Are you wanting to move to Australia but have a criminal conviction?

If you are a New Zealander with a criminal history then you may need to apply for a visa to travel to Australia.

Please download the Consent to Disclosure of Information form below. This will allow the NZ Police to provide the Australian Consulate-General with details of your criminal history.

Complete the form and post it to :

The Licensing and Vetting Service Centre
Police National Headquarters
P O Box 3017
Wellington

The Police will forward the results of your police check direct to the Australian Consulate-General in Auckland. You will then be informed in writing whether or not you need to lodge an application for a visa to enter Australia. If a visa application is required the application form including a check list will be sent to you. If required to lodge a visa application, please do so at the Australian Consulate-General in Auckland. Once the application is received it will be forwarded to the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) in Melbourne, Australia for the assessment of your character, while all other processing will occur in Auckland.

You will then be advised of the outcome of your visa application. The time frame for the assessments of your character by DIAC in Melbourne will vary depending upon the specifics of your circumstances, but can take up to several months.

Consent to disclosure of information form

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“So who needs an Australian visa?”

As a New Zealander you have a unique opportunity if you’re considering moving to Australia. These two countries have established a more than friendly exchange program which allows their citizenry to freely move between the countries. Here at Moving to Australia we have tried to answer your most pressing questions regarding Australian visas and applying for an Australian Visa. 

Visas are legal documents issued by one country that allow those from another country to reside in the issuing country. In the case of Australian visas you can go all the way back as the 1920”s to discover that there has been a special relationship between the citizens of New Zealand and Australia. It was then that people were able to freely move between New Zealand and Australia.

Then in 1973 the Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement was entered into. This allowed Australian and New Zealand citizens to enter each other's country to visit, live and work, without the need to apply for authority to enter the other country.

What is interesting about this movement is that moving between the two countries is dependent upon the current state of jobs and the economy in each country. It is common to find an increase in the number of New Zealanders migrating to Australia when the New Zealand economy is more troubled than the Australian economy.

Australian Visa requirements

Of particular importance to any New Zealander considering a move to Australia are the amendments made by to the Migration Act 195. These changes were made in 1994 and resulted in a number of changes to migration legislation.

The big change was the legal requirement that all non-citizens lawfully in Australia must have a visa.

Upon entering Australia you present your New Zealand passport for immigration clearance. Once done you are considered to have applied for a visa and, subject to health or character considerations, will automatically receive a Special Category Visa (SCV). The SCV is recorded electronically.

Their New Zealand passports are stamped, showing the date of arrival in Australia. This is the only evidence provided or necessary to show they are holders of an SCV.

Is it necessary to apply for a permanent residence visa?

As a New Zealander holding and SCV it is not necessary to apply for or be granted permanent residence in Australia. The SCV allows a New Zealand citizen to remain and work in Australia lawfully as long as that person remains a New Zealand citizen.

You also need to be aware of some additional rules. In particular you, as a New Zealand citizen, must apply for, and be granted Australian permanent residency if you wish to access certain social security benefits, e.g. the pension, obtain Australian citizenship or sponsor their family members for permanent residence.

Generally speaking the visa requirements you need to meet are very easily obtained. But to be certain Moving to Australia recommends that you consult with one of our immigration experts.

Please feel free to ask us any questions you might have regarding living in Australia and Australian Visas using the below comments form.

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