-6 months - set up our life to prove we live there and are committed to living there and then get a bridging visa while we apply and wait for Partner Visa and PR. Major problem is that I can't work on arrival until we lodge the Partner visa 3-6 months later! The 461 would have been a perfect stop gap instead of the visitors visa except that I just checked the home affairs website and it seems to suggest it's for family of NZ citizens who are NOT eligible, which means we can't apply for that. Aaaaah So many loopholes in all these visa's!

Re: Visa's & "eligible NZ citizen"
 

You mentioned contacting Alan Collet - discuss it with him. If you can use the 461 he will knowabout it. He can also advise whether you can apply offshore as the 'spouse of an eligible NZ citizen' - do NOT take the word of a DOHA call centre person on this.
Applying onshore for the Partner Visa is currentlytaking 2-3 years to process, that is a long time to be on a bridging visa.

Seriously, you need to consult someone of Alan's ilk on this.

Re: Visa's & "eligible NZ citizen"
 

That seems to have been a recent change, I’m a protected SCV and have used the 461 route to bring my wife into Australia, twice in fact for a 2nd 5 year period. Was very convenient and better than the thousands for the resident visa. Initially she came in on a visitors visa ,but didn’t need to work so bit different from you. Surprised you can’t get sponsored prior to arriving. We’ve now moved back to NZ anyway now so never bothered getting residence

Re: Visa's & "eligible NZ citizen"
 

That's why I am suggesting consulting the agent that they already has dealings with. The info that they could not get sponsored prior to apply doesn't sound quite right, as an 'eligible NZ citizen' should be able to sponsor before arrival, the same as PR and Aus citizens can - the info to the contrary came from the notoriously unreliable public DOHA centre staff. The guideines do say 'ordinarily resident' but what happens in practice s known to be different in the case of established couples

Re: Visa's & "eligible NZ citizen"
 

Thank you everyone for your replies. It sounds like we should be able to find a way make this work and from the UK before we arrive. I contacted Alan last week and sent all our details on a subsequent email but haven't heard back. I will try again on Monday - sounds like he is the man in the know!

Re: Visa's & "eligible NZ citizen"
 

Also to clarify, I could lodge the application from here if I wanted to but was advised that my husband would need to go to Australia to live and set up to prove he is "usually resident" before I can apply straight for the Partner visa. Being apart and having me stay here with our 3 kids for 6+ months isn't an option for us with the random shift work I do and the kids schooling and childcare needs etc, basically we need to find a way for us all to arrive together and for both my husband and I to be able to work from the beginning. But it sounds like the advice we have been given in this may not be entirely accurate. Will keep digging

Re: Visa's & "eligible NZ citizen"
 

Exactly, my point is - who advised you of that? The majority of people who move with a family, on a Partner Visa move together. Immigration will just tell you what it says in the rules, in practice, in this case, things are very different.