Most students who are declined want to reapply straight away, often through someone new who promises a quick fix. The letter Immigration New Zealand (INZ) sent you is the most useful document you have. Read it carefully first.
1. Find the instruction INZ used
Each reason in the letter is tied to an immigration instruction. For example, U3.20 relates to funds for living costs. The instruction tells you which requirement was not met — money, genuine intent, English, health or character.
2. List every finding, one line each
Write each concern as a single line: for example, “source of fixed deposits not shown” or “provident fund not shown to be available”. A new application must answer every line with new evidence, not with a longer explanation of the same documents.
3. Notice what INZ did not assess
Letters often say that a full assessment of all requirements was not completed. That means a new application can still be tested on other points, such as genuine intent or character. Prepare the whole file, not only the part that failed.
4. Know your options from outside New Zealand
If you applied from outside New Zealand, you generally have no right of appeal. INZ may reconsider in limited cases where new and compelling information is provided quickly; otherwise the usual route is a new application with new information or changed circumstances.
5. Disclose the refusal every time
Every future application — to New Zealand or any other country — must declare previous refusals truthfully. Hiding one is far more damaging than the refusal itself.
Not sure what your letter means? Send it to us for a free refusal review. Where your case needs licensed immigration advice, our licensed immigration adviser handles it.
