Eligibility for Publicly Funded Health and Disability Services

People exempt from having to hold a temporary permit

A small number of people from other countries are exempt from having a permit.

Those people should be treated as ineligible for publicly funded services unless they can prove that they meet one of the criteria.

Some of the groups of people who will not have a permit in their passport and will be ineligible for publicly funded services are:

1. people entitled to immunity from jurisdiction under the Diplomatic Privileges and Immunities Act 1968 or the Consular Privileges and Immunities Act 1971; and
2. members of the armed forces of any country, or crew members of any craft transporting such people to New Zealand, while in New Zealand:
   
   
   1. at the request or with consent of the Government of New Zealand, and
   2. in the ordinary course of the member's duty or employment; and
3. crew or passengers on any seagoing craft carrying passengers or cargo or both in the ordinary course of business of the craft, from the time the craft arrives at a port of entry in New Zealand until whichever of the following occurs first:
   
   
   1. the craft is given clearance to leave its last port of entry in New Zealand on the same voyage, or
   2. 28 days have expired, beginning with the day the craft arrived at its first port of entry in New Zealand on that voyage; and
4. crew or passengers on any foreign fishing craft licensed or seeking to be licensed under section 15 of the Territorial Sea and Exclusive Economic Zone Act 1977 for a period of 7 days after the date:
   
   
   1. on which the licence expires if a licence has been granted, or
   2. of first arrival in New Zealand if a licence is refused; and
5. aircraft crew on any commercial aircraft flying between any other country and New Zealand, for 7 days beginning with the day on which the aircraft arrived in New Zealand; and
6. a member of any scientific programme or expedition under the auspices of Operation Deep Freeze while in the Ross Dependency; and
7. crew or passengers on any ship authorised by the Minister of Transport under section 198(2) of the Maritime Transport Act 1994 to carry passengers or cargo for a period of 28 days from the date the ship first arrives in New Zealand.
8. holders of transit visas who are in New Zealand for less than 24 hours and who during that time remain:
   
   
   • on the craft; or
   • in a customs controlled area; or
   • in the custody of the police; and
9. children born in New Zealand on or after 1 January 2006 to a parent who is exempt from having to hold a temporary permit.

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Page last updated: 29 January 2009