Financial Requirements for New Zealand Study Visa: A Comprehensive Guide

Before approving a Study Visa, New Zealand's immigration department requires that each International Student coming to the country have enough funds to pay the University Fees and Living Expenses. You can submit certain documents for your Visa application to prove that you have the financial resources to pay the University Fees and support yourself while staying in New Zealand. 

With time and immigration unearthing illegal tactics, immigration comes with acceptable and non-acceptable evidence for the study visa. So, let's explore how much funds would be required and what documents are accepted or non-accepted. The simple rule is "The documents which cannot be verified can't be accepted."

How much funds are required for an New Zealand Study Visa

To get admission to a university or college in New Zealand, students must have enough funds in their bank accounts to support themselves in studying and living there. The funds should be in liquidated form. The amount should cover your first-year University Fees, Living Expenses, and traveling expenses. 

• If the course duration is less than or equal to one academic year, provide documentary evidence of funds for the tuition fee for the entire course duration + NZ$ 20,000 towards living expenses in New Zealand. 
• If the course duration is longer than one academic year, then provide documentary evidence of funds for the tuition fee for 1 academic year + NZ$ 20,000 per annum towards living expenses in New Zealand + payment plan to show the student has access to funds and can meet the rest of the course cost and living expenses in New Zealand.

Here is the rough estimation

In most of the Visa Applications from South-Asian Countries such as India, China, Sri Lanka, and the Philippines, the New Zealand Immigration has started asking for Fund Transfer to ANZ Bank under the FTS Scheme. 

In the Funds Transfer Scheme (FTS), the student has to transfer NZ$20,000 from their local bank account to ANZ Bank based in New Zealand to prove that they have enough funds for Living Expenses during their stay in New Zealand. The student gets the amount back in 12 monthly installments of NZ$1666. In case of Visa Refusal, you can apply for a Full Refund by emailing a refusal letter to ANZ Bank. 

Acceptable Proof of Funds

Bank Statement or Balance Certificate

As proof of funds, bank statements and balance certificates are most used, as they show the transactions and amount of funds available in your bank account. This helps to prove that a student can cover their expenses while staying and studying in New Zealand. You must submit the latest bank statements of minimum 3 months, and have to give an explanation of the source of funds to justify them. It should not be more than 1 week old at the time of lodgement of application. You can also submit the balance certificate that represents the current balance amount in their account along with Bank Statements. It is highly recommended that Bank Statements are signed and stamped by a Bank authorized person

Sources from which funds are accepted by the bank are as follows:

• Personal Savings
• Professional/Business Income
• Other Income with Source proof

Sources from which funds are NOT accepted by the bank are as follows:

• Gold Loans
• KCC Loans
• Overdraft Limits
• Temporary Funds
• Agriculture Income

Educational Loan

Many Students planning to Study in New Zealand opt for an Education Loan to pay off their tuition fees and living expenses while staying in New Zealand. Unlike other countries, New Zealand Immigration and Universities have set rules for accepting an Education Loan as a valid proof of Financial Document. To ensure that approved funds are available to applicant, having funds disbursed in a Bank Account before a Visa Application is mandatory. As per requirements by New Zealand Immigration, the Education Loan must be secured against tangible collateral such as Real Estate and must be issued by the Nationalized or Multi-National Bank of India. This includes

• State Bank of India
• Union Bank of India
• Bank of Baroda
• Canara Bank
• Central Bank of India
• ICICI Bank
• Axis Bank
• IDFC First Bank
• Other Government and Private Banks

Suppose you want to opt for an Education Loan from Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) such as HDFC Credila, Auxilo, Avanse, InCred, or Tata Capital. In that case, you must maintain the disbursed funds in your Bank Account for at least 3 months before the Visa Application. You have to submit a Sanction Letter, Disbursement Letter and Balance Certificate from the concerned Bank. 

Fixed Deposits

Fixed deposits play a valuable role as evidence of funds. Still, the Immigration Department of New Zealand has some basic conditions attached to them before considering them as valid proof.

• It must be a minimum of 3 months old at the time of Visa Application. Some Universities may ask for 6 months, depending on the applicant's profile.
• It must be liquidable or breakable at any time. Fixed Deposits with lock-in periods are NOT accepted.
• Source of Funds might be asked if the amount of Fixed Deposit is NOT in accordance with annual income. 

Sponsorship

The parents and blood relatives with good income are eligible to be the Student's Sponsor to bear the expenses of University and Living Expenses. However, it is recommended to consider the mentioned relations for better Visa Approval chances

• Father
• Mother
• Brother
• Sister
• Grand-Parents
• Parents-in-Law

You must submit a sponsorship letter as evidence with details of the student, sponsor, and their relation. It should be printed on Legal Stamp Paper and notarized by the concerned authority or Lawyer.

If the sponsor is self-employed, you must submit income tax returns for the last 3 years along with Computation, Balance Sheet, P&L, Bank Account Statement, and proof of business such as a GST Certificate.

If the sponsor is salaried, you must submit salary slips for the last 6 months, Salary Account Statement and Form-16 if available. 

Non-Acceptable Proof of Funds

The Immigration Department of New Zealand does NOT accept certain documents as evidence for a payment plan for subsequent years due to their authenticity and source verification issues. 

1. Property Papers
2. CA Valuation Reports
3. Agriculture Income
4. Non-Breakable Fixed Deposit with maturity date beyond Study period
5. Gold Loans
6. Kisan Credit Cards (KCC) Loans