Will a drink driving conviction stop me getting a New Zealand visa?

Usually no, but it typically requires a character waiver. A New Zealand drink-driving conviction triggers the temporary-entry waiver requirement because the offence carries up to three months' imprisonment, and any dangerous, drink or drugged driving conviction within the last five years triggers the residence waiver requirement. Waivers are regularly granted where the circumstances support it.

Does the Clean Slate Act apply to Immigration New Zealand?

Yes. Under INZ instruction A5.5.1, eligible individuals are not required to declare qualifying New Zealand convictions and officers cannot use them in character assessments. It covers New Zealand convictions only — overseas convictions must be declared even if another country's law has cleared them, and foreign immigration agencies are outside the scheme.

Do I have to declare a discharge without conviction?

A discharge under section 106 of the Sentencing Act is deemed an acquittal, so conviction questions are not triggered as a matter of New Zealand law. But INZ forms also ask about current charges and investigations in any country, and withholding material information is itself a character issue — so take advice on your specific forms and situation rather than assuming silence is safe.

What sentences make someone ineligible for a New Zealand visa?

Section 15 of the Immigration Act bars anyone ever sentenced to five years' imprisonment or more, and anyone sentenced to twelve months or more within the last ten years. A character waiver cannot cure these bars — only a special direction under section 17, granted in absolute discretion, or a limited visa under section 83 can get past them.

Criminal convictions, character and your New Zealand visa

Updated 26 July 2026

A criminal conviction does not automatically end a New Zealand visa application — but it changes what the application has to clear. The Immigration Act 2009 sets absolute bars in section 15 that no character waiver can cure: a sentence of imprisonment of five years or more at any time, or twelve months or more within the last ten years. Below those bars, Immigration New Zealand's character instructions decide whether your history needs a character waiver, and the waiver decision turns on documented factors — seriousness, recency, family in New Zealand, your connections and contribution. Getting the framing and evidence right is exactly the kind of work where professional help earns its fee.

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 sentenced to imprisonment for twelve months or more. The section counts deferred and suspended sentences, aggregates cumulative sentences, and also 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.

A character waiver cannot cure these bars. 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. Convictions on the list include, at any time: offences against any country's immigration, citizenship or passport laws; offences involving prohibited drugs, dishonesty, or violence; offences of a sexual nature; and 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), and driving offences involving dangerous driving, drink driving or drugged driving within the five years before applying or while the application is being processed, are also on the list — as is 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, and whether your potential contribution to New Zealand will be significant. Waiver decisions must record reasons — which is why a well-evidenced submission addressing each factor matters.

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, or 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.

Drink driving deserves its own mention because 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, and requiring someone to disregard the scheme is an offence. Two traps remain. 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

Residence applicants aged 17 or over need police certificates from 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 need them from 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, the one unforgivable move is hiding it. 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.

Frequently asked questions

Will a drink driving conviction stop me getting a New Zealand visa?: Usually no, but it typically requires a character waiver. A New Zealand drink-driving conviction triggers the temporary-entry waiver requirement because the offence carries up to three months' imprisonment, and any dangerous, drink or drugged driving conviction within the last five years triggers the residence waiver requirement. Waivers are regularly granted where the circumstances support it.
Does the Clean Slate Act apply to Immigration New Zealand?: Yes. Under INZ instruction A5.5.1, eligible individuals are not required to declare qualifying New Zealand convictions and officers cannot use them in character assessments. It covers New Zealand convictions only — overseas convictions must be declared even if another country's law has cleared them, and foreign immigration agencies are outside the scheme.
Do I have to declare a discharge without conviction?: A discharge under section 106 of the Sentencing Act is deemed an acquittal, so conviction questions are not triggered as a matter of New Zealand law. But INZ forms also ask about current charges and investigations in any country, and withholding material information is itself a character issue — so take advice on your specific forms and situation rather than assuming silence is safe.
What sentences make someone ineligible for a New Zealand visa?: Section 15 of the Immigration Act bars anyone ever sentenced to five years' imprisonment or more, and anyone sentenced to twelve months or more within the last ten years. A character waiver cannot cure these bars — only a special direction under section 17, granted in absolute discretion, or a limited visa under section 83 can get past them.

Sources

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General information, not immigration advice. Rules change; always check the linked official sources.