New Zealand Visa-Waiver Countries: The Complete List of 60
Sixty countries and territories hold visa-waiver status for New Zealand. Their citizens still need an NZeTA before travelling, but no visa application. The stay is up to three months per visit for every one of them except the United Kingdom, which gets six — with a hard cap of six months in any rolling 12. Correct as at August 2026.
Quick Facts
| Item | Detail (as at August 2026) |
|---|---|
| Countries and territories on the list | 60 |
| Stay per visit | Up to 3 months — 6 months for the United Kingdom, the only exception |
| Maximum in any 12 months | 6 months |
| Still need an NZeTA? | Yes. NZ$17 app / NZ$23 website, plus the NZ$100 levy |
| Still need a traveller declaration? | Yes — the New Zealand Traveller Declaration, free |
| Passport validity | At least 3 months beyond your intended departure date |
| Chip or biometric-passport rule | None. No such requirement exists for visa-waiver entry |
| Excluded purpose | Medical treatment — a separate visa is required |
| Australia on the list? | No. Australians are covered separately by the Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement |
| Changes 2024–2026 | None. No country added or removed |
What "visa waiver" means here
A visa-waiver country is one whose citizens may travel to New Zealand for a short visit without applying for a visa in advance. It does not mean travelling without documents or without paying anything.
Visa-waiver travellers must still:
- Hold an NZeTA before boarding. The waiver removes the visa application, not the travel authority. See the NZeTA explained.
- Pay the NZ$100 International Visitor Levy, unless exempt.
- Complete the New Zealand Traveller Declaration before arrival. It is free and separate.
- Be able to show an onward or return ticket and evidence of funds on request.
- Meet health, character and genuine-visitor requirements.
On arrival, a visa-waiver traveller who is admitted is granted a Visa Waiver Visitor Visa. That is the actual permission to be in New Zealand; the NZeTA only got you to the border.
The complete list of 60
Counted from Immigration New Zealand's published list and from the binding instruction in the Operational Manual, instruction E2.1, effective 3 November 2025.
Where a row shows a condition, that condition is part of the rule — the country is on the list only for the passports or people described.
| # | Country or territory | Stay | Condition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Andorra | 3 months | — |
| 2 | Argentina | 3 months | — |
| 3 | Austria | 3 months | — |
| 4 | Bahrain | 3 months | — |
| 5 | Belgium | 3 months | — |
| 6 | Brazil | 3 months | — |
| 7 | Brunei | 3 months | — |
| 8 | Bulgaria | 3 months | — |
| 9 | Canada | 3 months | — |
| 10 | Chile | 3 months | — |
| 11 | Croatia | 3 months | — |
| 12 | Cyprus | 3 months | — |
| 13 | Czech Republic | 3 months | — |
| 14 | Denmark | 3 months | — |
| 15 | Estonia | 3 months | Citizens only |
| 16 | Finland | 3 months | — |
| 17 | France | 3 months | — |
| 18 | Germany | 3 months | — |
| 19 | Greece | 3 months | Passports issued on or after 1 January 2006 |
| 20 | Hong Kong | 3 months | HKSAR passports, or British National (Overseas) passports |
| 21 | Hungary | 3 months | — |
| 22 | Iceland | 3 months | — |
| 23 | Ireland | 3 months | — |
| 24 | Israel | 3 months | — |
| 25 | Italy | 3 months | — |
| 26 | Japan | 3 months | — |
| 27 | Korea, South | 3 months | — |
| 28 | Kuwait | 3 months | — |
| 29 | Latvia | 3 months | Citizens only |
| 30 | Liechtenstein | 3 months | — |
| 31 | Lithuania | 3 months | Citizens only |
| 32 | Luxembourg | 3 months | — |
| 33 | Macau | 3 months | Macau SAR passports |
| 34 | Malaysia | 3 months | — |
| 35 | Malta | 3 months | — |
| 36 | Mauritius | 3 months | — |
| 37 | Mexico | 3 months | — |
| 38 | Monaco | 3 months | — |
| 39 | Netherlands | 3 months | — |
| 40 | Norway | 3 months | — |
| 41 | Oman | 3 months | — |
| 42 | Poland | 3 months | — |
| 43 | Portugal | 3 months | Passport holders with the right to live permanently in Portugal |
| 44 | Qatar | 3 months | — |
| 45 | Romania | 3 months | — |
| 46 | San Marino | 3 months | — |
| 47 | Saudi Arabia | 3 months | — |
| 48 | Seychelles | 3 months | — |
| 49 | Singapore | 3 months | — |
| 50 | Slovak Republic | 3 months | — |
| 51 | Slovenia | 3 months | — |
| 52 | Spain | 3 months | — |
| 53 | Sweden | 3 months | — |
| 54 | Switzerland | 3 months | — |
| 55 | Taiwan | 3 months | Permanent residents of Taiwan, where the identification number appears on the passport biographical page |
| 56 | United Arab Emirates | 3 months | — |
| 57 | United Kingdom | 6 months | UK citizens, and British passport holders with the right of permanent residence in the UK |
| 58 | United States of America | 3 months | Includes United States nationals |
| 59 | Uruguay | 3 months | — |
| 60 | Vatican City | 3 months | — |
No country or territory was added to or removed from this list between 2024 and 2026. That was checked by comparing the February 2025 and November 2025 versions of the binding instruction. If another site tells you the list "changed recently", it did not.
The nine conditional entries, in plain terms
Most of the 60 are simple: hold that country's passport and the waiver applies. Nine are not, and these are where people get caught out at check-in.
Taiwan is the strictest qualification on the list. The waiver covers permanent residents of Taiwan, and INZ looks for the identification number printed on the passport's biographical page. A Taiwan passport without it does not qualify.
Hong Kong covers two passport types: the HKSAR passport, and the British National (Overseas) passport. BN(O) holders are covered as a Hong Kong entry rather than as a United Kingdom one, which means the three-month stay applies, not the UK's six.
Macau covers Macau SAR passports specifically.
Greece covers passports issued on or after 1 January 2006. An older Greek passport is outside the waiver — the issue date is the test, not the expiry date.
Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania each cover citizens only. Residents of those countries who hold another nationality's passport, and non-citizen passport holders, are outside the waiver.
Portugal covers Portuguese passport holders who have the right to live permanently in Portugal.
The United Kingdom covers UK citizens and British passport holders with the right of permanent residence in the UK. This is also the only entry with a six-month stay.
The United States entry expressly includes United States nationals, not only citizens — a distinction that matters for people from American Samoa and Swains Island.
The stay rules — two clocks, not one
| Rule | Detail |
|---|---|
| Per visit | Up to 3 months, or up to 6 months for the United Kingdom |
| In any rolling 12 months | 6 months total, whatever your nationality |
| NZeTA validity | 2 years, multiple entries |
The rolling cap is the one that catches repeat visitors. A traveller who spends three months in New Zealand, leaves for a fortnight and comes back for another three months has used their entire twelve-month allowance and cannot re-enter as a visitor until the window rolls forward.
The clock is counted backwards from the date you intend to leave, not forwards from your first arrival. How long you can stay as a visitor sets out the arithmetic.
Australia is not on this list — and that is deliberate
Australia does not appear among the 60, and that is not an oversight. Australian citizens travelling on an Australian passport are covered by the Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement, which is a different and far more generous mechanism: no visa, no NZeTA, no levy, and the right to live, work and study in New Zealand indefinitely.
Australian permanent residents who are not Australian citizens are in a different position again — they do need an NZeTA. The whole distinction is set out on Australians and the NZeTA.
What the waiver does not cover
Medical treatment. Travelling to New Zealand for treatment is excluded from visa-waiver entry, whatever your passport. The published route is a Medical Treatment Visitor Visa.
Work for a New Zealand employer. Visitor conditions permit no work in New Zealand. Remote work for an employer outside New Zealand is permitted and not capped — see remote work on a visitor visa.
Long study. Short courses of up to three months in any 12-month period only.
Anything needing a sponsor. A traveller who requires financial sponsorship is outside the NZeTA scheme.
The passport rule — and the myth attached to it
Your passport has to be valid for at least three months beyond the date you intend to leave New Zealand. That is the requirement.
New Zealand sets no chip, e-passport or biometric-passport rule for visa-waiver entry. That was checked against four INZ pages including the binding instruction. A number of competitor guides state otherwise; they are wrong, and the correction is set out on the actual passport rule.
The conditional entries above are not a chip rule either. Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau turn on which passport you hold, which is a document-class rule, not a technology one.
Not on the list? The transit asymmetry is worth knowing
Some countries that are not visa-waiver countries do appear on New Zealand's separate transit waiver list — China, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand among them. Their citizens can change planes at Auckland International Airport on an NZeTA, but need a full Visitor Visa to leave the airport.
That list, and the Auckland-only limit that makes it work, is on transit visa waiver countries.
If your country is not on the list
Not being on the waiver list is ordinary rather than exceptional — most of the world's countries are not on it, including several of New Zealand's largest sources of visitors. India, China, the Philippines, South Africa, Fiji, Sri Lanka and Indonesia are all outside it.
For those travellers the published route is a Visitor Visa: a full application, from NZ$441, with 80% completed within two weeks as published by INZ on 20 August 2026. It permits a longer stay than the waiver — up to nine months in an 18-month period on a single-entry visa — so it is not simply a worse version of the waiver.
Two narrower routes also exist. Citizens of China or a Pacific Islands Forum country travelling from Australia on an eligible Australian visa may use an NZeTA rather than a visa. And people travelling on business who are outside the waiver may fall within the Business Visitor Visa, which costs less because it carries no levy.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are New Zealand's visa waiver countries?
Sixty countries and territories, listed in full in the table above. Their citizens need an NZeTA rather than a visa for a short visit, and nine of the entries carry conditions on passport type or citizenship.
Do UK passport holders need a visa for New Zealand?
No visa, but yes to an NZeTA. The United Kingdom is the only entry on the list with a six-month stay rather than three, and it covers UK citizens and British passport holders with the right of permanent residence in the UK.
Do US passport holders need a visa for New Zealand?
No visa. United States citizens and United States nationals need an NZeTA and pay the NZ$100 levy, and may stay up to three months per visit.
Is New Zealand visa free?
Not exactly. For citizens of these 60 countries and territories there is no visa application, but there is still a NZ$17–23 NZeTA and a NZ$100 levy, so a "visa-free" visit costs NZ$117–123 per person.
What is a visa waiver country for New Zealand?
A country or territory whose citizens INZ has designated as not needing to apply for a visa before a short visit. The designation sits in the binding instruction in INZ's Operational Manual, instruction E2.1.
Has the visa waiver list changed recently?
No. No country or territory was added or removed between 2024 and 2026, confirmed by comparing successive versions of the binding instruction.
Can I stay six months if I visit twice in a year?
Six months is the total permitted in any rolling 12-month period regardless of how many visits it takes, and no single visit may exceed three months unless you are a United Kingdom citizen.
Do visa-waiver travellers still pay the levy?
Yes, unless separately exempt. Visa-waiver travellers are the largest group paying the NZ$100 levy — the exemptions are listed on the International Visitor Levy page.
This list was verified against INZ's published page and the binding instruction, instruction E2.1 effective 3 November 2025, on 20 August 2026. It is general information, not immigration advice, and it does not assess whether the waiver applies to you.
