UNCLASSIFIED
19 December 2025
Laura
[FYI request #33245 email]
Tēnā koe Laura
Thank you for your request for information under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA)
dated 12 December 2025 in which you requested:
“A person originally studied in VUW as an international student , and later lodged a
refugee/protection claim in New Zealand. When determining whether his/her tuition
fees can be charged at the domestic rate, which date is usually used as the
recognition/effective date: the date they expressed an intention to apply, the date the
refugee/protection claim was lodged, or the course start date?”
Response to your request
In determining a student’s eligibility for domestic fees status, Te Herenga Waka – Victoria
University of Wellington (the University) follows the criteria set out by the Tertiary
Education Council (TEC) in s 5 of the
2025 Funding Conditions Catalogue here:
https://www.tec.govt.nz/assets/Publications-and-others/2025-funding-conditions-
catalogue.pdf. The specific subsections relevant to your request are s 5.1(b)(i) A. and s 5.2 of
the
2025 Funding Conditions Catalogue (see pages 166 and 167).
For any student who has made a claim for refugee/protected person status under Part 5 of
the Immigration Act 2009, the University must validate their eligibility for domestic fee
status by receiving the following evidence from the student (as set out in s 5.2 of the
2025
Funding Conditions Catalogue, and on the TEC website here:
https://www.tec.govt.nz/funding/funding-guidance/learner-identity-and-eligibility/other-
valid-domestic-enrolments):
•
A valid temporary visa issued by Immigration New Zealand to visit, work, or study in
New Zealand; and
•
Evidence that the learner has made a claim for refugee protection (such as a copy of
their written claim to Immigration New Zealand or a letter from Immigration New
Zealand confirming they are considering their claim) and a certified copy of a valid
temporary visa.
In response to your request, the following determines when a student can be charged at the
domestic fees rate:
1. The date the student can be considered eligible for domestic status is determined by
the two pieces of evidence provided. If these pieces of evidence have differing dates,
the later date would be taken as the effective eligibility date; and
UNCLASSIFIED
Page 2 of 2
2. Comparison of the domestic eligibility date with the student’s study dates. If domestic
fee status eligibility is obtained during the course of study, domestic fee status will be
applied from the following trimester, unless the eligibility was meet before the end of
the free withdrawal period of the current course(s).
If there is ambiguity regarding any aspect of the documentation provided, we would seek
clarification from the TEC directly as to what date we can consider the domestic status to be
valid from.
If any student is seeking support on this process, please connect with the University directly:
•
International Student Experience team can help answer any visa-related questions or
concerns:
https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/students/support/international/contact-us
•
Refugee-Background Student Adviser can provide specific support for students with
Refugee status:
https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/students/student-life/communities/refugee-
background-students/adviser.
If you have any questions about this decision, you can contact us by email at:
[VUW request email]. You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the
Ombudsman of this decision by contacting
www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or freephone
0800 802 602.
Nāku noa, nā
Kayana Shaw
Senior Advisor, Official Information and Privacy
Legal Services
Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington
Document Outline
