Student Visa

Dependent Child Student Visa

Depending on the type of visa you hold, your children could get a dependent child student visa. This lets your children live with you in New Zealand for the period of time that you will be here. Crucially, however, it lets your children attend primary, intermediate, or secondary school in New Zealand as if they were New Zealand residents. In other words, they don’t have to pay tuition fees.

As with most types of visa, there are some restrictions and requirements. For example, this visa is only applicable to children who are 19 or under. Details of what you need to know about getting a dependent child student visa for your child are below, but you can get more specific advice by calling us at Immigration Advisers New Zealand.

Other Things You Need to Know About the Dependent Child Visa

The visa will be granted for the same length of time as yours.
It is only available to children studying at primary, intermediate, or secondary school level. Students planning to go to university or another post-secondary institution will need a different visa – a Fee Paying Student Visa.
Your children can’t get a dependent child student visa if your visa is one of the following: working holiday; Silver Fern job search; Skilled Migrant job search; visa to do seasonal work; or, visa to crew a fishing boat.
If your visa is a student visa, one of the following must apply: you are on a student exchange scheme (that’s approved); you’re doing a PhD at a New Zealand university; or, you have a New Zealand Aid Programme Scholarship.