Immigration New Zealand (INZ) has announced that it will process student visas for Indians and rest of the world except China in Mumbai.
The Beijing Office will process student visas for Chinese students.
INZ will reduce the number of offshore processing offices from 17 to just five over the next two years. Six offshore offices including Ho Chi Minh, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Moscow, New Delhi and Shanghai will be closed and processing will cease in six other offices including Bangkok, Manila, Washington DC, Pretoria, Dubai and London.
However, INZ will retain its presence in these cities to gather market intelligence, manage risk and carry out verification activities.
New Model
The changes are a part of a new Visa-Processing Model that INZ has decided to implement over the next two years, apparently after consultation with its staff.
Head of Visa Services Steve Stuart said that the increasing popularity of online visa applications has provided the opportunity to develop a new model that will ensure faster, more accurate and consistent visa decision-making.
More jobs here
He said that the changes will also mean more jobs in New Zealand, bringing home a high volume of high-risk, high-value processing of visas.
The changes also mean that INZ will shut its visa processing facility in Auckland Central and Henderson and relocate it to Manukau. The Department will enhance its presence in Hamilton, Palmerston North, Porirua and Christchurch, creating up to 60 new jobs.
-Venkat Raman
