Taiwan is on New Zealand's visa waiver list, so no visitor visa is required — but an NZeTA must be approved before boarding. It is requested online, valid two years, with stays of up to 90 days.
90 days
Maximum stay per visit
2 years
NZeTA validity
Multiple
Entries permitted
Under 72 hrs
Typical decision time
100% online
No embassy visit
Overview
Taiwan has a strong and long-standing travel relationship with New Zealand, built on tourism, education and one of the most heavily used working holiday schemes in the region. Taiwanese working holidaymakers are a familiar presence in Central Otago orchards and Queenstown hospitality.
Taipei connects to Auckland nonstop on China Airlines, seasonal on some rotations, with year-round alternatives through Australia, Hong Kong and Singapore. Flight times are around eleven to twelve hours direct.
Taiwan is on New Zealand's visa waiver list, so there is no visitor visa to apply for. Since October 2019 every traveller needs an NZeTA — an online authorisation held against your passport number and checked by the airline at Taoyuan before departure.
At a glance
Eligibility
No visa, but an NZeTA is required. Taiwanese citizens can enter New Zealand for tourism, visiting family, business meetings, conferences or transit for up to 90 days under the visa waiver.
The passport must contain a national identification number. Taiwan passports issued without one are not covered by New Zealand's visa waiver, and their holders need a Visitor Visa. This is the single most important eligibility check for Taiwanese travellers and is easy to verify on the passport data page.
New Zealand operates a working holiday scheme with Taiwan, subject to an annual quota and an age band, and it is heavily subscribed. It is a separate visa granted before you travel — an NZeTA gives no right to work, and taking a job on a visitor entry is a breach that is actively checked in the regions where the work is.
Stay & validity
Taiwan passport holders may stay up to 90 days per visit. The NZeTA lasts two years from approval and permits unlimited entries in that period, so the cap applies to each individual stay.
For short language courses the 90-day limit is the operative constraint. A twelve-week programme fits; anything longer needs a student visa arranged before departure.
The authorisation is bound to one passport number for two years. Taiwan passports are issued for ten years for adults and five for minors, so families are the most likely to encounter a renewal inside the window.
New Zealand requires three months of passport validity beyond your departure. Taiwanese routings through Hong Kong, Singapore or an Australian city may apply a six-month rule, and the strictest requirement on the itinerary governs.
Pricing
Live fees for Taiwan passport holders, shown all-in — the government charge, the tourism levy where it applies, and our service fee, with nothing added later.
Your nationality is pre-selected as Taiwan
Requirements
Everything Taiwan passport holders need before starting a request. The first five items apply to every applicant; the rest are specific to your nationality.
Passport bio-data page — a clear colour scan or photo showing your photograph, full name, date of birth, passport number and expiry date
Recent passport-style photograph — full face visible against a plain light background, taken within the last six months, no headwear other than for religious reasons
A valid email address, which is where the approval is sent and which you should keep accessible while travelling
A credit or debit card to pay the NZeTA request fee and the International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy together
Your onward or return ticket details — border officers can ask to see evidence that you intend to leave
Simple process
Four steps, entirely online, with our team checking every field before anything reaches Immigration New Zealand.
Enter your passport details exactly as printed, answer the health and character questions, and upload your photo. Most people finish in under ten minutes.
Our team checks your photo dimensions, passport number, name spelling and declarations before anything is submitted to Immigration New Zealand.
Your request goes to Immigration New Zealand together with the International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy, and we track it until a decision is issued.
There is no sticker or label — the authorisation is held electronically against your passport number. We explain exactly what to show at check-in.
Taiwanese requests are approved automatically in most cases, often within minutes. Immigration New Zealand advises allowing up to 72 hours because a proportion are referred to an officer, usually over a photograph the automated check cannot read.
Apply at least a week before departure, and check the identification number on your passport data page first. A passport without one is not covered by the waiver, and discovering that at Taoyuan check-in leaves no remedy.
Getting there
China Airlines flies Taipei to Auckland nonstop, seasonal on some rotations, taking around eleven to twelve hours. Year-round alternatives connect through Sydney, Brisbane, Hong Kong or Singapore.
Best time to go
New Zealand's summer of December to February coincides with the Taiwanese winter and the Lunar New Year, making it the busiest and most expensive window on the route. Book several months ahead.
The Taiwanese summer of July and August falls in the New Zealand winter — good for skiing at Queenstown and Wanaka and a striking contrast with Taipei humidity, though daylight is short.
March to May and September to November are the value windows, with settled weather, thinner crowds and better fares. New Zealand is four to five hours ahead of Taiwan depending on southern daylight saving, so jet lag is minimal.
Avoid these
Declines are rare, and almost always technical rather than substantive. These are the problems that come up most often on requests from Taiwan — we check for every one of them before submitting.
The single most important check for Taiwanese travellers. Taiwan passports issued without a national identification number are not covered by New Zealand's visa waiver, and their holders need a Visitor Visa. Verify it on the data page before requesting an NZeTA.
Taiwan's working holiday scheme with New Zealand is heavily subscribed and must be granted before travel. Picking up orchard or hospitality work on a visitor entry is a breach that is actively checked in Central Otago, Marlborough and Queenstown.
Taiwanese names can be romanised using several systems — Wade-Giles, Hanyu Pinyin, Tongyong Pinyin. Enter the name exactly as printed in your passport's machine-readable zone, not the version you use elsewhere.
A visitor entry covers courses of up to three months. A longer English programme requires a student visa arranged before departure, and enrolling on arrival is not possible.
Passport number mistyped
By far the most common problem. The authorisation is attached to the number you enter, so a single wrong character produces an NZeTA that does not exist as far as the airline is concerned.
An undeclared conviction
Immigration New Zealand asks about convictions, deportations and previous refusals. Undisclosed history found later is treated far more seriously than the original offence.
A photograph that fails the check
Shadows across the face, glasses, a busy background or a cropped chin all cause the automated check to reject an image, which turns an instant approval into a manual review.
Conditions
These conditions are set by Immigration New Zealand and do not vary by nationality. Two of them — the passport-linking rule and the cruise rule — catch out a lot of otherwise well-planned trips.
Your authorisation is held electronically against the passport number you entered. There is no label in your passport and nothing to print for immigration. If you renew or replace that passport, the NZeTA does not transfer — you must request a new one.
Every person travelling needs their own NZeTA, including newborns and children. A child cannot be added to a parent's request, and each one needs their own valid passport.
An approved NZeTA lasts two years from the date it is issued and can be used for any number of trips in that period, provided your passport remains valid. It cannot be extended — when it expires you simply request a new one.
The International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy funds conservation and tourism infrastructure and is charged alongside the NZeTA request. It currently stands at NZD 100 and is payable once per NZeTA, not once per trip.
An NZeTA lets you board. The decision to admit you is made by a border officer at Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch or Queenstown, who can ask about your funds, your accommodation and your intended departure.
Since October 2019 every cruise passenger arriving in New Zealand by sea needs an NZeTA or a visa, regardless of nationality — including passengers whose nationality would otherwise be exempt.
Consular services
New Zealand's representation in Taipei is through the New Zealand Commerce and Industry Office. It plays no part in an NZeTA request, which is completed entirely online with no appointment. Work visas, student visas and Working Holiday Visa applications are all submitted online through Immigration New Zealand.
FAQs
The questions Taiwan passport holders ask most often about travelling to New Zealand.
No visitor visa is required — Taiwan is on New Zealand's visa waiver list, provided your passport contains a national identification number. You need an NZeTA, requested online before departure and checked by the airline at Taoyuan. It covers stays of up to 90 days.
You are not covered by the visa waiver and will need a Visitor Visa instead, applied for well in advance. Check the data page of your passport before booking flights — this is the most common eligibility problem for Taiwanese travellers and there is no remedy at the airport.
Up to 90 days per visit. The NZeTA lasts two years and allows unlimited entries in that period, but each individual stay is capped at 90 days.
No. Taiwan's working holiday scheme with New Zealand is popular and quota-limited, and it is a separate visa that must be approved before you travel. An NZeTA confers no right to work at all.
Yes, China Airlines flies the route nonstop in around eleven to twelve hours, though it is seasonal on some rotations. Year-round alternatives connect through Sydney, Brisbane, Hong Kong or Singapore.
Use exactly the spelling printed in the machine-readable zone of your passport. Taiwanese romanisation varies between systems, and the airline compares your NZeTA against the passport, so any variation causes a problem at check-in.
Only for courses of three months or less, which covers most short language programmes. Anything longer requires a student visa applied for before you travel.
Your nationality is already set to Taiwan. Complete the form in under ten minutes, and our team will check every detail before it reaches Immigration New Zealand.
Other nationalities
Stay limits, entry conditions and levy rules differ by passport. Here are the guides for other nationalities.
