New Zealand - British Expat Forum

Hi - delighted to say we have just received our two year residency permits. However, my wifes Mum is getting old (and two Aunties have just died), and after two years here she wants to return home and live there for a few years (she also has lots of brothers/sisters). Will we be able to keep our NZ residency? any advise appreciated...

Hiya,
What sort of visas are you here on? Is it skilled migrant? And is it your indefinite returning residency visas that you have received? If so, then you should be able to come and go as you please
(http://www.immigration.govt.nz/migrant/stream/alreadyinnz/residents/returningresidents/default.htm)
However, if you are in any doubt, then check with Immigration NZ before you leave - better to find out now than to have problems when you try to come back!

ETA - congrats on your permits

Hi Toonster - I worded my question clumsily. I have an Aussie passport so I am considered a permanent resident. My wife is Portuguese and my kids are on UK passports. My family have just received their two year (1st) residency permits, so I guess we will only qualify for PR after two years continuous residency and then apply for indefinite return visas... It took 14 months to work our way to the head of the line to get our residency Visas - it would have been faster to apply from outside the country, we discover in retrospect. Thanks for the welcome, we love it here!

Woah - nice and complicated!

Yes, I think that you will need to be in NZ for those two years (though you can of course leave for hols, as long as you have the six months of each year in NZ), and then you can come and go as you want. If you can't spend that time for any reason (i.e. if your wife's mother became ill, and she had to go back to care for her), then she could still get an extension to the visa (off the top of my head because I've shut down the browser link!) for 2 weeks, 6 months or a year, depending on the circumstances. But if she can wait for the 2 years, then it would be better, because that then would get rid of all complications