Immigration Online: How to Create and Use Your INZ Account
Immigration Online is the official name of Immigration New Zealand's application system. You reach it with a RealMe login, the New Zealand Government identity service. The current build is branded Enhanced Immigration Online — the same system, upgraded, not a separate product. Most visitor, student, work and resident visa applications run through it.
Quick Facts
| Item | Detail (as at August 2026) |
|---|---|
| Official name | Immigration Online |
| Current build | Enhanced Immigration Online — same system, newer version |
| Login | A RealMe account, at realme.govt.nz |
| Cost to create an account | Free. You pay the visa fee at submission, not for the account |
| Who needs their own account | Every applicant, and separately every person applying on someone else's behalf |
| Not the portal's name | "ADEPT" — this name appears nowhere on immigration.govt.nz |
| Status tracking | Real-time application status tracking in Enhanced Immigration Online |
| Forms | Smart forms — questions are generated from your answers and your visa type |
| Not everything is online | A small group of visas must be applied for on paper |
What Immigration Online actually is
Immigration Online is the platform INZ uses to take, hold and process visa applications. One account holds your applications, the documents attached to them, the messages INZ sends you, and the decision when it comes.
INZ names it plainly in its guidance for immigration professionals, and it is the system employers, education providers, licensed advisers and lawyers use as well as individual applicants.
There is one naming point worth settling because it circulates widely. INZ has no portal called "ADEPT". The name does not appear anywhere on immigration.govt.nz, including the immigration-professionals section, which refers only to Immigration Online. If you have read that Enhanced Immigration Online "is also known as ADEPT", treat that as unverified. Use the names INZ uses.
What "Enhanced Immigration Online" changes
Enhanced Immigration Online is INZ's current build of the same platform, described by INZ as making it easier both to apply and to process an application. Treat it as a version, not a separate product — you do not choose between them.
Three published differences matter to an applicant:
- Smart forms. The form asks only the questions relevant to the answers you have already given and the visa type you have chosen. Two people applying for the same visa can legitimately see different questions, and a form that changes when you go back and edit an answer is behaving as designed.
- Reduced upfront medical certificate requirements. Fewer medical certificates are demanded at the point of application than under the older flow.
- Real-time application status tracking. The status in your account updates as the application moves, rather than only when INZ contacts you.
INZ publishes the visa types processed through Enhanced Immigration Online:
| Category | Covered |
|---|---|
| Visitor | Most visitor visas |
| Student | Most student visas |
| Work | Accredited Employer Work Visa and related applications |
| Family | Partner and child visas for workers, students or military personnel |
| Residence | Permanent Resident Visa; Second or Subsequent Resident Visa |
| Resident conditions | Variation of travel conditions on resident visas |
| Transit | Transit Visa |
Anything not on that list still goes through Immigration Online in its earlier form, or — for a small group — on paper. The published split is on applying online or on paper.
Step 1: Create your RealMe login first
Immigration Online does not have its own username and password. The login is RealMe, the New Zealand Government identity service at realme.govt.nz, operated by the Department of Internal Affairs.
INZ describes RealMe as designed to protect your privacy and as a service used by many New Zealand businesses and government departments. Practically, the effect is that one RealMe login can get you into several government services, and that INZ cannot reset it for you — it is not INZ's system.
Create the RealMe login before you try to start an application. The detail is on setting up your RealMe login.
Step 2: Open your Immigration Online account
With a RealMe login in hand, you access Immigration Online from immigration.govt.nz and the account is created against that login. There is no charge for the account itself.
Two rules on account ownership are worth being strict about from the start:
- One person, one RealMe, one account. Sharing a login between family members creates a record that does not match the person applying.
- Applying for someone else means your own account. INZ's wording is direct: "To apply for a visa on behalf of others, you need your own Immigration Online account and 'RealMe' login." That applies to licensed immigration advisers, lawyers, education agents, education providers, employers and travel agents. See applying on behalf of someone else.
Step 3: Start the right application
Inside the account you select the visa you are applying for. This is the decision that generates everything afterwards — the questions, the evidence list, and the fee. If you are not sure, settle it before you start: which New Zealand visa do I need.
Applications save as drafts. You do not need to finish in one sitting, and INZ occasionally schedules maintenance windows in which drafts should be saved and closed beforehand — those are announced on the site.
Step 4: Work through the form and attach evidence
Answer the form in order. Because the questions are generated, jumping ahead and coming back can change what you are asked, and changing an early answer can add or remove whole sections including document uploads.
Documents are attached as you go, against the specific evidence item they satisfy rather than into one general pile. Uploading evidence covers what to do when a file will not attach.
Step 5: Pay and submit
The fee is paid at submission. Nothing is assessed beforehand, and a processed application is not refunded even if it is declined. What you pay is normally an application fee plus an immigration levy plus, where it applies, the NZ$100 International Visitor Levy — and the application fee depends on your fee band. See how to pay New Zealand visa fees.
Step 6: Use the account to track and respond
After submission, your account becomes the channel. INZ's published position is that it will "phone, email or notify you on your online account", and that you do not need to do anything else unless it asks for more.
That is also where a Request for Further Information lands. Check the account rather than only your inbox — email filtering is a common reason people miss a request and lose time they did not have. See how to check your application status.
Sharing an application with an adviser or family member
INZ's Enhanced Immigration Online material refers to a unique sharing identifier that lets an applicant share an application with a friend, family member or licensed immigration adviser. The feature is real enough to be described by INZ, but the mechanics were not confirmed to a standard we will publish here — check the Enhanced Immigration Online page on immigration.govt.nz for how it currently works before relying on it.
What is settled is the alternative: an adviser or employer can lodge on your behalf from their account, which is a different arrangement with different consequences for who holds the record.
What the account cannot do
Worth knowing, because these are the things people search for and do not find:
- It cannot speed anything up. There is no expedited or premium channel inside the account, and none exists elsewhere. See can you speed up a New Zealand visa application.
- It cannot reset your RealMe login. That is the Department of Internal Affairs.
- It does not replace the border. A granted visa lets you travel; entry permission is granted by an officer on arrival. See entry permission.
- It is not VisaView. The employer visa-checking tool of that name was not found on the current INZ site, and we will not tell you it still exists. Employers checking an applicant's status should work from what INZ currently publishes for employers.
Watch what you are logging into
Immigration Online is reached from immigration.govt.nz, and RealMe from realme.govt.nz. Those are the two domains involved.
A significant number of commercial and impersonating sites present themselves as New Zealand visa portals, including at least one reproducing INZ branding and a Crown copyright line. None of them is INZ, none can process anything, and handing them your identity documents is a real risk. See how to spot a fake NZ immigration website.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need an Immigration Online account to apply for a New Zealand visa?
For visas that must be applied for online, yes — the account is the only route. For the small group that must be applied for on paper, no. Everything in between is normally applied for online in practice.
Is Immigration Online the same as Enhanced Immigration Online?
Yes. Enhanced Immigration Online is the current build of Immigration Online, not a different system. INZ describes it as making it easier to apply and to process an application.
Is INZ's portal called ADEPT?
No. That name appears nowhere on immigration.govt.nz. The system is Immigration Online, currently branded Enhanced Immigration Online.
Does an Immigration Online account cost anything?
No. Creating the account and the RealMe login is free. You pay the visa application fee, the immigration levy and any International Visitor Levy when you submit an application.
Can two people share one Immigration Online account?
No. Each applicant needs their own RealMe login and account, and anyone lodging on someone else's behalf needs their own as well.
Why does my form look different from someone else's?
Because Enhanced Immigration Online uses smart forms. The questions and the evidence list are generated from your answers and the visa type, so two applications for the same visa can look different.
How do I check my application status in the account?
Log in and open the application. Enhanced Immigration Online provides real-time status tracking, and INZ also contacts applicants by phone, email or through the account.
What if I cannot log in?
If the problem is the RealMe login itself — a forgotten username or password — that is resolved through RealMe, not INZ. RealMe publishes its own recovery process.
This page explains published rules. It is general information, not immigration advice, and it does not assess any individual's circumstances. Anyone who needs their own situation assessed should speak to a licensed immigration adviser or a New Zealand lawyer.
