New Zealand has recorded a sharp rise in student visa refusals for applicants from Bangladesh and India as immigration authorities step up scrutiny of fraudulent documents.
Immigration New Zealand rejected 70 percent of student visa applications from Bangladesh and 39per cent from India between July and September 2026, nearly double the usual refusal rates, reports Radio New Zealand (RNZ) on Thursday.
Immigration New Zealand rejected 6,273 full-fee student visa applications from all countries between July and September 2026, approaching the 7,503 refusals recorded over the entire 2025–26 financial year.
The overall refusal rate for full-fee student visa applications rose to 34 percent during the period, up from 13 percent in the previous financial year.
Immigration New Zealand told RNZ that increasingly sophisticated fraud in visa applications, particularly those involving master’s degree programmes, had contributed to the higher rejection rates.
Immigration agents, however, attributed the rise in refusals to education consultancies in Bangladesh and India relying on sub-agents to handle large numbers of visa applications.
They alleged that some sub-agents had submitted false or inaccurate financial documents, leading Immigration New Zealand to impose stricter checks that were also affecting genuine applicants.
The agents said some education consultants with limited knowledge of New Zealand’s visa requirements had shifted their focus to the country after Canada and Australia tightened their international student visa rules.
New Zealand recorded similar spikes in student visa refusals among Indian applicants in 2024 and around 2016, when authorities raised concerns over fraudulent documents and the involvement of sub-agents.
Immigration advisers have urged authorities to strengthen checks against fraudulent applications without penalising genuine students.