Immigration Agency Costs: What You Actually Pay For

If you use a licensed immigration adviser in New Zealand, you pay a professional fee for the adviser’s services, and you pay the government application fees separately to Immigration New Zealand. The official guidance does not state any standard or regulated adviser fee, so the amount is a matter between you and the adviser you engage. What the official guidance does make clear is that the adviser’s role is limited to advising and preparing your application — the decision, the fee assessment and the visa conditions all sit with Immigration New Zealand. You should always confirm the adviser’s fee in writing before you engage them, and you should check the official Immigration New Zealand fee pages for the application cost, because those figures are not set by advisers and are not included in the official guidance for this article.

What a Licensed Immigration Adviser Actually Does

In New Zealand, the role of giving immigration advice is regulated. A licensed immigration adviser can help you understand which visa category fits your situation, prepare your application, and communicate with Immigration New Zealand on your behalf. The adviser does not make the decision on your visa, and cannot guarantee an outcome.

The official guidance for this article does not list the requirements for becoming a licensed adviser, nor does it state what an adviser may charge. What it does show is that the adviser’s work is separate from the government’s work. When you apply for a visa, you complete the application yourself or with an adviser’s help, upload your documents, and pay the fees that apply to Immigration New Zealand. The adviser’s fee is a separate commercial arrangement.

What You Pay to Immigration New Zealand

Your application fee is paid to Immigration New Zealand, not to an adviser. The official guidance confirms that you pay fees when you submit an online application, but it does not state any specific dollar amount for any visa. This means the article cannot give you a figure for the cost of a working holiday visa, a visitor visa, or any other visa.

What the official guidance does give you is a clear structure for how fees work:

What you pay	Who sets it	What it covers
Adviser’s professional fee	The adviser you engage	Advice, preparation, lodgement support, communication with Immigration New Zealand
Application fee	Immigration New Zealand	Processing your visa application
Medical examination costs	The medical provider you choose	Chest X-ray and general medical examination if required
Other costs (travel, return ticket)	You	Meeting visa conditions such as having a return ticket or funds to buy one

This table is drawn directly from the official guidance. It does not include any dollar amounts because the official guidance does not provide them.

Medical Costs Can Be Separate

If you apply for a working holiday visa while in New Zealand, you may need to provide a medical certificate. If you plan to stay in New Zealand for more than 12 months — including time on other visas — you must have a chest X-ray and a general medical examination. The official guidance does not state what these examinations cost. You will need to check with the medical provider you use, because Immigration New Zealand does not set those prices.

Similarly, if you are applying for a visa that requires a return ticket or proof of funds to buy one, that money is part of your own costs, not a government fee. The official guidance states that on a working holiday visa you must have a return ticket or be able to pay for one, and that you must be coming mainly to holiday.

What the official guidance does not cover

The official guidance for this article is limited to Immigration New Zealand pages about working holiday visas, work visas, interim visas, and visitor visa conditions. It does not cover:

• Fees for any specific visa, including working holiday, visitor, or work visas
• Fees or requirements for the Portugal D7 visa, the UAE Golden Visa, or the UK Immigration Health Surcharge
• Any costs associated with private migration agencies in other countries
• Processing times for any visa
• The fee schedule for licensed immigration advisers

If you are looking for the cost of a visa in another country, or the cost of a specific scheme such as the UAE Golden Visa, you will need to check the official government website for that country. The official guidance here is specific to New Zealand and does not support any statement about those fees.

What to Check Before You Pay an Adviser

Before you engage any adviser, you should ask them in writing:

• What is the total fee for your services?
• What does that fee include — advice, preparation, lodgement, or ongoing communication?
• Are there any additional costs, such as courier fees or document translation?
• What is the refund policy if your application is declined?

You should also confirm the application fee directly with Immigration New Zealand, because that fee is separate from the adviser’s fee and is not included in the official guidance for this article. The official Immigration New Zealand website has a fees page for each visa category.

What to Do Next

If you are applying for a New Zealand visa, the official guidance confirms that all working holiday visa applications must be made online and in English. You will need to create an account on the Immigration New Zealand online services portal, log in, and then apply, upload your documents, and pay the fees that apply.

Before you pay anything to an adviser, confirm the adviser’s fee in writing and check the official Immigration New Zealand fee pages for the application cost. If you are looking for the cost of a visa in another country, such as the Portugal D7 visa or the UAE Golden Visa, check the official government website for that country. The official guidance for this article does not cover those schemes and cannot give you their costs.