Study options extended for New Zealand working holiday visa holders
May 07 2009 by Bryan Palmer
Young people visit NZ
From July, the terms of the New Zealand working holiday visa are to change to attract more people from abroad to travel, work and study in New Zealand without the need for a specific student visa.
New Zealand Immigration minister, Jonathan Coleman, said the changes are intended to make New Zealand even more attractive to young students and graduates. From July, visa holders will no longer be limited to one course of study for up to three months.
New Zealand is to negotiate with countries to allow young people to study for up to six months while on the working holiday visa.
Coleman says that working holiday visas are a great way to cement international relationships. He said, “working holiday schemes are a great way of encouraging young people to visit New Zealand. They raise New Zealand’s profile and, in foreign policy terms, signify a strong bilateral relationship.”
He added that the schemes also bring a lot of money into the New Zealand economy, “total expenditure of working holiday makers was last year estimated to be around $103 million. That is a huge contribution to our economy.”
The New Zealand immigration department hopes that changes being made in July will make the scheme more competitive against countries like Canada and Australia, which are also popular destinations for young people looking to live abroad for a year.
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