Immigration New Zealand Data Shows Offshore Student-Visa Approval Rate Falls to 49.3% as Financial Evidence Rules Tighten

Immigration New Zealand approved 49.3% of offshore student-visa applications from India decided between January 1 and September 13, 2026, compared with 94.9% from China. The figures cover decisions, not every Indian student already in New Zealand.

India lodged 8,463 applications during the period, just ahead of China’s 8,273. The gap in approval rates was 45.6 percentage points.

The figures put the offshore student-visa approval rate for Indian applicants below half. Immigration New Zealand, known as INZ, has pointed to application composition and concerns about proof of funds, rather than different processing systems for the two nationalities.

A separate set of records raises another issue: Indian applicants whose cases were declined were less likely than Chinese applicants to be asked for more information or receive notice of potentially adverse information. That disparity has drawn criticism from migration advisers.

India’s approval figures have swung while China’s stayed near 95%

India’s outcomes have shifted considerably over recent years. The rate stood at about 72% in 2022, fell to 58% in 2023 and reached 48% in 2024.

It rebounded to 59% in 2025, before dropping to 49.3% in the first part of 2026. China’s figures, by contrast, stayed between about 94% and 97% across those years, including 94.9% in the latest period.

The 2024 totals show the difference in refusals. INZ declined approximately 5,700 applications from India that year, against approximately 430 from China.

The overall application counts were close: 11,338 came from India and 10,996 from China. Approval-rate calculations cover applications made offshore and exclude withdrawals.

The 2026 snapshot ends on September 13. It does not measure applications filed after that date, and it is not a measure of approvals for students already in New Zealand.

Separate records show fewer Indian applicants were invited to respond

Official Information Act records obtained by the New Zealand Association of Migration Advisers cover 100,382 student-visa applications handled through INZ’s ADEPT system. The processing period ran from August 18, 2025, to July 29, 2026.

Among declined offshore applications, 13% of Indian applicants received a request for further information or a potentially prejudicial information letter before a decision. The comparable figure for Chinese applicants was 50%.

Across all declined offshore cases, 16.9% received one of those opportunities. Brazil’s rate was 6%.

The dataset measures chances to respond before refusal, not the eventual approval rate. Advisers have raised concerns that applicants may not get enough opportunity to resolve questions about their money, study plans or documents.

INZ says application quality drives the gap, not different processing systems

INZ has linked Indian refusals in part to failures to satisfy financial requirements. It has cited applications containing false, misleading or fraudulent financial information, and says the overall difference reflects the applications received.

The agency has also said applications from complex markets such as Bangladesh have risen sharply. Officers must weigh requests for additional material against processing productivity, INZ said.

In its response on when officers should seek more information, the agency said:

“If applications are poorly constructed and there are a number of pieces of information missing, then we do not expect staff to RFI.”

INZ says officers are advised to seek further information when an application has merit and the missing material could change the outcome. RFI refers to a request for further information.

Steve Norrie, a licensed New Zealand immigration adviser and director of the New Zealand Association for Migration and Investment, reviewed earlier refusal figures before the group’s policy and advocacy committee sought additional records under the Official Information Act. He warned that continued refusals and limited chances to respond could harm New Zealand’s ability to attract international students.

Neeraj Luthra, director of Indopacific Education Services, said the number of Indian refusals was unprecedented in his more than 25 years promoting New Zealand education in India. He tied his concern to what he described as a change in INZ’s bona-fide assessment approach on August 1, 2026.

“The concern across the industry is increasingly straightforward: there is a perception that an ‘intent to decline’ approach is currently being applied to a significant number of Indian applications, rather than genuine applicants being given a meaningful opportunity to demonstrate their circumstances.”

Luthra called for a senior quality-assurance review of recent refusals, more transparency around bona-fide assessments and interviews, and stronger accountability across student-recruitment channels. Education agents said they accept the need to prevent fraud but want clearer refusal reasons and a fair chance for genuine applicants to answer concerns.

Applicants need to make the source of funds and study plan clear

INZ’s stated concern with financial evidence makes the way an application documents money central to its assessment. Applicants should be able to show where funds came from, not only the amount available.

The material identified by advisers includes:

• Money for tuition and living costs, with verifiable documentation.
• The source and history of those funds.
• A credible explanation of study intentions, course choice and academic progression.
• The sponsor’s relationship to the applicant and the sponsor’s ability to provide support.
• Consistent details across financial, academic and immigration records.

The assessment also involves whether a proposed course fits the applicant’s academic path. Gaps or conflicting details across documents can prompt concerns about the application’s reliability.

The central disagreement is over whether applicants with genuine cases have enough opportunity to answer those concerns. INZ says it does not expect officers to request missing material in poorly assembled cases, while advisers want more explanation of refusal decisions and a chance to respond where concerns could be addressed.

Luthra’s proposed quality review would examine recent Indian refusals, alongside clearer information about how bona-fide assessments and interviews are conducted. The ADEPT records cover decisions through July 29, 2026; the latest approval figures run through September 13.