Erica Stanford: Immigration Minister on the Travel Authority for Chinese visitors

From November, transiting Chinese passport holders won't need a visa to pass through New Zealand airports.  

They'll can instead get a New Zealand electronic Travel Authority that's processed in four hours, and lasts for two years.  

Immigration Minister Erica Stanford told Ryan Bridge our Chinese visitor numbers are lagging at about 65% pre-Covid levels, so they're doing anything to help.  

She says it will also significantly increase the amount of freight from China and South America and bring down freight prices. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Now more visa changes for Chinese visitors on the way.
From November, Chinese passport holders will no longer be required
to obtain a transit visa we're traveling through New Zealand airports.
This means no visa application fees when traveling through to
say South America and beyond. Eric Stanford is the Minister
and with me this morning. Good morning, minister, good morning,
how are you good? Thank you? What do we think

(00:22):
this will do? What effect will this have?

Speaker 2 (00:24):
Although we're a number of great things for New Zealand.
I mean, firstly, it will boost our terrorism numbers. We
know that our tourism numbers aren't where they need to be,
especially our Chinese visitors. They're still lagging it around sixty
five percent pre COVID, so anything we can do to help.
But also if you think about our trade as well,
I mean, this will significantly increase the amount of freight

(00:48):
that will come in and out of China but also
across to South America as well. It'll also bring down
freight prices on air freight prices which you know are
pretty high. The other thing which I think people are
probably not thinking about, but I'm thinking about as well
as our international education. So if you think about South America,

(01:08):
we want more international students coming from South America. At
the moment, there is I saw them a monopoly on flights.
There's only one company doing it. Now you'll have more,
so we'll bring that price down of being able to
get across from South America. So I'm hoping that we'll
also see an increased number of international students out of
South America as well.

Speaker 1 (01:27):
All right, minister, let's talk about the weird thing that's
happening with the government. So why is any why won't
anybody just say, you know, China's not on our visa
free list? Right, And I've asked. I asked the Prime
Minister about this on Monday. I heard him aster about
it because he's over in China at the moment, and
he won't say why they're not on the visa free list.

(01:50):
Can you just say, categorically, what risk do they pipe?
Why aren't they on there?

Speaker 2 (01:55):
Most countries aren't on a visa free list. The reason
we got is because it because there's there's risk with
every country. Every country has a certain risk. There's loads
of different risks. If you look at China for example, well,
if you look at China for example, they're our second
largest market for asylum seeconds, right, and so there are
lots of other countries we have asylum seekers from as well,

(02:18):
But it's just one of the considerations. But the main
thing is also it's a huge piece of work to
undertake a big program of looking at whether or not
we should make a country visa free, and that would
be an immigration piece of work. We are absolutely up
to our eyeballs and immigration with our work program. There
is literally nothing else we can add it and without

(02:40):
me taking something else of a huge piece of work.
So I don't have the time to do it. But
what I can do is the two things you've seen.

Speaker 1 (02:49):
We worried just so weekly. We're worried that we would
be overwhelmed with asylum seekers if we did visa free
from China.

Speaker 2 (02:56):
You're putting words into my mouth. I didn't say overwhelmed,
said that are the second largest country that we have
asylum seekers from.

Speaker 1 (03:04):
It's one of the risks, right, But what is the benefit.
What is the benefit though, because we're still only at
sixty percent of pre COVID levels for tourism from China
when we're living more than a billion bucks on the
table at this point, is it not worth looking at?
Or do we not do we not even want to
go there?

Speaker 2 (03:21):
I think there are a couple of other things we've
done just recently which I think will bring the numbers
back that are a lot easier, safer, risk free. If
you look at what we've just done recently, we've announced
the fact that China, China, these past beholders can come
in through Australia visa free. Now we're expecting that to
increase tourism numbers by ten to twenty percent. When I
say Chinese visitors are back to sixty five percent, that's

(03:44):
arrived on sure. The actual figure that's more interesting is
eighty five percent of the pre COVID numbers of Chinese
visitors have been approved of visa, which means they haven't
used it yet because it takes twelve months. They're on
their ways. So if you add their eighty five life
percent to what we think are going to come to
Australia plus this, I think we'll be back to We'll

(04:05):
be back to pre pandemic numbers as without me having
to do months and months and months of work that
we don't have time to do. Plice. Also, you know,
you know.

Speaker 1 (04:16):
I think you have answered the question quite sufficiently. I
appreciate it. Thank you, unlike your boss just spat it
out anyway, I appreciate you coming on the show. Minister,
have a great day, Eric still welcome. Thank you, Immigration Minister.
For more from Early Edition with Ryan Bridge, listen live
to News Talks it'd be from five am weekdays, or

(04:38):
follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.