What does the IAA do?
- Current IAA licences
- 1,752
- On the register all time, lapsed licences included
- 3,038
- Active immigration advice businesses
- 1,444
Licensed immigration advisers, businesses and all-time register entries as at October 2026, derived from the IAA public register. See register statistics for the full breakdown.
The IAA was established under the Immigration Advisers Licensing Act 2007, which makes it unlawful to give New Zealand immigration advice without a licence unless exempt. Its work falls into five parts.
- Licensing. Assessing applicants against competency standards and issuing full, provisional and limited licences, renewed annually.
- Standards. Setting the competency standards and the code of conduct every licensed immigration adviser must follow.
- The public register. Publishing every licence, holder, type, status and business, so anyone can verify a licensed immigration adviser. Check a licence here or on the official register.
- Complaints and discipline. Receiving complaints about licensed immigration advisers and referring them to the Immigration Advisers Complaints and Disciplinary Tribunal. This site summarises every published decision.
- Enforcement. Investigating unlicensed immigration advice, which is a criminal offence under the Act. What counts as unlicensed advice.
Who must be licensed by the IAA?
Anyone who gives New Zealand immigration advice, onshore or offshore, must hold a current IAA licence unless the Act exempts them. The main exempt groups are:
- New Zealand lawyers with a current practising certificate, which is why immigration lawyers never appear on the IAA register (see immigration adviser versus immigration lawyer);
- people helping in an informal or family setting, provided the help is not systematic and not paid for;
- community law centre and citizens advice bureau staff;
- members of Parliament and their staff, and certain public servants acting in their official roles.
The authoritative list is in the Act itself and on the IAA website. Everyone else giving paid New Zealand immigration advice, including people calling themselves immigration consultants or immigration agents, needs a licence.
What licence types does the IAA issue?
| Licence | What it allows |
|---|---|
| Full licence | Advice on any immigration matter, unsupervised. |
| Provisional licence | For new licensed immigration advisers, who must work under the direct supervision of a full licence holder. |
| Limited licence | Advice restricted to the specific matters listed on the licence. |
Every profile on this site shows the licence type and status straight from the register, and listing order weights full licences ahead of provisional and limited ones.
The IAA and Immigration New Zealand are not the same thing
Both belong to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, but they do different jobs. Immigration New Zealand decides visa applications. The Immigration Advisers Authority regulates the people who give advice about those applications. Unhappy with a visa decision? That is an INZ or Immigration and Protection Tribunal matter (see appeal rights). Unhappy with your licensed immigration adviser? That is the IAA.
Check a licensed immigration adviser before you engage
Licence checks are free and take seconds. This site covers every licensed immigration adviser ever licensed by the IAA, including lapsed, surrendered and cancelled licences kept visible for due diligence, with each profile linking to the official register entry.