Questions On Behalf...

[Questions]

Hello there,

I have 2 very close friends (female - Malaysian, male - NZ Citizen by birth) and would like you ask you guys some questions...

The details are:
She: Came down from Malaysia at around age 11-12 and went to school in NZ and went to school all the way through to 7th form, then when she turned 19 she decided that she wants to study but finds out that her parents and her self included are over stayers...
Now these two have been going out for almost 5 years (now 20 and 21 years old) and have been living together in the same house (renting) for almost 2 - Many photos/documents to back this up.

I know these two personally and they are in a loving committed relationship and they really just want to get things sorted so they can move on into "adult hood" and have a family together. But they need to sort things out...

What is the best way about doing this? Is marriage really an option for her to gain citizenship in NZ? I know that this really is their second option as they would rather do it the "proper" way through going for PR.

Can anyone give me information to relay back to this couple.

[MotherBear]

Hi Question ,

Welcome to the forum.

Would I be right in assuming the Malaysian girlfriend and her family were caught out as being overstayers? I can't tell from what you say whether the couple is still in NZ or back in Malaysia. If she did get found out as being an overstayer, it would go against her and her family as this sort of thing is looked on badly by NZIS.

By marrying a NZ citizen or even someone holding PR, it does not entitle the spouse automatic rights to citizenship or PR. There would still be a lot of paperwork and proof to sort out and I couldn't say how NZIS would see the situation if they did marry.

The situation isn't too clear from what you said, so perhaps, if you could fill in the blanks, we could see better how things stand.