How to Sponsor your family into New Zealand Part 4: What is an acceptable standard of health?

April 3, 2009 by
Filed under: Getting to New Zealand, NZIS & Immigration issues 

Your parents have to be reasonably healthy in order to emigrate to New Zealand, and Immigration New Zealand has what is called an “acceptable standard of health” that they need to have.

There are certain medical conditions that are automatically deemed to show that you do not have an acceptable standard of health when you want to emigrate to New Zealand. These are known as Appendix 10 Conditions and are:

    • HIV infection
    • Hepatitis B surface antigen positive, with abnormal liver function
    • Hepatitis C, RNA positive, with abnormal liver function
    • Malignancies of solid organs and haematopoietic tissue, including past history of, or currently under treatment. Exceptions are:
      • o treated minor skin malignancies (not melanoma)
      • o malignancies where the interval since treatment is such that the probability of cure is > 90%, e.g.: early stage (I & IIA) breast cancer at 5 years; low risk
      • o prostate cancer at 5 years; early stage (Dukes A & B1) colorectal cancer at 5 years; childhood leukaemia at 5 years
    • Solid organ transplants, excluding corneal grafts more than 6 months old
    • Chronic renal failure or progressive renal disorders
    • Diseases or disorders such as osteoarthritis with a high probability of arthroplasty in the next four years
    • Central Nervous System disease, including motor neurone disease, complex partial seizures, poorly controlled epilepsy, prion disease, Alzheimer’s and other dementia, and including paraplegia and quadriplegia
    • Cardiac disease including ischaemic heart disease, cardiomyopathy or valve disease requiring surgical and/or other procedural intervention
    • Chronic obstructive respiratory disease with limited exercise tolerance and requiring oxygen
    • Genetic or congenital disorders: muscular dystrophies, cystic fibrosis, thalassaemia major, sickle cell anaemia if more than one sickle crisis in 4 years, severe haemophilia, and severe primary immunodeficiencies
    • Severe autoimmune disease, currently being treated with immuno-suppressants other than prednisone
    • In a person up to the age of 21 years, a severe (71-90 decibels) hearing loss or profound bilateral sensori-neural hearing loss
    • In a person up to the age of 21 years, a severe vision impairment with visual acuity of 6/36 or beyond after best possible correction, or a loss restricting the field of vision to 15-20 degrees
    • In a person up to the age of 21 years, a severe physical disability, where they are unable to stand and walk without support, and cannot independently dress, eat, hold a cup, or maintain their stability when sitting.

    • So basically – if you have any of those conditions: you are not considered healthy enough to Emigrate to New Zealand.

    If you don’t have any of those conditions – you may not be in the clear yet – as you can also be told your health is not acceptable if Immigration New Zealand (INZ) believe (and more importantly can show) that your health is likely to cost more than $25,000 to the New Zealand Health service.

    There are two sections to this bit – one if you have an acute condition (something that lasts a relatively short time and is treatable) in which case they want to know if you will cost $25,000 over 4 years. The other is if you have a chronic condition (lasts a long time, and probably isn’t curable – but manageable), in which case they want to know if you will cost the $25,000 over the length of the condition.

    If INZ and it’s Medical assessors cannot show clearly that you are likely to cost over $25,000 to the New Zealand Health Service, or that you have an Appendix 10 Medical Condition – then you have an acceptable standard of health.

    If you are assessed as having an unacceptable standard of health, the application for residency has to be declined on that basis. Your only option then is to apply for a Medical Waiver. Do make sure though that a second opinion on your Medical Assessment has been sought. You or your parents should not be turned down for a residency visa on the say so of just one Medical Assessor.  INZ also have to explicitly state why they believe you do not have an acceptable standard of health.

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    Related posts:

    1. How to Sponsor your family into New Zealand Part 3: Medicals Explained
    2. How to sponsor your family into New Zealand Part 2
    3. How to sponsor your family into New Zealand Part 1
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    Comments

    5 Comments on How to Sponsor your family into New Zealand Part 4: What is an acceptable standard of health?

    1. Brixey on Mon, 27th Apr 2009 8:59 pm

      2. I agree with you 100% – things happen for a reason. I found this by accident and noticed that we have some things in common. Thats what I love about the Internet, every blog is like a box of chocolates :) Thanks – Great blog.

    2. Dawn Reid on Tue, 5th Oct 2010 9:21 pm

      3. I tried to immigrate to newzealand with my family. They turned me down because ive had a kidney transplant. Though all my medicals were clear and my health was good they said i would cost them $25000 in the next 4yrs. That was over 2yrs ago and guess what? my kidney is still working perfectly. They declined me on 12th nov and on 13 dec they accepted my parents who applied same time as us. Everything went through smoothly, they invited us to apply for residency and they knew from day one about my transplant, they then declined. How cruel is that. Im now taking my story to the papers. All my medical team gave letters to say i was fit and kidney worked 100%, my husband met the requirements and had job to go to but still declined after keeping us waiting more than a year. So unfair as i know other kidney transplant patients have been accepted.

    3. Avalon on Fri, 15th Oct 2010 5:15 pm

      4. Dawn,

      I apologise profusely for missing this comment and not responding :(

      I really feel for you – it still really makes me angry that policy is applied so inconsistently – as you say – if other transplant patients are allowed through – why not you? OK – its an appendix 10 condition – so automatically you would be declined – but thats the point of the Medical Waiver – and that should not be affected by the health condition.

      Have you looked at the Residence Review board? Its too late to make an application – but worth a look for future reference.

      Please consider letting me know when your story goes to the media – I’m happy to publicise it for you :)

    4. Dawn on Fri, 15th Oct 2010 8:43 pm

      5. Thank you for answering me. Its so frustrating for us, we did take it to the residency board but they just agreed with immigration and declined. They also said we had to many family nexus here which is strange as the following month they accepted my parents. Parents have more family nexus here but they accepted them. They declined our medical waiver aswell but kept giving us further chance to give more medical letters from my doctors. As far as im conserned they kept us hanging on and also never gave my parents an answer until they wewre finished with us.
      I did offer them the $25,000 they kept saying id cost them but that was also declined. We are now losing my parents as they have to be in Newzealand by April. Its so cruel what immigration have done to us, basicaly destroyed us. I will give my story to the media and let you know what happens from there. Ive also wrote to Kate Wilkinson as she could over rule it for us, havent heard if shes going to look into our case yet. Thanks

      Dawn

    5. Avalon on Fri, 15th Oct 2010 9:45 pm

      6. I really do feel for you – as you say – you have been really cruelly treated. It looks like they were looking for a reason to decline you. But like you say – why invite you to re-apply if they knew damn well they were going to say no again. As for ignoring the advise of the Medics – yeah – thats what they did with my parents.

      I really wish there was something I could say which would offer some comfort – but if there is – I really dont know what it is :(

      Hugs Hxxx

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