30 April 2025
Damien De Ment
[FYI request #30259 email]
DOIA-REQ-0011110
Tēnā koe Damien
Thank you for your correspondence of 13 March 2025 to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and
Employment (MBIE) requesting, under the Official Information Act 1982 (the Act), the following:
Under the Official Information Act 1982, I request the following information regarding the Global
Impact Visa (GIV) programme:
1. Statistics on Global Impact Visas Issued:
a. The total number of Global Impact Visas (GIVs) awarded since the programme’s inception.
b. A breakdown of the number of GIVs issued, categorized by the country of origin of each
applicant.
2. Qualifying Requirements for GIVs:
a. A detailed list of the specific qualifying requirements met by each successful GIV applicant,
including any variations in criteria applied across individual cases.
3. Communications Between Immigration New Zealand and the Edmund Hillary Fellowship:
a. Copies of all communications between Immigration New Zealand (INZ) and the Edmund Hillary
Fellowship (EHF) prior to the establishment of the GIV programme, including but not limited to
emails, meeting notes, and video recordings.
b. Copies of all communications between INZ and EHF since the programme’s inception, including
but not limited to emails, meeting notes, and video recordings.
4. Funding Details:
a. Any details regarding funding provided by Immigration New Zealand to the Edmund Hillary
Fellowship in relation to the GIV programme, including amounts, dates, purposes, and
conditions of funding.
I request that this information be provided in electronic format where possible, preferably as PDFs or other
accessible digital files. If any part of this request is likely to be refused under the provisions of the Official
Information Act 1982 (e.g., for reasons of privacy, commercial sensitivity, or excessive collation effort), I ask
that you specify the reasons for withholding and provide the information in an aggregated or anonymized
form where feasible, as per section 16(2) of the Act.
On 10 April 2025 we extended your request under section 15A(1)(b) of the Act, as consultations necessary
to make a decision on your request were such that a proper response to the request could not reasonably
be made within the original time limit, and we would notify you of a decision no later than 30 April 2025.
MBIE has assessed and decided to grant your request, and will provide you the requested information.
However, it will take us some time to process. We will send you the information as soon as it is ready and
without undue delay.
We are refusing questions 2 and 4 under section 18(g)(i) of the Act, as the information requested is not
held by MBIE and there are no reasonable grounds to believe it is held by, or more closely connected with
the functions of, another Minister or agency.
We are also refusing question 3 under section 18(e) of the Act, as the document alleged to contain the
information requested does not exist or, despite reasonable efforts to locate it, cannot be found.
If you wish to discuss any aspect of your request or this response, or if you require any further assistance,
please con
tact [email address].
You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of our decision to extend the
time limit. Information about how to make a complaint is available
at www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or
freephone 0800 802 602.
Nāku noa, nā
Emma Palmer
Acting Manager, Ministerial Services
Office of Deputy Secretary Immigration
Immigration New Zealand
Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment
