Kia ora Anonymous,
 
On behalf of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment I
acknowledge your email of 26/06/2026 requesting, under the Official
Information Act 1982, the following:
 
I am writing to request, under the Official Information Act 1982, the
following information. I request urgent processing of this request for
reasons set out below.

Background

On 25 June 2026, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Rt Hon Winston Peters,
stated in Parliament that changes had been made to immigration operational
settings which target Indian citizens specifically and differently from
citizens of other FTA partners. He stated that officials had warned
Ministers these changes could impact the bilateral relationship with
India, be open to legal challenge or retaliation, and that officials had
discussed the importance of these changes not being publicly announced.

The existence of the documents described below has been confirmed on the
parliamentary record by a sitting Cabinet minister.

Request 1 - The operational changes

All immigration instructions, operational manual amendments, processing
guidelines, circulars, internal directives, or other operational documents
issued or amended since 22 December 2025 that establish or implement any
differential treatment of Indian citizens relative to citizens of other
FTA partners (including but not limited to China, Thailand, South Korea,
and ASEAN nations) in respect of:

(a) The application of labour market tests or economic needs tests to
Indian nationals under the NZ-India FTA visa categories;

(b) The ability of Indian nationals to apply for Temporary Employment
Entry visas from within New Zealand;

(c) The treatment of partners and dependent children of Indian nationals
holding FTA visas, relative to the treatment of partners and children of
nationals from other FTA partner countries; and

(d) The counting of work experience gained on a Temporary Employment Entry
visa toward residence requirements.

Request 2 - Ministerial approval

All briefings, aide-mémoires, Cabinet papers, Cabinet committee papers,
and records of ministerial decisions or approvals regarding the changes
described in Request 1, including any approval or direction by the
Minister of Immigration.

Request 3 - Officials' risk advice

All advice, briefings, memoranda, and correspondence provided to Ministers
regarding the risk of:

(a) Legal challenge or treaty breach arising from the differential
treatment of Indian citizens under the NZ-India FTA;

(b) Diplomatic retaliation or impacts on the bilateral relationship with
India; and

(c) Reputational risk to New Zealand as a destination for trade,
investment, or international education.

Request 4 - Communications strategy regarding non-announcement

All correspondence, emails, meeting notes, and records of discussion
between officials, and between officials and Ministers, regarding whether
or how these changes should be publicly announced, including any
discussion of withholding, delaying, or avoiding public announcement of
the changes and the reasons for doing so.

Urgency

I request urgent processing of this request under section 12 of the OIA.
The enabling legislation for the NZ-India FTA is scheduled for
parliamentary debate in September 2026. The information requested directly
concerns how the government intends to implement the treaty's immigration
provisions - a matter central to Parliament's consideration of that
legislation.

The existence of these documents has been confirmed on the parliamentary
record by a sitting Cabinet minister. Their identification and retrieval
should not require substantial collation or research.

The public interest in disclosure before Parliament votes is compelling.
Parliament and the public are entitled to know how the government intends
to implement the treaty's immigration provisions - and whether that
implementation treats Indian citizens differently from other FTA partner
nationals - before being asked to pass the enabling legislation.

I am willing to pay reasonable charges associated with urgent processing
if required.

Format and withholding

I am content to receive documents in electronic form. Where a document is
partially withholdable, I request that the remainder be released with
redactions clearly marked and the specific withholding ground identified
per redaction, as required by section 19.

If any part of this request is considered too broad, I welcome
consultation under section 18B to refine the scope rather than refusal. I
am particularly interested in Requests 1 and 4 and would accept
prioritisation of those if resource constraints require it.

I note that the information requested concerns domestic operational
settings and ministerial decision-making. I do not consider section 6(a)
(international relations) to be an appropriate ground for withholding,
given that the existence and nature of these changes has already been
disclosed on the parliamentary record by a member of Cabinet. The
information is no longer confidential as between the government and the
public.

I look forward to your response as soon as reasonably practicable.
 
We will endeavour to respond to your request as soon as possible, and no
later than 27/07/2026, being 20 working days after the day your request
was received. If we are unable to respond to your request by then, we will
notify you of an extension of that timeframe. If you have any enquiries
regarding your request feel free to contact us via email to
[1][MBIE request email].
 
Nāku noa, nā
Ministerial Services
Strategy and Assurance
Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment
15 Stout Street, Wellington 6011 |  P O Box 1473 Wellington 6140

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[MBIE request email]