Student Work Rights Rose From 20 to 25 Hours a Week
For New Zealand student visas granted on or after 3 November 2025, in-study work rights rose from 20 hours a week to 25. The same change extended work rights to tertiary students on approved exchange and Study Abroad programmes, including programmes lasting a single semester. Older visas keep the conditions they were granted with.
Quick Facts
| What changed | In-study work rights rose from 20 to 25 hours a week |
| Announced | 14 July 2025 |
| In force for visas granted | On or after 3 November 2025 |
| Also extended to | All tertiary students in approved exchange or Study Abroad programmes, including one-semester programmes |
| Older visas | Keep the hours they were granted with. Work rights are visa conditions |
| Who is not covered | Students whose visa carries no work condition at all |
| Fee Paying Student Visa cost | From NZ$850 — NZ$485 fee, NZ$265 immigration levy, NZ$100 IVL |
| Pathway Student Visa cost | From NZ$750 — NZ$485 fee and NZ$265 levy, no IVL |
| Policy context | Enrolment target of 119,000 by 2034, up from 83,400 in 2024 |
What changed, precisely
The number is easy: 20 hours a week became 25.
The condition attached to it is the part that matters, and it is the part most summaries drop. The 25-hour right applies to student visas granted on or after 3 November 2025. It is not a blanket uplift applied to everyone studying in New Zealand on that date.
That is because work rights are conditions written onto the visa itself. Your visa carries the conditions it was granted with, and it keeps them until it is replaced. A visa granted in, say, September 2025 carries a 20-hour condition, and it carries it until it expires — even though the rule changed while the person was mid-course.
Nothing about the change is automatic. Read the conditions on your own visa rather than assuming the current rule describes it. See student visa work rights and visa conditions explained.
The second change, which got less attention
The same package extended work rights to all tertiary students in approved exchange or Study Abroad programmes, explicitly including programmes that run for a single semester.
Before this, short exchange students were largely outside the in-study work regime. A one-semester exchange student now falls inside it, subject to the conditions on their visa. See the exchange student visa, explained.
Why the Government did it
The change sits inside an international education growth plan, and the published numbers explain the direction:
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| International enrolments, 2024 | 83,400 |
| Enrolment target by 2034 | 119,000 |
| Economic contribution, 2024 | NZ$3.6 billion |
| Target contribution | NZ$7.2 billion |
Work rights are one of the levers a destination country can pull without changing price. New Zealand's competitors publish theirs prominently, and 20 hours had become the low end of the field.
The wider context, worth knowing if you are trying to read where policy goes next: work-visa arrivals to New Zealand fell sharply after 2023 while student arrivals held roughly flat. Students are now a much larger share of migrant arrivals than they were. Policy attention has followed.
Three different work rights, often confused with each other
Almost every question we see about this change is really a question about which of three separate things the reader is holding.
| What it is | Where it comes from | |
|---|---|---|
| In-study work rights | Part-time work while your course is running — now up to 25 hours a week on qualifying visas | A condition on your student visa |
| Holiday work rights | Full-time work during scheduled course breaks, where your course and visa allow it | A separate condition on the same student visa |
| Post-study work rights | Open or restricted work after you finish, for up to 3 years | A different visa — the Post Study Work Visa |
Only the first of the three changed in November 2025. The second is long-standing and depends on your course type. The third is a separate application with its own fee of NZ$1,670, its own NZ$5,000 funds requirement, and its own eligibility expansion coming on 16 November 2026.
Mixing them up is expensive in both directions: people turn down work they are entitled to do, and people work hours they are not.
Where to read your own conditions
Your work conditions are stated on your visa. There are two reliable places to find them:
- Your Immigration Online account, where the visa was granted.
- Your eVisa, which is the visa itself. All New Zealand visas are issued as eVisas — a sticker in your passport is optional and does not change what your conditions say.
If you renew your passport, the visa must be transferred to it before you travel, and that applies to eVisas as well as physical labels. See transfer your visa to a new passport.
If your conditions do not say what you expected, a variation of conditions is the mechanism for asking Immigration New Zealand to change them. It is a separate application with its own fee and its own criteria — see variation of conditions, explained.
A timing note for applicants
Student visa demand in New Zealand is seasonal, and Immigration New Zealand publishes its own peaks: a main peak from October to March and a mid-year peak from May to August. It advises applying at least three months before travel, and specifically warns applicants from India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan of longer waits.
Processing is published by provider type rather than by visa. As at 20 August 2026: universities average 2.5 weeks with 80% within 7 weeks; polytechnics 5.5 and 9 weeks; private training establishments 4 and 9 weeks; schools 2 and 5 weeks. See student visa processing times.
What has not changed
This is where readers over-read the headline.
- The visa a student holds still governs. A pre-3 November 2025 visa still carries 20 hours.
- In-study work rights are not a work visa. They permit part-time work during study. They are not permission to work full-time, and they do not survive the end of your study.
- Full-time work during scheduled holidays is a separate, long-standing entitlement that depends on your course and visa conditions — it is not what changed here.
- Course requirements are unchanged. Work rights are conditional on maintaining enrolment and attendance. Losing your student status ends the work right with it.
- Not every student visa carries work rights. Some carry none. See types of New Zealand student visa.
- Fees did not change. A Fee Paying Student Visa costs from NZ$850 and a Pathway Student Visa from NZ$750 — the difference is that the Pathway Student Visa carries no International Visitor Levy. There has been no general fee or levy increase in 2025 or 2026.
- The Post Study Work Visa is separate, and its own eligibility change lands on 16 November 2026 — see Post Study Work Visa eligibility expands.
What to do differently now
- Read your visa conditions, in your Immigration Online account or on your eVisa. The hours are stated there.
- If your visa predates 3 November 2025, the 25-hour rule does not retro-fit to it. A new visa granted after that date would carry the current conditions, but applying for one has its own cost, timing and requirements.
- Employers: the permitted hours are the migrant's visa condition, not a national rule. Two students in the same class can lawfully work different maximum hours.
- Do not exceed the hours on your own visa. Breaching a work condition is a compliance matter and it affects future applications. See what happens if you breach your visa conditions.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many hours can international students work in New Zealand?
Up to 25 hours a week during study, for student visas granted on or after 3 November 2025. Visas granted before that date carry the previous 20-hour condition. The hours that apply to you are written on your visa. See how many hours can international students work in New Zealand?
When did student work rights change from 20 to 25 hours?
The change was announced on 14 July 2025 and applies to student visas granted on or after 3 November 2025.
Does the 25-hour rule apply to my existing student visa?
Not automatically. Work rights are conditions attached to a specific visa, so a visa granted before 3 November 2025 keeps its 20-hour condition until it is replaced.
Can exchange students work in New Zealand now?
The change extended work rights to all tertiary students in approved exchange or Study Abroad programmes, including one-semester programmes, subject to the conditions granted on the individual visa.
Can I work full-time during the holidays?
Full-time work during scheduled course breaks is a separate entitlement that depends on your course and the conditions on your visa. It was not what changed in November 2025. Check your visa conditions.
What happens if I work more than my permitted hours?
Exceeding a work condition is a breach of the visa. It is a compliance matter for Immigration New Zealand and it can affect later applications. If it has already happened, that is a situation to take to a licensed immigration adviser or a New Zealand lawyer rather than to a forum.
Do I need a separate work visa to work while studying?
No. In-study work rights are a condition on the student visa itself. A separate work visa is a different product with its own requirements, and it is what you would need after study — see the Post Study Work Visa, explained.
This page is general information, not immigration advice. New Zealand regulates immigration advice under the Immigration Advisers Licensing Act 2007, and we do not assess anyone's individual circumstances. For advice about your own case, use a licensed immigration adviser or a New Zealand lawyer, and check the licence on the Immigration Advisers Authority register.
