Mumbai: Only 1,486 Indian nationals are currently studying in New Zealand, according to Nicola Hogg, General Manager Border and Visa Operations, Immigration New Zealand.
Indian students in New Zealand come under a diverse group of study categories. English language studies, exchange students, full fee paying, pathway study, and scholarship holders are the popular study types among Indian nationals, according to Hogg.
The number of Indian students in NZ is a slight dip from 1,600 students in 2019, which comprises the ones who received their first-time visas to the country.
Covid policies affected Indian students early on
The current number of students is relevant in the context of stringent Covid policies, which aimed at curbing community cases and transmission Down Under that resulted in the borders being closed till February 2022.
Indian students, who wished to study in New Zealand, faced the repercussions of the country’s pandemic policies with External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar urging fairer treatment of the pupils from his Kiwi counterpart Nanaia Mahuta during a meeting in October 2022.
"None of us had an easy time during COVID. But students perhaps took a bigger hit than most of us. So, I urged the Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister to take a sympathetic view and understanding of students who enter and I was glad to be assured that they would approach the issue sympathetically," Jaishankar had said in New Zealand’s capital city of Wellington.
Hundreds still waiting on study visas
Many students are still awaiting a decision on their student visa, as 847 Indian nationals are expecting a positive outcome on the same, according to Hogg.
Concerns being looked into says NZ govt
In an interview with the Free Press Journal in early November, New Zealand’s Manager of Immigration (Skills and Residence) Policy, Ministry of Business Innovation & Employment, Andrew Craig stated that Indian students’ concerns are being looked into by the Kiwi government.
“With the New Zealand border now fully open, people can now apply for work, student, visitor, and residence visas. The Minister of Immigration has heard from migrant community representatives, including the Indian community in New Zealand, about former visa holders who are offshore and have not returned. MBIE understands that the Minister is considering whether the current settings provide a sufficient pathway for the people within these groups,” Craig had told FPJ.
