EMC Australia / Subclass 444
Granted on arrival to an eligible New Zealand citizen.
Granted on arrival to an eligible New Zealand citizen. You do not lodge a Special Category visa before you travel the way you lodge other visas. If you hold a valid New Zealand passport and you meet the criteria, Home Affairs grants subclass 444 at the border. It lets you stay while it is in effect. It is not permanent residence and it is not citizenship.
Who this page is for
- You are a New Zealand citizen and you will travel on a valid New Zealand passport
- You want to know whether you must lodge a visa before the flight
- You are already in Australia and you did not receive a 444 on entry
- You are not a New Zealand citizen and someone told you to enter on a 444
- Your family member is a New Zealand citizen and you need your own visa
How it works
What this visa asks of you
These are the parts of this visa, in the order they usually matter.
Before travel
A valid New Zealand passport
No advance lodgement for an ordinary entry
New Zealand citizens do not apply for this visa before they fly, the way other visas are lodged.
You present the New Zealand passport. You still have to meet character and health. A criminal record can mean you are treated as a behaviour concern and the border grant is refused. A pre-travel enquiry about a conviction is guidance only. It is not a visa application and it does not bind the officer at the airport.
On arrival
The Australian border
The grant is made on arrival
An officer grants the 444 at entry if you are an eligible New Zealand citizen and you meet the criteria.
While it is in effect you can live, work and study in Australia. It is still a temporary visa. It ends when you leave Australia. The next entry is a new decision, not a visa you carry forever. It is not permanent residence.
In Australia
A limited Home Affairs form, not the normal path
Already in Australia without a 444
You became a New Zealand citizen after you entered, you entered on a passport that is not New Zealand, you entered on another temporary visa, or a New Zealand citizen child was born in Australia.
Those are the situations Home Affairs asks you to use the in-Australia form. Everyone else who is eligible is dealt with on arrival. Do not treat that form as a visa you lodge before a normal trip.
Not 444
A different visa
Who cannot use a 444
People who are not New Zealand citizens, including New Zealand permanent residents who are not citizens.
A partner or other family member who is not a New Zealand citizen does not get a 444 because you do. The usual visas are subclass 461, or a partner visa if that is the real relationship visa. From 1 July 2023, some Special Category visa holders can apply for citizenship by conferral without first being granted a permanent visa. That is the citizenship page. It does not turn a 444 into permanent residence.
How EMC works
How we help
01
Whether a 444 is even the visa
New Zealand citizen on a New Zealand passport: usually a border grant, not a file we lodge before travel. Anyone else: a different visa.
02
The cases that do use a form
Already in Australia, and one of the four situations Home Affairs lists. We do not dress an ordinary arrival as an application.
03
Family who are not New Zealand citizens
461, or a partner visa, depending on the relationship. A 444 does not include them.
First conversation
What to bring
- The New Zealand passport you will travel on, and confirmation you are a New Zealand citizen
- If you are already in Australia: how you entered, and on which passport
- Any criminal conviction, charge outcome, or previous refusal at the Australian border
- If the question is about a family member: their passport and citizenship, not only yours
Before you apply
Things that go wrong
- Do not lodge a 444 before travel as if it were a 482, a visitor visa or a partner visa. Eligible New Zealand citizens are granted it on arrival.
- A New Zealand permanent resident who is not a New Zealand citizen cannot use a 444.
- The visa ends when you leave Australia. The next entry is decided again.
- A conviction can mean no grant at the border. Advice before travel is not a grant.
- 444 is not permanent residence and it is not citizenship. Protected and non-protected Special Category visas are not the same for some entitlements. Neither one is a permanent visa.
Questions
People ask this first
No, not if you are a New Zealand citizen travelling on a valid New Zealand passport. Home Affairs grants the Special Category visa on arrival if you meet the criteria. You do not lodge it in advance the way other visas are lodged.
Start with your situation.
You do not need to memorise the subclass. Book a consultation, or send us a message.
MARN 1800335 · Level 14, 333 Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000.
Related topics
- Family visas
- NZ Citizen Family Relationship 461
- Citizenship (a different application)
- If a visa was refused
This page is general information, not advice about your circumstances. Australian migration law changes. You should consult a Registered Migration Agent before you apply. EMC Australia is OMARA-registered (MARN 1800335).