MEDIA RELEASE

11 JANUARY 2018

2017/18 Year at the Border report published

Immigration New Zealand’s work at the border is showcased in the latest annual Year at the Border report.

Between July 2017 and June 2018, INZ screened millions of non-New Zealand citizens travelling to our country and made 4,579 decisions to either prevent a passenger from boarding their flight to New Zealand or to refuse an arriving traveller entry to New Zealand.

In the 2017/18 year there were:

• 850,000 visa applications involving 1.1 million people

• 487,000 visitor visa applications

• 6,859,483 travellers to New Zealand

• 1,201 people denied entry at New Zealand’s border

INZ National Manager Border Stephanie Greathead says we have seen a steady increase in the number of people travelling to and from New Zealand, both by air and by sea.

“The increasing volume means we have had to enhance our ability to understand and prevent the risks this may present, while ensuring genuine travellers still have as close to a seamless border experience as possible,” Ms Greathead says.

“Like many of our colleagues at the border and in the public service, our ongoing challenge is to strike the balance between effectively managing the increasing demand on our border protection services while ensuring genuine travellers are seamlessly facilitated to enjoy their stay in New Zealand.”

INZ works closely with its partners, New Zealand Customs Service, Ministry for Primary Industries and New Zealand Police, to effectively manage New Zealand’s border.

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