New Zealand Citizenship by Investment

The legislation on immigration in New Zealand prescribes several ways of becoming a citizen of this country. One of the options available for foreigners is the New Zealand citizenship by investment, which is addressed solely to foreign businessmen willing to respect certain investment criteria, but it must be noted that citizenship can be obtained as an indirect route. You can find out more below.

Is there a direct route to New Zealand citizenship by investment in 2026?

From the beginning, investors should be aware that New Zealand does not have an immigration program which grants a fast and simple access to citizenship, even though, generally, high net-worth investors can benefit from simpler rules compared to other categories of foreigners.

The only matters that have to be respected is to comply with the minimum requirements imposed under the New Zealand legislation, concerning the visa selected and the residency criteria.

Foreign investors must first receive a New Zealand residence permit. This is why citizenship by investment is referred to as an indirect route (the visa program grants the right to permanent residency and after that, citizenship can be possible if the investor wants to become a citizen; otherwise, the visa program does not automatically grant citizenship).

The application conditions are presented by the New Zealand Immigration Office, but you can obtain in-depth information on such steps from our immigration lawyer as well.

FIRST STEP: Apply for the Active Investor Plus Visa

Investors who want to apply for the Active Investor Plus visa in 2026 must pay a processing fee of NZD 27,470 and they can qualify for permanent residency after 3 years (Growth category) or 5 years (Balanced category). They can relocate with close family members and they need to invest at least NZD 5 million (Growth category) or NZD 10 million (Balanced category).

Those who want to start the procedure for immigration in New Zealand by applying for the Active Investor Plus visa must know that they should also comply with the following:

since the moment the visa has been approved, the foreigner must transfer an initial capital in New Zealand in period of maximum 6 months;
it is necessary to maintain the investment for which the visa was approved for a period of 36 months (Growth) or 60 months (Balanced);
concerning residency in New Zealand under this investment program, the visa holder is legally required to spend a minimum of 21 days in New Zealand over the 3-year investment period (Growth) or 105 days over the 5-year period (Balanced);
other minimum residency thresholds apply in accordance with the value of the investment (in the Balanced category, 105 days can fall to 91, 77 or 63 days for NZD 11, 12 or 13 million);
provided that the investor relocates with his/her family, the family members must arrive here in a period of maximum 12 months since the visa was issued.

Types of investments available for the Active Investor Plus visa

Those moving to New Zealand, who want to participate in this program, must be aware that the visa program provides several categories of investments, as presented in this list below:

listed equities;
philanthropy;
managed funds;
direct investments.

Please know that the program does not allow investments in property for personal use; the Balanced category accepts property development investments. There is an exemption concerning this rule, and it applies to those who invest in managed funds that can hold interest in various real estate companies.

The real estate activities of such companies can refer to leasing, management of property, development, purchase, etc. However, it must be noted that the managed fund can only hold a maximum of 20% of its assets in real estate activities. Besides this option, real estate exposure is possible only through property development investments in the Balanced category.

There are other rules concerning the investments accepted under the program, therefore, our immigration lawyer in New Zealand remains at your service with up-to-date advice. For instance, investors must provide evidence on the ways in which they have acquired their finances that will be invested in New Zealand. For this, a variety of tax documents must be added to the application file.

Therefore, when starting the process of immigration to New Zealand, investors can be required to present pay slips, tax returns, bank certificates, information about their shareholding (if they are shareholders of foreign companies), dividends, receipts obtained from property sales, etc.

Does the Entrepreneur Work Visa grant the right to New Zealand citizenship?

The Entrepreneur Work Visa was another visa program for those interested in investments in New Zealand; it closed to new applications in 2025 and was replaced, from November 2025, by the Business Investor Work Visa. However, this visa stream is much different than the Active Investor Plus, as the minimum investment threshold was only NZ $100,000 (the Business Investor Work Visa requires NZD 1 million or NZD 2 million in an existing business), therefore making it easier to apply for New Zealand citizenship by investment as an indirect route.

Investors who want to apply for this visa type in 2026 have to pay a processing fee of NZD 12,380.

Although this visa type is a more accessible business immigration program, it must be noted that investors have to prepare to wait for a long period of time until their applications are processed.

For instance, applications lodged before the closure are currently processed in around 19 months, which means that the NZ authorities will provide an answer the next year (this applies for approximately 80% of the applications).

In this visa program, applicants can relocate here with their close family members (spouse and children below an age of 19). Initially, the investor arrives here for a period of 1 year to start up the business, and then will receive residency for 2 years, during which he/she can run the company.

Are there other methods to obtain residency (indirect citizenship) by investment in New Zealand?

Outside the residency by investment program, residency in New Zealand can be obtained following other immigration pathways. Foreigners can become permanent residents under these circumstances:

arriving here for employment;
relocating as the partner of a New Zealander or another family member;
as a refugee or as a person who has arrived here under the protected status.

STEP 2: Obtain Citizenship in New Zealand – 2026 Regulations

In 2026 the requirements for obtaining citizenship have been maintained. The basic requirement is to hold New Zealand residence (a resident or permanent resident visa) and to have been present in New Zealand as a resident for 5 years and comply with minimum requirements, knowing the local culture and values, participate in the New Zealand citizenship interview and so on. An interview is not required in every case (the Department of Internal Affairs may request one); from the second half of 2027 most adult applicants will also have to pass a citizenship test, and this applies to all foreigners, including those arriving here for New Zealand citizenship by investment (indirect route).

By definition, a permanent resident must make the proof of staying in this country for at least 1350 days in the 5 years period. If you want to apply in 2026, you must make the proof of staying at least 240 days per year. If you want to start the citizenship application in 2026, you will be required to pay a processing fee. According to the New Zealand Government, there are 2 types of fees, based on the age of the applicant.

Thus, persons who will apply for citizenship in 2026 and who are aged 15 or under will be required to pay a fee of NZD 320. Applicants with an age of minimum 16 years old have to pay a fee of NZD 641. All applicants have the possibility to apply online for citizenship. There are 3 different types of forms, which vary based on age and on the nationality.

Our immigration lawyer in New Zealand can present the full list of documents the applicant must prepare in this case, and can provide information on the fees the applicant has to pay with the local institutions.

It is also important to know that once a person becomes a New Zealand citizen, he or she is entitled to a New Zealand passport. Provided that the individual needs this document, its issuance is a separate procedure than the citizenship application (the passport can only be obtained after the citizenship issuance and it is an elective procedure). In 2026, persons who apply for a passport are required to pay a processing fee of NZD 247. The document is valid for a period of 10 years.

All documents, photographs, identity papers and other required information will be submitted with the standard application form required for New Zealand citizenship by investment. For additional information, we invite you to contact our lawyer. American investors interested in this program can receive legal assistance from our lawyers, who can provide all the necessary legal support in the process of moving from USA to New Zealand.