Immigration New Zealand has now set two separate rollout dates for its visa digitization shift: from 24 September 2026, most new visitor visa applications move to enhanced Immigration Online, and from 1 October 2026, paper applications stop for a selected group of visitor visas and the Transit Visa. INZ also confirmed that paper applications lodged before 1 October 2026 will continue to be processed, while paper filing after that date is limited to exceptional circumstances.
- INZ’s updated visitor visa guidance, published on 4 September 2026, says the Visitor Visa must be submitted through enhanced Immigration Online from 1 October 2026.
- The 1 October 2026 paper-application cutoff covers a broad list of categories, including the Business Visitor Visa, Group Visitor Visa, Academic Visitor Visa, Guardian Visitor Visa, Medical Treatment Visitor Visa, Parent and Grandparent Visitor Visa, Visiting Media Visitor Visa, Super Yachts Visitor Visa, and the Transit Visa.
- INZ says applicants who already filed paper applications before 1 October 2026 do not need to lodge a second online application and those applications will continue to be processed normally.
- The department’s earlier 11 August 2026 update also set 8 October 2026 as the deletion date for remaining drafts in the old system, after the new application transition begins.
- Immigration New Zealand will migrate most visitor visas to the enhanced Immigration Online system on September twenty-fourth.
- Unsubmitted drafts in the legacy system will be permanently deleted on October eighth twenty twenty-six.
- Family categories for New Zealanders remain in the old system until a future unannounced date.
Immigration New Zealand will move most visitor visa applications online from Sept. 24, sending new files through its enhanced Immigration Online system and closing parts of the older portal. The change lands inside a multi-year effort to modernize the visa process and phase out legacy systems. The old forms are on borrowed time.
Free toolDS-160 Form Filling Online Helper ToolThe agency spelled out the shift in an Aug. 11 notice. "From 24 September 2026, new applications for most visitor visas will be available exclusively through Immigration New Zealand's (INZ) enhanced Immigration Online system. We are taking this opportunity to close some visitor visa application forms in our old online system, allowing us to focus on delivering a more efficient and effective visa application process for both customers and staff." The warning was explicit.
Oct. 8 is the cutoff. Any draft left in the old system that day will be deleted. Live files already lodged there will keep moving in that system until a decision is reached. They will not restart elsewhere.
The change did not arrive all at once. Group and Tour Escort visitor visa applications moved on Aug. 24, and Partner and Child of Military/Student/Worker visitor visas already transitioned in June 2026. The rollout started earlier.
Not every category moves on Sept. 24. Partner and Child of a New Zealander Visitor Visas will stay in the old system until a later date. That keeps the migration partial for now.
The timetable is staggered. It is not uniform.
The timetable splits by category and date
| Date | Category | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Aug. 24, 2026 | Group and Tour Escort visitor visa applications | Moved earlier into the new system |
| June 2026 | Partner and Child of Military/Student/Worker visitor visas | Already transitioned |
| Sept. 24, 2026 | Most visitor visas, including general visitor and business visitor visas | New applications open only through the new online system |
| Oct. 8, 2026 | Old online system | Closes, and draft applications left there are deleted |
| Later date, unspecified | Partner and Child of a New Zealander Visitor Visas | Remain in the old system for now |
Applications already submitted in the old system will keep moving there until a decision is reached. That leaves only unfinished drafts at risk on Oct. 8. The agency drew the line there.
The agency framed the change as a cleanup, not a reset. "We are taking this opportunity to close some visitor visa application forms in our old online system, allowing us to focus on delivering a more efficient and effective visa application process for both customers and staff."
