New Zealand Study and Work Visa Guide (2027 Rules)
From Monday 16 November 2026, Immigration New Zealand accepts applications for a new six month Short-Term Graduate Work Visa and widens the Post-Study Work Visa to cover Level 7 graduate diplomas. If you start New Zealand study in 2027, you will graduate under both rules, and they decide whether you finish with six months of work rights, one year, or up to three.
Table of contents
- What most guides miss about the New Zealand work visa
- Core eligibility and requirements
- Post study work visa duration by qualification level
- Five mistakes that cost graduates their work visa
- Your New Zealand visa countdown tracker
- Five tips from graduates who got through
- Frequently asked questions about New Zealand study
- Where to go next
What most guides miss about the New Zealand work visa
Most articles say the post study visa lasts “up to three years” and stop there. The useful question is what that number is attached to. If you complete a master’s or doctoral degree and study in New Zealand for at least 30 weeks, you get three years. For anything at Level 8 or below, the visa equals the time you actually spent studying the qualification, confirmed by your education provider. Failing a paper or finishing later than your offer of place says does not stretch it.
That creates a gap competing guides rarely spell out. A master’s degree that takes you 30 weeks or more earns three years of open work rights, while a one year postgraduate diploma earns roughly one. The classroom time can be similar, yet one work visa is three times longer. If you can choose between the two routes, that difference matters more than most ranking comparisons.
There is also a rule that applies once in your life. Anyone who has held a Post-Study Work Visa cannot receive another, even for higher study, so decide which qualification your visa will be built on before you enrol. Other destinations handle this differently: Ireland’s Stamp 1G, covered in our Ireland study visa guide, gives up to 24 months to find work after a postgraduate degree.
Finally, budget the fixed costs. Government fees start at NZ$850 for the student visa and NZ$1,670 for the Post-Study Work Visa. That is NZ$2,520 before tuition, medicals, police certificates and insurance.
Core eligibility and requirements
Fee Paying Student Visa
This is the visa for study you fund yourself, with family support, a loan or a partial scholarship. You need an offer of place from an approved provider, proof you can pay tuition for one course or one year (whichever is shorter), and living funds of NZ$20,000 a year, or NZ$1,667 a month for courses under a year. The Fee Paying Student Visa runs for up to four years, and 80 percent of applications are decided within seven weeks. Apply at least three months before you travel. For a late February 2027 start, that means lodging by November 2026, and October to March is the busy season.
Applicants from China, India, Nepal, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Vietnam can use the Funds Transfer Scheme. If you apply from South Asia, only immediate family can sponsor you. While studying you can usually work 25 hours a week in term and full time in scheduled holidays, a limit raised from 20 hours on 3 November 2025. If an application is refused, our guide to study visa refusal reasons shows what usually went wrong.
Post-Study Work Visa
The Post-Study Work Visa has 80 percent of applications decided within three weeks, and you must show NZ$5,000 in bank statements in your name. A degree at Level 7 or higher, studied full time for at least 30 weeks in New Zealand, gives open work rights: any job, anywhere in the country. You can run your own business but cannot employ other people through it. Below degree level, your qualification must be on Immigration New Zealand’s eligible list, you must have studied the full course, and your job must relate to your studies.
Timing is strict. Apply no later than three months after your student visa expires, six months for a doctorate (you can apply once you submit your thesis), or twelve months if a higher qualification you completed straight afterwards took under 30 weeks. From 16 November 2026, paper applications stop and everything goes online.
Short-Term Graduate Work Visa
Opening 16 November 2026, this visa gives six months of open work rights to graduates of Level 5 to 7 qualifications studied full time for at least 24 weeks. English language, foundation and bridging courses are excluded, as is anything that already qualifies for the Post-Study Work Visa. You need NZ$5,000, must apply within three months of your student visa expiring, and can hold it only once. Work must be under an employment agreement or contract for services, so owning a business is out, according to the official announcement.
Post study work visa duration by qualification level
The length of the post study work visa follows the qualification you complete, provided you studied in New Zealand for the minimum time. A doctorate (level 10) or master’s degree (level 9) with at least 30 weeks of study gives a three year open work visa. A postgraduate diploma or certificate (level 8) and a bachelor’s degree (level 7) each give a visa equal to your study time after 30 weeks of study, up to three years for a bachelor’s degree. From 16 November 2026, a graduate diploma at level 7 taken after a bachelor’s degree gives up to one year, but only if you complete the full course with no credit transfer. All of these are open work visas for any employer. An eligible non degree qualification at levels 4 to 7 gives a visa equal to your study time, with work limited to a job related to your study. Any other level 5 to 7 qualification of at least 24 weeks gives a six month Short-Term Graduate Work Visa, open to employed work only.
Three examples show how the duration works in practice. A student who starts a three year bachelor’s degree in February 2027 and completes all of it in New Zealand can expect a visa close to three years. Someone who joins a bachelor’s with credit from earlier study abroad and spends one year here is likely to receive closer to one year, since length follows study time confirmed by the provider. A graduate of a Level 6 diploma that is not on the eligible list gets no Post-Study Work Visa, only the six months from the new short term visa.
Five mistakes that cost graduates their work visa
1. Counting from graduation day
The deadline runs from the expiry date of your student visa, not your final exam or graduation ceremony. Immigration New Zealand checks its own records to confirm you applied in time. Put that expiry date in your calendar on day one of your course.
2. Leaving the recorded qualification unfinished
If you do not complete the qualification named on your student visa, your work visa application may be declined. Switching programmes or dropping to an exit award midway can break that link, so talk to your provider before you change anything.
3. Expecting extra semesters to add visa time
Retaking a failed course or running past your planned end date does not lengthen a Level 8 or below visa. The length is based on the study period in your offer of place, so a delay costs you tuition without buying work rights.
4. Treating the six month visa as a bridge back to any course
Someone who has held a Short-Term Graduate Work Visa can only return on a student visa for a bachelor’s degree or a higher level qualification that makes them eligible for the Post-Study Work Visa. They also cannot change their programme or provider unless they keep meeting that test.
5. Taking an unrelated job on a non degree visa
With a qualification below degree level, your visa conditions name the type of job you may do. Working outside that field risks breaching your conditions, and you must hold a valid visa at all times while in the country.
Your New Zealand visa countdown tracker
Open a New Zealand tab in the sheet from our Application Tracking System guide and give it four dated rows. The first is your student visa expiry, which anchors everything else. The second is the last day to lodge your work visa, three months later, or six if you are finishing a doctorate. The third is your passport expiry, which must be at least three months beyond the day you plan to leave New Zealand. The fourth is your bank balance, which needs NZ$5,000 in statements under your own name at application time.
Add document rows too: your transcript or provider letter confirming completion, and police certificates if your total time in New Zealand will reach 24 months, because those must be under six months old when you apply. Chest X-rays and medicals are requested after you apply if Immigration New Zealand needs them, so leave room in your timeline.
Five tips from graduates who got through
1. Pick the qualification for the visa it unlocks
Compare courses by what the visa will look like on the other side. A 30 week master’s gives three years, and a diploma off the eligible list gives six months. Ask the admissions office which category your exact qualification falls into before you pay a deposit.
2. Get your study dates confirmed in writing
Immigration New Zealand may check your study length with the provider. Keep your offer of place and a completion letter together so the dates match your student visa. Mismatches slow decisions, and clean paperwork keeps you in the fast three week group.
3. Start job hunting a term before you finish
An open work visa does not remove the need for a job offer, it just removes the sponsor. Ask every interviewer whether the company is an accredited employer. Accredited employers can support an Accredited Employer Work Visa, which lasts up to five years for skill level 1 to 3 jobs and three years for level 4 or 5 roles.
4. Aim at roles that lead to residence
Green List occupations can lead to residence immediately or after two years of work. Under the Skilled Migrant Category rules in force since 24 August 2026, a New Zealand master’s studied full time for 30 weeks claims six points if you also hold a bachelor’s degree. The skilled work experience route asks for five years of relevant experience, including two in New Zealand at 1.1 times the median wage, or 1.2 times for amber list jobs such as chef and ICT support roles.
5. Keep your money trail clean
Funds must be genuine and traceable, in statements with a clear history. Large unexplained deposits shortly before you apply invite questions. Use scholarship letters, loan sanction letters or fixed term deposit records where they apply, and keep the originals.
Frequently asked questions about New Zealand study
How long can you work in New Zealand after finishing your studies?
Up to three years on a Post-Study Work Visa, depending on your qualification. Master’s and doctoral graduates who studied at least 30 weeks receive the full three. Level 8 and below graduates receive the length of their study. Graduates without an eligible qualification may qualify for six months on the new Short-Term Graduate Work Visa from 16 November 2026.
How many hours can you work during New Zealand study?
Eligible students can work up to 25 hours a week during term and full time in scheduled holidays, depending on the conditions printed on the visa. The limit was 20 hours until 3 November 2025. Work needs an employer, and the student visa must show work rights. Always check the conditions on your own eVisa.
Do you need a job offer to get a New Zealand work visa after study?
No. The Post-Study Work Visa is an open New Zealand work visa for degree level graduates, so you can take any legal job without an employer sponsoring you. Non degree graduates must work in a job related to their study. You still need a job to earn income, and you need a funds balance of NZ$5,000 when you apply.
Can a post study work visa lead to permanent residence?
Yes, the visa can lead to a resident visa, but it is not automatic. Most graduates build skilled New Zealand work experience first, then apply under the Skilled Migrant Category or a Green List route. Immigration New Zealand plans to let people who need up to 12 more months of skilled experience extend an Accredited Employer Work Visa to finish it, scheduled for 2027 with details still to come.
Can you bring your partner and children?
On a Post-Study Work Visa, your partner can apply for a work visa and dependent children can study as domestic students. On a student visa, you cannot include them in your application, though they can apply for visas based on their relationship to you. Short-Term Graduate Work Visa holders cannot support a partner’s work visa or a child’s student visa.
What if your course is not eligible for the Post-Study Work Visa?
If you completed a Level 5 to 7 qualification of at least 24 weeks that does not qualify, the Short-Term Graduate Work Visa gives you six months to find an employer. After that, an Accredited Employer Work Visa needs a job offer from an accredited employer. You can only hold the short term visa once, so use the six months deliberately.
Where to go next
Three points carry this guide. Visa length follows your qualification level and study time, so choose the course with the end result in mind. Your deadline runs from your student visa expiry, not graduation. And from 16 November 2026 there is a six month safety net for graduates whose course does not qualify for the full visa.
To see how New Zealand’s bridge compares with other destinations, read our guide to converting a student visa to a work visa after graduation.