How people become New Zealand citizens
Citizenship by grant
What happens next?
Citizenship Act 1977, ss 11, 12; Schedule 1Citizenship Guidance, June 2024
As of July 2026, the Department of Internal of Affairs was processing 90 per cent of citizenship applications within 3 months.
If your application is successful, you will then be invited to a ceremony with other new citizens, where you will be asked to take an oath or make an affirmation. In it you will swear or affirm that you will bear allegiance to the King, observe the laws of New Zealand and fulfil your duties as a New Zealand citizen. To be granted citizenship, you must take an oath or make an affirmation, unless:
- you are under 14 years of age,
- are not of full capacity,
- you are being granted citizenship as of right on the basis that your mother was a New Zealand citizen,
- you are already a citizen by descent,
- you were a British child migrant, or
- the requirement is waived in the interest of public health and safety.
If you are required to take an oath or make an affirmation, you generally must do this within one year from the date the Department of Internal Affairs advised you that you were required to do so – if you don’t, the approval of your application will lapse. You can apply to extend the time you have to take the oath or make the affirmation, but this should be done at least four weeks before the one-year deadline. Reasons that are accepted for an extension are set out in the Citizenship Guidance.
At your ceremony, you will be given your citizenship certificate. Once you have it, you can apply for a New Zealand passport. This is a separate process.
