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157: Deportation liability of temporary entry class visa holder for cause
or “When you can be deported if you have a temporary visa”
You could also call this:

“You may be sent back if you obtained your residence visa using false information”

You can be sent back to your home country if you have a residence class visa and you’re found to have used false information or hidden important facts. This can happen in two ways:

  1. If you’re found guilty in court of providing false, misleading, or incomplete information when you or someone else applied for a visa or entry permission. This includes using fake documents.

  2. If the Minister decides that you or someone else gave false, misleading, or incomplete information when applying for a visa or entry permission. This applies even if you didn’t personally provide the false information, and it doesn’t matter when your visa was granted.

If you used to be a New Zealand citizen but lost your citizenship because you lied or hid information to get it, and that lie was related to your immigration status, you can also be sent back.

If you’re told you might be sent back, you have 28 days to appeal. In most cases, you can only appeal for humanitarian reasons. But if the Minister made the decision about false information, you can also argue about the facts.

If you’ve committed certain crimes that make you deportable under section 156, that rule will be used instead of this one.

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Next up: 159: Deportation liability of resident if visa conditions breached

or “Residents might be sent home for breaking visa rules”
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Part 6 Deportation
Liability for deportation

158Deportation liability of residence class visa holder due to fraud, forgery, etc

  1. A residence class visa holder is liable for deportation if—

  2. the person is convicted of an offence where it is established that—
    1. any of the information provided in relation to the person's application, or purported application, for a residence class visa or entry permission was fraudulent, forged, false, or misleading, or any relevant information was concealed; or
      1. any of the information provided in relation to the person's, or any other person’s, application, or purported application, for a visa on the basis of which the residence class visa was granted was fraudulent, forged, false, or misleading, or any relevant information was concealed; or
      2. the Minister determines that—
        1. any of the information provided in relation to the person's application, or purported application, for a residence class visa or entry permission was fraudulent, forged, false, or misleading, or any relevant information was concealed; or
          1. any of the information provided in relation to the person's, or any other person’s, application, or purported application, for a visa on the basis of which the residence class visa was granted was fraudulent, forged, false, or misleading, or any relevant information was concealed.

          2. Subsection (1) applies—

          3. whether or not the person holding the residence class visa is the person who—
            1. provided the information that is established or determined to be fraudulent, forged, false, or misleading; or
              1. concealed the relevant information that is established or determined to have been concealed; and
              2. whether the visa was granted before or after this subsection came into force.

                1. A former citizen who is deemed by section 75 to hold a resident visa is liable for deportation if—

                2. the person was deprived of his or her New Zealand citizenship under section 17 of the Citizenship Act 1977 on the grounds that the grant, or grant requirement, was procured by fraud, false representation, or wilful concealment of relevant information; and
                  1. that fraud, false representation, or wilful concealment of relevant information occurred in the context of procuring the immigration status that enabled the person to meet a requirement, or requirements, for the grant of New Zealand citizenship.

                    1. A person liable for deportation under this section may, not later than 28 days after the date of service of a deportation liability notice, appeal to the Tribunal against his or her liability for deportation—

                    2. on humanitarian grounds only, if subsection (1)(a) or (2) applies:
                      1. on the facts and on humanitarian grounds, if subsection (1)(b) applies.

                        1. If section 156 also applies to a person to whom this section applies, the person's deportation liability must be determined under section 156 and not this section.

                        Notes
                        • Section 158 heading: amended, on , by section 42(1) of the Immigration Amendment Act 2015 (2015 No 48).
                        • Section 158(1): replaced, on , by section 42(2) of the Immigration Amendment Act 2015 (2015 No 48).
                        • Section 158(1A): inserted, on , by section 42(2) of the Immigration Amendment Act 2015 (2015 No 48).