5 March 2026
DOIA-REQ-0027132
Tēnā koe Vivian
Thank you for your FYI request of 09 February 2026 to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment
requesting, under the Official Information Act 1982, the following information:
Under the Official Information Act 1982, I request statistics on decision timeframes for onshore
refugee and protection claims decided by Refugee Status Unit (RSU).
For the period from 1 November 2025 to 31 December 2025, please provide:
1. The total number of first-instance decisions made by the RSU on onshore refugee and protection
claims; and
2. The median number of calendar days between the date the claim was formally
lodged/confirmed and the date of the RSU first-instance decision.
Our response
For the period between 1 November 2025 to 31 December 2025, 267 first-instance decisions were made
by the Refugee Status Unit (RSU) for onshore refugee and protection claims. The median number of
calendar days between the date the claim was formally lodged/confirmed and the date of the RSU
first-instance decision was 592 days.
I hope this information is helpful.
If you wish to discuss any aspect of your request or this response, or if you require any further assistance,
please contact
[email address].
You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of this decision. Information
about how to make a complaint is available a
t www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or freephone 0800 802 602.
Nāku noa, nā
Fiona Whiteridge
General Manager, Refugee and Migrant Services
Immigration New Zealand
