Active Investor Plus Growth vs Balanced

Active Investor Plus Visa is a New Zealand Resident Visa that lets investors with significant financial resources, and their families, live in New Zealand indefinitely. The main eligibility points are:

• Standard health and character requirements, including police clearance certificates
• No history of serious immigration, employment, or tax breaches, or of business-related financial fraud
• No maximum age and no business management experience requirement
• No English language requirement

The Active Investor Plus Visa offers two investment categories, Growth and Balanced:

• Growth category:invest at leastNZ$5 millionin acceptable investments, includingdirect investmentin New Zealand private businesses or investments inmanaged funds and venture capital fundsthat are approved. These investments must be assessed and approved as eligible by New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE).
  
• Balanced category:invest at leastNZ$10 millionin a diversified, balanced portfolio. The Balanced category allows a broader range ofacceptable investments, including direct investments, managed funds,listed equities, bonds, philanthropic investmentsorproperty development projects(new residential projects, new commercial or industrial projects, or upgrades to existing ones).
  

Whichever category you choose, the investment must be maintained continuously for the required period (see below) and must not be for personal use (for example, it cannot be used to buy a home to live in, a car, or other personal consumer assets). Investment funds must be converted into New Zealand dollars (NZD) and invested in lawful New Zealand businesses or funds.

The AIP Visa requires investors to maintain their investment for a set period, depending on the category chosen:

• Growth category:the investment must be held for at least36 months3 years
• Balanced category:the investment must be held for at least60 months5 years

During this period, investors may move funds between acceptable investments, provided the total value invested does not fall below the minimum required and the funds remain within acceptable investments. If returns are paid out or an investment matures early, Growth category applicants may reinvest the returned capital in Balanced-category assets, provided the amount reinvested is under NZ$1 million (allowing flexibility when smaller amounts of capital are returned).

Timeline for transferring and investing funds

Once the application is approved in principle, investors have 6 months to transfer and invest the full committed amount in acceptable investments in New Zealand. All funds must be invested in eligible investments before the residence visa is granted; partial investment is not accepted. Investors may request one further 6-month extension if they can show they have made genuine efforts to transfer the funds but faced obstacles beyond their control.

Where part of the funds is intended for a managed fund that has not yet issued a capital call, the rules provide some flexibility: investors may temporarily hold the pending amount in short-term liquid assets, such as bank deposits or bonds, for up to 6 months. This keeps investors on schedule while they wait for the fund’s capital call.

• Growth category:Applicants mustspend at least 21 days in New Zealandduring the 36-month investment period (an average of 7 days per year).
  
• Balanced category:Applicants mustspend at least 105 days in New Zealandduring the 60-month investment period (around 21 days per year). However, the programreduces this stay requirementfor those who invest above the minimum: for every additionalNZ$1 millioninvest inin Growth category investments, the total time required in New Zealand under the Balanced category falls by 14 days. The maximum reduction is 42 days, reached when the total investment is NZ$13 million, bringing the requirement down to63 days over 5 years. To qualify for the reduction, the additional funds (above NZ$10 million) must be nominated at the time of application and actually maintained throughout the 60-month investment period.

• Once granted a Resident Visa under the Active Investor Plus category, investors and their families immediately receive residence rights in New Zealand, a conditional stage that precedes permanent residence. The principal applicant, their partner, and dependent children (under 24, single, and financially dependent) all have the right to live, study, and work in New Zealand without restriction. . 
• Eligible children may attend New Zealand state schools as domestic students, and partners may apply for an appropriate work visa if needed.
• After holding the investment for the required period (3 years for Growth or 5 years for Balanced) and meeting the time-in-New Zealand requirement, investors become eligible to apply for a Permanent Resident Visa. The Permanent Resident Visa carries no requirement to spend time in New Zealand and no investment conditions, so once it is granted, investors are no longer required by the visa to keep their funds invested, subject to the terms of each investment.

During the initial period on a Resident Visa (before obtaining a Permanent Resident Visa), investors can travel in and out of New Zealand freely within a set time limit: 4 years from first arrival for the Growth category, and 6 years for the Balanced category. These are the travel conditions attached to the Resident Visa; after this period, applicants who have not yet obtained a Permanent Resident Visa will need to apply for a variation of travel conditions to keep traveling in and out of New Zealand freely.

AIP investors must strictly comply with their obligations throughout the conditional investment period to keep their residence status and remain eligible for a Permanent Resident Visa:

• Maintain acceptable investments: applicants must keep the full committed amount invested in acceptable investments for the corresponding 36 or 60 months. Immigration New Zealand (INZ) may request evidence that the investment has been maintained after year 2 and year 3 (Growth) or after year 2 and year 5 (Balanced). Withdrawing funds early or moving them into investments outside the acceptable categories may cost applicants their resident status.
  
• Meet the time-in-New Zealand requirement: applicants must spend at least the minimum number of days in New Zealand (21 or 105 days, unless a valid reduction applies). At the end of the investment period, INZ will check passport travel records or other evidence to confirm this condition has been met.
  
• Keep contact details up to date: during the conditional residence period, investors must provide their residential address and contact details to INZ and update them if anything changes. This allows INZ to monitor compliance. Investors who cannot be contacted to verify that conditions are being met risk having their residence status suspended.
  
• Keep your visa valid when traveling: applicants must make sure their passport is valid when entering or leaving New Zealand; if the passport expires, the visa must be transferred to the new passport before leaving New Zealand.

The AIP Visa process involves an application assessment, a verification interview (if required), and an approval in principle decision before the investor transfers funds. An approval in principle decision typically takes around 5 months (80% of applications are decided within 5 months). After approval in principle, the investor transfers the funds and reports the investments made. How long this stage takes depends on how quickly the investor completes it (up to 6–12 months, as noted above). Once the funds are confirmed as invested in line with the requirements, INZ grants the Resident Visa to the investor and their family. The total time from application to visa can therefore vary, but the government’s assessment is usually completed within the first few months. The official application fee is substantial (around NZ$27,470 per application, excluding service fees and medical examinations).

(Note: Processing times may vary depending on application volumes and how complete each application is. Under the new rules, applications submitted with complete information and the correct documents are prioritized for faster processing. Careful preparation that follows current policy from the outset can therefore significantly shorten waiting times.)

Compared with the earlier programs, the AIP Visa raises the financial bar while easing language and procedural barriers, with the aim of attracting well-capitalized investors from around the world. It is particularly suited to individuals with very high net worth seeking permanent residence in a stable country such as New Zealand, together with the opportunity to invest in an advanced economy. In practical terms, investors with NZ$5–10 million or more may consider the AIP Visa regardless of age, even if they are not yet fluent in English. The Growth and Balanced categories can be matched to different investment preferences: investors who want a shorter investment period and active involvement in local businesses may lean toward Growth (3 years), while those who prefer a more diversified, risk-balanced portfolio may find Balanced (5 years) a better fit. ,

Investors who are not prepared to commit the large amounts required under the AIP Visa may consider alternatives such as the Entrepreneur Work Visa, which is designed for people who run a business in New Zealand. . 

Our assessment: The Active Investor Plus Visa is a tightly designed program with a clear objective: attracting high-value investors and encouraging them to invest in sectors that create substantial value for the New Zealand economy. Compared with the previous categories, the AIP Visa raises the financial criteria (removing the lower-capital tier) while offering simpler procedures and more favorable personal requirements for those with sufficient financial resources. This reflects New Zealand’s current strategy of prioritizing the quality of capital and its economic impact over simply attracting new residents. The investors best suited to the AIP Visa are those who want to diversify internationally, are looking for a safe and stable place for their families to live, and have the financial strength to meet the requirements. With the recent adjustments, the program is becoming more attractive, reflecting the government’s responsiveness to feedback and its efforts to improve the policy.

Prospective investors should carefully weigh their goals and personal circumstances when choosing between the Growth category and the Balanced category. As investment migration places growing emphasis on responsibility and genuine contribution, New Zealand’s Active Investor Plus Visa stands out as a strong option for international investors who want ties to a transparent, knowledge-based economy with strong potential. The program may continue to be refined toward greater transparency, greater appeal, and a balance between the interests of investors and those of New Zealand, helping shape high-quality investment migration in the years ahead.