Visas for working in New Zealand

There are many different visas that let you work in New Zealand. All are temporary visas, but some can lead to residence.

Visas that allow you to work

There are a range of visas you can apply for to work in New Zealand. Some work visas require you to have a job offer at the application stage, and to only work in certain jobs. With other visas, you do not need a job offer and can do almost any work, in any job, anywhere in New Zealand. What you can do on your visa will be specified in your visa conditions.

The following sections summarise the different types of visas you can work on and who can apply for them.

Working holiday visas

If you are aged 18 to 30, or 18 to 35 in a select few countries, and a citizen of a country that has a working holiday agreement with New Zealand, you can apply for a working holiday visa.

In most cases you can work for up to 12 months on a working holiday visa — you cannot take a permanent job.

You must be coming mainly to holiday — work should be a secondary intention.

The conditions of your employment will vary depending on where you are from. Check the details for your country's working holiday visa scheme.

Working Holiday Extension Work Visa

If you are already in New Zealand on a working holiday visa and have worked in the viticulture or horticulture industries for at least 3 months, you can apply to stay in New Zealand for another 3 months.

Work visas

Compare the following work visas to find one that could suit your situation.

Other temporary visas

You may be allowed to work while you are on a student visa in New Zealand — this depends on the conditions of your visa. You can apply to change your visa conditions to allow you to work part-time or full-time during your holidays, if your visa does not allow you to do this already.

Some visitor visas allow you to work in your field or do business in New Zealand for a short time:

• Academic Visitor Visa
• APEC Business Travel Card to visit New Zealand
• Arts and Music Festival Visitor Visa
• Business Visitor Visa
• Crew Joining a Ship or Plane Visitor Visa
• German Law Student Visitor Visa
• Private Yacht or Plane Visitor Visa
• Short-term Entertainment Act Visitor Visa
• Sports Events Visitor Visa
• Super Yachts Visitor Visa
• Visiting Media Visitor Visa

You may be able to work part-time in New Zealand if you are a dependent child who is waiting for a residence visa and have, or meet the requirements to apply for, an eligible visitor visa.

You could also work remotely for an overseas business or client while you are visiting New Zealand.

Resident visas

If you have a New Zealand resident or permanent resident visa you can work in any job and for any employer:

• Active Investor Plus Visa
• Australian Resident Visa
• Business Investor Resident Visa
• Care Workforce Work to Residence Visa
• Dependent Child Resident Visa
• Employees of Relocating Business Resident Visa
• Global Impact Permanent Residence Visa
• Pacific Access Category Resident Visa
• Permanent Resident Visa
• Pitcairn Islander Resident Visa
• Religious Workers Resident Visa
• Samoan Quota Resident Visa
• Second or Subsequent Resident Visa
• Skilled Migrant Category Resident Visa
• South Island Contribution Resident Visa
• Straight to Residence Visa
• Trafficking Victim Resident Visa
• Transport Work to Residence Visa
• Victims of Family Violence Resident Visa

Explore visa options

Visa filter tool

Use the visa filter tool to help you choose a visa that fits your situation.

Visa lookup

You can find a visa directly from the 'Visa lookup' search field found in the footer on each page.

Simply start to type a visa name or key word such as 'work' and a list of visas that match your search will appear. You can then select the visa you would like to view.

Customising information on a visa page

If you are looking at a visa page online, entering your details on the page will display information specific to someone from your country.