The Second or Subsequent Resident Visa, Explained
A Second or Subsequent Resident Visa is a further resident visa granted to someone who already holds New Zealand residence. It costs NZ$275 under fee bands A and C and NZ$250 under Band B, carries no immigration levy and no IVL, and is lodged online. People reach for it when the travel conditions on their existing Resident Visa no longer work.
Quick Facts
| What it is | A further resident visa for a person who already holds residence |
| Fee — Band A (in New Zealand) | NZ$275 |
| Fee — Band B (specified Pacific countries) | NZ$250 |
| Fee — Band C (rest of world) | NZ$275 |
| Immigration levy | None on this application type |
| IVL | None. Resident visa holders are exempt |
| How to apply | Online only, unless an exception applies |
| Fee waiver countries | Austria, Finland, Greece, Iceland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Turkey — onshore and offshore |
| Where it sits | One of the 33 residence products in INZ's visa list, in the status and legacy group |
| Compare with | Variation of travel conditions NZ$320 · Permanent Resident Visa NZ$315 |
What it is for
New Zealand grants residence in two stages. A Resident Visa comes first and carries travel conditions — a dated permission controlling your right to re-enter the country as a resident, typically valid two years. A Permanent Resident Visa comes later and has no such expiry.
The Second or Subsequent Resident Visa sits between those two. It is a further grant of the same class of visa, with its own travel conditions, for a person who already holds residence but whose current visa no longer does the job. The most common trigger is travel conditions that have expired or are about to.
INZ groups it with the Permanent Resident Visa, the Australian Resident Visa and the legacy 2021 Resident Visa under status and legacy products, rather than with the categories you qualify for on skills, family or investment. You are not re-applying for residence. You already have it.
Where it fits among the three "my travel conditions ran out" applications
Three different applications answer the same underlying problem, and their prices are close enough that cost is rarely the deciding factor.
| Second or Subsequent Resident Visa | Variation of travel conditions | Permanent Resident Visa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fee, Band A / B / C | NZ$275 / NZ$250 / NZ$275 | NZ$320 / NZ$260 / NZ$320 | NZ$315 / NZ$260 / NZ$315 |
| Immigration levy | None | None | None |
| IVL | None | None | None |
| What you end up holding | A further resident visa with new travel conditions | The same visa, with amended travel conditions | A visa with no travel-condition expiry at all |
| Requires meeting commitment requirements | No | No | Yes |
| Must be applied for online | Yes | Yes | Yes, unless exceptions apply |
| Ends the problem for good | No | No | Yes |
Which one fits a given set of facts turns on how long you have held residence, where you are, and what you can evidence. That assessment is regulated advice under the Immigration Advisers Licensing Act 2007, and this site does not give it. A licensed immigration adviser or a New Zealand lawyer can.
Read the full mechanics in Resident Visa travel conditions, explained and how to vary travel conditions on a resident visa.
Step 1: Check what you currently hold
Sign in to Immigration Online and read your visa details. You are looking for two things: whether the visa is a Resident Visa or a Permanent Resident Visa, and the travel-condition expiry date.
If you hold a Permanent Resident Visa, you do not need this application. A Permanent Resident Visa has no travel-condition expiry.
Step 2: Apply online
The Second or Subsequent Resident Visa is on INZ's must apply online list, alongside the Permanent Resident Visa, the Skilled Migrant Category Resident Visa, the Straight to Residence Visa, the Work to Residence Visa and the Accredited Employer Work Visa. It is handled through Enhanced Immigration Online, the current build of INZ's platform, which uses a RealMe sign-in.
Do not go looking for a paper form. See applying online or on paper for NZ visas.
Step 3: Pay, and know that the fee is not coming back
You pay at submission: NZ$275 under bands A and C, NZ$250 under Band B for citizens of specified Pacific countries. Dual citizens pay the band that matches the passport used in the application.
INZ does not refund the fee if an application is declined, if you change your mind, or if you withdraw after lodging. Refunds exist only in narrower circumstances, such as paying a fee you did not need to pay or paying the wrong fee.
What you get, and what it does not do
A further resident visa restores a working right of re-entry, with new travel conditions attached. It does not:
- convert your residence into permanent residence;
- remove travel conditions permanently — only a Permanent Resident Visa does that;
- change your work or study rights, which a resident visa already grants indefinitely; or
- affect your position on citizenship, which the Department of Internal Affairs decides under separate law. See from resident visa to New Zealand citizenship.
Your visa is electronic, and your passport matters
All New Zealand visas are issued as an eVisa. INZ's own wording is that "you do not need a sticker in your passport for your visa to be valid". A physical label is optional, costs a separate fee, and does not change your visa conditions in any way.
The situation that does need action is a new passport. INZ requires you to transfer a visa into a renewed passport before you use it to travel, and that applies to eVisas as well as physical labels. The transfer fee is NZ$225 under Band A, and it is one of the few fees that bilateral fee waivers never cover. See transfer your visa to a new passport and eVisa vs visa label.
How long it takes
INZ does not publish a separate wait time for the Second or Subsequent Resident Visa on its resident visa wait-times page. The neighbouring application gives the best available sense of scale: the Permanent Resident Visa averages 1.5 weeks, with 80% completed within 2 weeks, as published on 20 August 2026.
INZ publishes two figures for the visas it does cover — an average, which is the 50% mark, and "most completed within", which is the 80% mark. Both are updated weekly, and the pages carry no last-updated timestamp. Applications take longer where information is missing, where INZ needs to ask for more, or where third-party checks are required, and INZ says it has limited control over how long third parties take. There is no paid fast track at any price. See how long New Zealand residence applications take.
Fee waivers
Citizens of Austria, Finland, Greece, Iceland, Israel, Italy, Japan and Turkey are covered by bilateral agreements that waive the fee and immigration levy for a second or subsequent resident visa, both onshore and offshore. The same eight countries' agreements also cover variations of travel conditions on a resident visa, the Permanent Resident Visa, and an endorsement indicating New Zealand citizenship.
Waivers never extend to the IVL or to visa-label transfers.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a Second or Subsequent Resident Visa in New Zealand?
It is a further resident visa granted to someone who already holds New Zealand residence. It carries new travel conditions and costs NZ$275 under fee bands A and C, with no immigration levy and no IVL.
How much does a Second or Subsequent Resident Visa cost?
NZ$275 if you are in New Zealand (Band A) or applying from most countries (Band C), and NZ$250 under Band B for citizens of specified Pacific countries. It is the cheapest of the three resident-visa applications, ahead of the Permanent Resident Visa at NZ$315 and a variation of travel conditions at NZ$320.
Do I need a Second or Subsequent Resident Visa or a variation of travel conditions?
They are different applications, not alternatives to be picked at random. A variation amends the travel conditions on the visa you hold. A second or subsequent resident visa grants you a further visa. Which one applies depends on your circumstances, and that assessment is regulated immigration advice — take it from a licensed adviser or a New Zealand lawyer.
Can I apply for it online?
Yes, and you must. It is on INZ's list of visas that must be applied for online, through Immigration Online with a RealMe login.
Does it lead to permanent residence?
Not by itself. Permanent residence is a separate application — the Permanent Resident Visa at NZ$315 — and requires meeting INZ's commitment requirements, usually after two years of holding residence.
Is there an immigration levy on this application?
No. The immigration levy, which is NZ$3,570 on skilled residence categories and NZ$3,420 on Family Category applications, is not charged on a second or subsequent resident visa, on a Permanent Resident Visa, or on a variation of travel conditions. See what is the immigration levy.
Will I get a sticker in my passport?
Not unless you ask and pay for one. All New Zealand visas are issued as eVisas and a label is never required for validity. If you have renewed your passport, though, you do need to transfer the visa into it before travelling.
This page is general information, not immigration advice. Under the Immigration Advisers Licensing Act 2007 we explain what the published rules require; we do not assess whether an individual meets them or recommend which application to make. For advice on your own circumstances, use a licensed immigration adviser or a New Zealand lawyer, and check the licence on the Immigration Advisers Authority register.
