Bringing Your Family to New Zealand on a Work Visa
Whether your partner and children can join you on a New Zealand work visa comes down to what you earn and what job you hold. Earning NZ$52.50 an hour supports a partner work visa at any skill level. At skill levels 1–3, or in a National Occupation List job, the partner threshold is NZ$28.00 an hour. Children have a separate annual income test.
Quick Facts
| Partner threshold, skill levels 1–3 or a NOL job | NZ$28.00 an hour (80% of the median wage) |
| Partner threshold, skill levels 4–5 outside a sector agreement | NZ$52.50 an hour (1.5× the median wage) |
| Partner threshold, Green List job meeting Green List requirements | NZ$35.00 an hour |
| Any skill level | NZ$52.50 an hour or more supports a partner work visa outright |
| Below the partner threshold | The partner may only be eligible for a visitor visa |
| Children | A separate annual income threshold — 80% of the median wage over a 40-hour week |
| Combining incomes | If both partners hold an AEWV, incomes can be combined for the dependent child threshold |
| Partner of a Worker Work Visa | From NZ$1,630 = NZ$570 + NZ$1,060 levy. 80% decided within 4.5 weeks |
| Dependent Child Student Visa | From NZ$750 = NZ$485 + NZ$265 levy, IVL-exempt. 80% within 10 weeks |
| Child of a Worker Visitor Visa | From NZ$341 = NZ$300 + NZ$41 levy, IVL-exempt. Allows 3 months of study |
Thresholds as at 9 March 2026, when the immigration median wage rose to NZ$35.00 an hour. Fees unchanged since 1 October 2024.
How the system works
New Zealand does not add family members to a work visa. Each person applies for their own visa, in their own right, and pays their own fee and levy. What your visa does is make them eligible — if you earn enough and hold the right kind of job.
Three separate tests are running:
- Can you support a partner for a work visa? Decided by your hourly rate and your job's skill level.
- Can you support dependent children? Decided by your annual income.
- Is the family member eligible in their own right? Health, character, relationship evidence, and the requirements of the visa they are applying for.
Failing the first test does not automatically fail the second — the tests use different measures. And failing the partner work visa threshold does not mean your partner cannot come; it means they may only be eligible for a visitor visa, which does not permit work in New Zealand.
Supporting a partner for a work visa
The threshold depends on the job you hold, not on the job your partner wants.
| Your situation | Minimum you must earn to support a partner work visa |
|---|---|
| Earning NZ$52.50 an hour or more, any skill level | Qualifies |
| ANZSCO skill level 1, 2 or 3 | NZ$28.00 an hour |
| A job on the National Occupation List | NZ$28.00 an hour |
| ANZSCO skill level 4 or 5, not in a sector agreement | NZ$52.50 an hour, or NZ$35.00 an hour in a Green List job meeting Green List requirements |
| Green List job meeting Green List requirements | NZ$35.00 an hour |
| Approved transport job, ANZSCO skill level 4 or 5 | "Acceptable employment": NZ$35.00 an hour, accredited employer, 30+ hours a week, permanent or fixed-term of 12+ months |
| Care workforce or transport sector agreement, ANZSCO 4/5 | NZ$28.00 an hour, or the sector-agreement wage, whichever is higher |
| Grandparented — you supported a family visa before 26 June 2024 | NZ$26.85 an hour |
The arithmetic behind the figures is worth knowing, because it tells you when they will move: NZ$28.00 is 80% of the median wage, NZ$35.00 is 100%, and NZ$52.50 is 150%. All three re-indexed on 9 March 2026 when the immigration median wage rose from NZ$33.56 to NZ$35.00 an hour. They will re-index again when the median wage next moves — and the month that happens has drifted in recent years, so do not assume a fixed anniversary.
If you already hold a visa and the threshold rises afterwards, you do not have to meet the new rate on that visa. That protection is published by INZ and is the reason the grandparented rates still exist.
Who cannot support a partner work visa at all
Some visas cannot support a partner work visa regardless of income. You cannot support one if you hold:
- A visa for six months or less (unless it is a Migrant Exploitation Protection Work Visa)
- A Working Holiday Visa
- An RSE Limited Visa
- A Supplementary Seasonal Employment Work Visa
- A Fishing Crew Work Visa
- A Domestic Staff of a Diplomat Work Visa
- A Skilled Migrant Category Job Search Visa
- A lower-skilled job on an Accredited Employer Work Visa or an Essential Skills Work Visa
This list is why seasonal workers cannot bring partners. It is a structural feature of those visa categories, not an income question.
What the partner gets
A Partner of a Worker Work Visa carries open work rights — any work, any job, anywhere in New Zealand. Two exclusions apply: holders cannot provide commercial sexual services and cannot employ others.
- Fee: from NZ$1,630 — NZ$570 partnership work visa fee plus NZ$1,060 immigration levy.
- Processing: 80% within 4.5 weeks.
- Duration: the same length as the supporting partner's eligible work visa.
- Residence: it does not lead to residence on its own.
Since 2 December 2024 these visas have been granted without work conditions. Partners issued conditioned visas before that date can apply to have the conditions removed where the principal earns at least NZ$28.00 an hour, or NZ$26.85 under the pre-26 June 2024 rules.
One change to note for anyone planning self-employment: from 20 April 2026, open work visa holders must work under an employment agreement or a contract for services, and cannot sole-trade, own or operate a business, or employ others. Existing holders are grandfathered until their visa expires. See open work visas explained.
Full detail in the Partner of a Worker Work Visa explained.
If you are below the partner threshold
Your partner may still be eligible for a visitor visa. A visitor visa does not permit work in New Zealand, although visitor visas applied for on or after 27 January 2025 allow remote work for an employer or client based outside New Zealand.
- Visitor visa total: NZ$441 = NZ$300 application fee + NZ$41 immigration levy + NZ$100 International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy (IVL).
- Funds requirement: NZ$1,000 per person per month of stay, or NZ$400 per month where accommodation is already paid for.
That is a materially different life in New Zealand from open work rights, and it is worth understanding before anyone books a flight. See the visitor visa explained.
Supporting dependent children
Children are tested on annual income, not on an hourly rate — a different measure from the partner test, and the source of most confusion on this topic.
The formula: the dependent child income threshold is 80% of the immigration median wage over a 40-hour week. It re-indexes when the median wage re-indexes.
The figure: NZ$58,240 a year, which is 80% of the immigration median wage over a 40-hour week — 0.8 x NZ$35.00 x 2,080 hours. The widely circulated NZ$55,844 was set against the previous NZ$33.56 median wage and is superseded; it should not be relied on. Because this threshold re-indexes whenever the median wage moves, and the month that happens has drifted in recent years, confirm the current annual threshold with INZ before you arrange your finances around it.
What we can state with confidence:
- The threshold is calculated as 80% × the median hourly wage × 40 hours × 52 weeks. With the median wage at NZ$35.00 an hour from 9 March 2026, you can do that arithmetic yourself — but INZ's published figure is the one that governs, and it is the one to check.
- Grandparented cases — children approved or applied for on or before 9 March 2025, or where you supported a family visa before 26 June 2024 — use NZ$43,322.76 a year.
- If both partners hold an Accredited Employer Work Visa, your incomes can be combined to meet the dependent child threshold. This is a genuine and under-published concession.
- Where a transport or care sector job is involved, the income test sits alongside an "acceptable employment" requirement.
The two children's visas
| Dependent Child Student Visa | Child of a Worker Visitor Visa | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Study at primary or secondary school | Visit, with up to 3 months of study |
| Age | 19 or younger | Dependent child of a work visa holder |
| Length | Same as the parent's visa — expires with it | Same as the parent's work visa |
| School fees | May be treated as a domestic student, with no tuition fees for school | Not applicable beyond the 3-month study allowance |
| Funds | NZ$17,000 for a full year of study, or NZ$1,417 a month | — |
| Fee | From NZ$750 = NZ$485 + NZ$265 levy. IVL-exempt | From NZ$341 = NZ$300 + NZ$41 levy. IVL-exempt |
| Processing | 80% within 10 weeks | 80% within 10 weeks |
Tertiary study requires a Fee Paying Student Visa instead, at full international fees. Not all work visa holders can support a Child of a Worker Visitor Visa application. See dependent children of work visa holders.
Health requirements for dependent children of temporary visa holders were strengthened on 17 March 2025. The detail of that change was not published in a form this site could verify — confirm the current health requirements with INZ before assuming a child will meet them.
What it all costs
| Application | Total | Components |
|---|---|---|
| Your work visa (AEWV) | NZ$1,540 | NZ$480 + NZ$1,060 levy |
| Partner of a Worker Work Visa | NZ$1,630 | NZ$570 + NZ$1,060 levy |
| Dependent Child Student Visa | NZ$750 | NZ$485 + NZ$265 levy, IVL-exempt |
| Child of a Worker Visitor Visa | NZ$341 | NZ$300 + NZ$41 levy, IVL-exempt |
| Partner on a visitor visa instead | NZ$441 | NZ$300 + NZ$41 levy + NZ$100 IVL |
INZ publishes only a combined "from NZ$X" for each of these. The split matters because the components behave differently — some applicants are exempt from the levy or the IVL and not from the fee. There has been no general fee or levy increase in 2025 or 2026; INZ's fee page still states rates as at 1 October 2024. Fees also vary by fee band depending on where you apply from. See visa fees, levies and fee bands explained.
Note also that partners and children on work-visa-linked applications apply and pay separately. The rule that lets you include family in one application applies to residence class visas, visitor visas, transit visas and variations of travel conditions — not to work visas.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much do I need to earn to bring my partner to New Zealand?
It depends on your job. NZ$52.50 an hour supports a partner work visa at any skill level. At ANZSCO skill levels 1–3, or in a National Occupation List job, the threshold is NZ$28.00 an hour. In a Green List job meeting Green List requirements it is NZ$35.00 an hour. Below the applicable threshold, your partner may only be eligible for a visitor visa.
Can my partner work in New Zealand on my work visa?
Not on your visa — they need their own. A Partner of a Worker Work Visa carries open work rights, which means any work, any job, anywhere in New Zealand, excluding commercial sexual services and employing others.
What is the income threshold to bring my children?
NZ$58,240 a year, as at August 2026. The rule is 80% of the immigration median wage over a 40-hour week, so it re-indexes whenever the median wage moves — it rose to this figure when the median wage went to NZ$35.00 on 9 March 2026. The widely repeated NZ$55,844 was set against the older NZ$33.56 median and is superseded.
Can my partner and I combine our incomes?
For the dependent child income threshold, yes — if both partners hold an Accredited Employer Work Visa, the incomes can be combined. The partner work visa threshold is tested against the supporting partner's own hourly rate.
Do my children pay international school fees?
A Dependent Child Student Visa holder may be treated as a domestic student, meaning no tuition fees for school. Tertiary study is different and requires a Fee Paying Student Visa at international rates.
Can seasonal workers bring their families?
No. RSE Limited Visa holders cannot bring partners or dependants, and RSE, Supplementary Seasonal Employment and Working Holiday visas cannot support a partner work visa. See seasonal work visas compared.
How long will my family's visas last?
A Partner of a Worker Work Visa lasts as long as the supporting partner's eligible work visa. A Dependent Child Student Visa expires with the parent's visa. Both are tied to yours rather than standing on their own.
Does bringing my family affect my residence application?
Partner and dependent children can generally be included in a skilled residence application, with dependent children aged 24 or younger able to be included in Straight to Residence. That is a different test from the temporary-visa thresholds on this page — see AEWV to residence pathways.
