Convictions and visas at a glance
- The statutory barsSection 15
A sentence of imprisonment of five years or more at any time, or twelve months or more within the last ten years. No character waiver can cure these bars.
- The character instructionsA5.25 for residence, A5.45 for temporary visas
Below the bars, Immigration New Zealand's instructions list the convictions and other character issues that need a waiver.
- The waiver decisionReasons recorded
The officer weighs documented factors: seriousness, recency, family in New Zealand, your connections and contribution.
- The statutory barsIf a bar appliesThe main routes past it are a special direction (section 17) or a limited visa (section 83)
- The character instructions
- The waiver decision
The statutory bars that cannot be waived
Section 15 of the Immigration Act 2009 says no visa may be granted to a person who has at any time been sentenced to imprisonment for five years or more, or who in the last ten years was convicted of an offence and sentenced to imprisonment for twelve months or more:
“(a) who, at any time (whether before or after the commencement of this section), has been convicted of an offence for which the person has been sentenced to imprisonment for a term of 5 years or more, or for an indeterminate period capable of running for 5 years or more; or (b) who, at any time in the preceding 10 years (whether before or after the commencement of this section), has been convicted of an offence for which the person has been sentenced to imprisonment for a term of 12 months or more, or for an indeterminate period capable of running for 12 months or more”
The section also:
- Counts deferred and suspended sentences
- Aggregates cumulative sentences
- Captures people who have been removed, excluded or deported from another country
Section 16 separately excludes people believed to present criminal, security or public-order risks.
The main routes past them are a special direction under section 17, granted in the decision-maker's absolute discretion, or, in criminal-matter cases, a limited visa under section 83. Since 28 November 2025 the Minister also has a specific power to grant certain temporary visas despite sections 15 and 16.
Character waivers for residence
For residence applications, instruction A5.25 lists the situations that require a character waiver before the application can be approved.
- Offences against any country's immigration, citizenship or passport laws
- Offences involving prohibited drugs, dishonesty, or violence
- Offences of a sexual nature
- Any offence that led to a term of imprisonment
- Offences committed while in New Zealand unlawfully or on a temporary visa, where the offence carries three months' imprisonment or more
- Driving offences involving dangerous driving, drink driving or drugged driving within the five years before applying or while the application is being processed
- Having previously given false or misleading information to Immigration New Zealand, or withheld material information
When a waiver is needed, instruction A5.25.10 requires the immigration officer to weigh whether the surrounding circumstances are compelling enough to justify it, including:
- The seriousness of the offence
- Whether more than one character issue applies
- How long ago the events occurred
- Whether you have immediate family lawfully and permanently in New Zealand
- The extent of your other connections to New Zealand
- Whether your potential contribution to New Zealand will be significant
That is why a well-evidenced submission addressing each factor matters.
Evidence for a waiver - support letters and what actually weighs
A residence waiver is a two-stage decision: the officer first records which provision of A5.25.5 applies to you, then decides whether the surrounding circumstances of the application are compelling enough to justify the waiver. The A5.25.10 factor list is expressly non-exhaustive, so evidence of rehabilitation and conduct since the offending is relevant in practice even though the instruction does not name it. Strong submissions map evidence onto the factors the officer must record:
| Factor | Evidence that speaks to it |
|---|---|
| Time elapsed | Sentence completion and a clean record since |
| Family | Who is lawfully and permanently in New Zealand, and what the decision means for them |
| Connections | Employment, community involvement and length of ties |
| Contribution | What you concretely do and would do here |
Support letters are practitioner practice rather than anything the instructions require, and their value follows one rule: a letter helps when the writer knows you well, knows about the offending, and speaks specifically to your conduct since, such as an employer who kept you on knowing the history, or a community leader who has watched the years since.
Generic character praise from people who do not mention the conviction adds little and can cost credibility if it reads as if they were not told. This guide deliberately provides no template: officers read submissions daily, and a letter's force comes from its specifics.
On timing, INZ publishes no separate processing standard for applications involving a waiver. The two-stage assessment, decided by an officer holding the required delegation with reasons recorded, is an additional stage on top of the ordinary category processing time.
Character for temporary visas - and drink driving
For visitor, work and student visas, instruction A5.45 requires a waiver where the applicant:
- Has ever been imprisoned for any offence
- Has any conviction against immigration, citizenship or passport laws
- Has a New Zealand conviction for an offence carrying three months' imprisonment or more
Being currently charged with, or under investigation for, an offence that could engage section 15 is itself a character issue. The waiver test is shorter than the residence one: the reason for travelling to or remaining in New Zealand, the surrounding circumstances, and the public interest.
It is the most commonly named offence in the deportation appeals the Immigration and Protection Tribunal publishes. A New Zealand excess breath or blood alcohol conviction carries up to three months' imprisonment, so it triggers the temporary-entry waiver requirement, and a drink-driving conviction within the last five years triggers the residence waiver requirement. Older drink-driving convictions that involved no imprisonment do not by themselves require a residence waiver.
Discharges without conviction and the Clean Slate Act
A discharge without conviction under section 106 of the Sentencing Act 2002 is deemed an acquittal. The court may grant one where the consequences of a conviction would be out of all proportion to the gravity of the offence, and immigration consequences are a common argument.
But a discharge does not make the incident invisible: Immigration New Zealand's forms ask whether you are currently charged with or under investigation for any offence in any country, and withholding material information is itself a character issue. If you are facing a charge, the immigration consequences of the possible outcomes are worth understanding before the criminal case is resolved, not after.
The Criminal Records (Clean Slate) Act 2004 does apply to Immigration New Zealand. Under instruction A5.5.1, updated in December 2025:
- Eligible individuals are not required to declare qualifying New Zealand convictions
- Officers cannot use them in character assessments
- Requiring someone to disregard the scheme is an offence
The scheme covers New Zealand convictions only: overseas convictions must be declared even if cleared by another country's clean-slate law, and Immigration New Zealand's forms say so expressly. And it cannot help with foreign governments: questions asked by another country's immigration agency sit outside the scheme.
Police certificates and honesty
| Applicant | Certificates from |
|---|---|
| Residence applicants aged 17 or over | Their country of citizenship, and any country they lived in for 12 months or more in the last decade |
| Temporary applicants staying 24 months or longer | Their citizenship country, and any country lived in for five years or more since turning 17 |
Certificates must be less than six months old when the application is lodged.
Whatever the conviction history, undeclared history discovered later is a character issue in its own right, and for residence holders it creates deportation liability under section 158, which applies even where someone else supplied the false information.
If a conviction was left out of a past application, getting advice before Immigration New Zealand raises it is far better than waiting. Professionals with published tribunal records can be compared on the directory search, and the deportation guide explains what happens if liability has already been raised.
Check your understanding
These questions check what this guide says. They say nothing about your own case.
For educational and illustrative purposes only. This is not immigration advice, and no warranty is given as to its appropriateness or accuracy. If in doubt, talk to an immigration adviser or an immigration lawyer about your specific circumstances.
Frequently asked questions
Sources
- Immigration Act 2009, ss 15 to 17 (excluded persons)
- Immigration Act 2009, s 158 (deportation liability, false information)
- INZ operational manual A5.25 (character requirements for residence)
- INZ operational manual A5.45 (character requirements for temporary entry)
- INZ operational manual A5.5 (character checks, incl. Clean Slate at A5.5.1)
- Sentencing Act 2002, ss 106 and 107 (discharge without conviction)
- Criminal Records (Clean Slate) Act 2004, s 14
- INZ character requirements (public guidance)
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