The NZ Government may soon decide on when to reopen the parent visa category after it was closed in late 2016.
The decision will provide some clarity for at least 6,000 people who have been waiting for their visa approval for more than two years.
The parent visa category was ceased in October 2016 until further notice by Immigration New Zealand.
NZ Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway declared yesterday that the decision to reopen the parent visa category would come before Cabinet in the first half of this year.
Auckland-based migration expert Jagjeet Singh Sidhu told SBS Punjabi that it is welcome news for the people who are already on the waitlist.
“It’s good news for the migrant families who seek to permanently reunite with their elderly parents,” he said.
“There are close to 6,000 people who have been in limbo on the visa wait list for more than two years now.”
The visa enables eligible parents to join their adult children in New Zealand if they were a permanent resident or citizen.
Mr Sidhu told SBS there is a limit to the number of people who can be granted visas.
“It depends upon the number of people who will apply under the Parent visa category, but at this stage, the Immigration Department is not seeking any expressions of interest,” he said.
“After the new statement from the immigration minister, there is some sense of optimism for the people who are already on the waitlist.”
Immigration NZ officials had expected a decision about the visa category to have been made in June last year. But many months on, there is no firm word on the timeline.
A decision about restarting parent visa process is yet to be made.
