Terms of Use

1. Acceptance of these terms

These Terms of Use apply when you access or use nzcitizenshipcheck.com, including its calculator, articles, links and other features. By using the website, you agree to these terms and the Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, do not use the website.

2. Purpose of the website

NZ Citizenship Eligibility Checker is an independent educational website. It provides general information and a browser-based estimate relating to the standard New Zealand citizenship presence test.

The website is not operated by, affiliated with, authorised by or endorsed by the New Zealand Government, DIA or INZ. It does not submit applications, access official immigration files, verify identity, or make decisions about citizenship.

3. No legal or immigration advice

Nothing on the website is legal advice, immigration advice, financial advice, or a recommendation tailored to your circumstances. Use of the website does not create an adviser-client, lawyer-client, fiduciary or government relationship.

Citizenship requirements and official practices may change. Check current government information and seek help from an appropriately qualified professional where your circumstances are complex or important decisions depend on the result.

4. Calculator assumptions and limitations

The calculator uses dates supplied by you and applies a programmed interpretation of the standard presence rule. Its estimate can differ from an official assessment because of incomplete or inaccurate inputs, official movement records, visa conditions, same-day travel, time-zone or record issues, exceptional circumstances, special applicant categories, legislative or policy changes, technical faults, and requirements other than presence.

The calculator uses a conservative day-count convention. It treats the departure date as the first day outside New Zealand, the return date as the first day back, and the proposed application date as the endpoint rather than an eligible day within the preceding five-year period.

These assumptions may produce a later result than another calculator or an official assessment. Users must not treat the calculated date as a guarantee of eligibility or approval.

The calculator does not assess, among other things:

• good character, English, intention to reside, identity or document requirements;
• whether resident status was subject to relevant conditions;
• special rules for children, Samoan citizens, Crown service or exceptional circumstances;
• the completeness of INZ travel and visa records; or
• whether DIA will accept, process or approve an application.

A result is not a promise, guarantee or official confirmation of eligibility. Before applying, use current official guidance and verify the result with DIA where appropriate.

5. Your responsibilities

You are responsible for:

• entering complete and accurate dates;
• checking official requirements and records before acting;
• protecting your device and deciding what information to enter or email;
• not sending sensitive identity information to this independent website; and
• obtaining professional advice when reasonably needed.

6. Acceptable use

You may use the website for lawful personal, educational and reasonable community purposes. You must not:

• interfere with the website, hosting, security or availability;
• introduce malware, automated abuse, excessive requests or attempts to gain unauthorised access;
• use the website to mislead others, impersonate a government agency or falsely claim official endorsement;
• remove notices, repackage the calculator as an official determination, or use the content unlawfully; or
• use contact details for spam, harassment or unrelated marketing.

We may restrict access or take reasonable protective action if we believe the website is being misused.

6A. User feedback and public comments

You may submit ratings and optional comments after using a tool or directly from the User Feedback page. Do not submit confidential, unlawful, abusive, misleading or sensitive personal information. By submitting feedback, you grant the website operator permission to display the rating, any optional display name and optional written comment on the User Feedback page after automated spam and security checks. Ratings may be displayed even when no written comment is provided. If you leave the display-name field blank, the public review is labelled User.

We may hide, reject, remove, or edit feedback only for obvious formatting issues at our discretion. Public ratings and comments describe user experience only; they do not verify that a calculator result matches an official DIA assessment.

7. Intellectual property

Unless otherwise stated, the website's original design, text, graphics and software are owned by or licensed to the website operator. You may view, print or share links to the website for personal and non-commercial use.

You may not copy, sell, sublicense, frame, publish substantial parts, create a misleading derivative service, or use the branding without prior written permission, except where permitted by law. Government material, third-party marks and linked content remain the property of their respective owners and may be subject to separate terms.

8. External links and third-party services

Links to government pages and other organisations are provided for convenience and do not amount to endorsement. We do not control their accuracy, availability, security, terms or privacy practices.

If you leave this website or use Google Fonts, Google Analytics, Cloudflare Turnstile, Stripe, email providers or other third-party services, their terms and policies apply to their part of the service.

9. Donations

Donations are voluntary. A donation does not purchase immigration advice, priority support, an application service, or any guarantee of citizenship eligibility or approval.

Payments are processed by a third-party provider such as Stripe. Its terms, fees and privacy practices apply to the payment. If you make a duplicate or mistaken payment, contact [email protected]. Nothing in these terms removes any right or remedy that cannot lawfully be excluded.

10. Availability and changes

We may modify, suspend or discontinue any part of the website without notice. We aim to maintain useful and current information, but do not promise uninterrupted access, compatibility with every device, or that every error will be corrected immediately.

We may update these terms from time to time. The latest version applies from the date shown at the top of the page. Continued use after an update means you accept the revised terms.

11. Disclaimers and limitation of liability

The website is provided on an "as available" basis for general information. To the maximum extent permitted by law, we make no warranty that the website or any result is complete, accurate, current, secure, uninterrupted or suitable for a particular purpose.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, the website operator is not liable for loss, cost, delay, missed opportunity, application fee, travel decision, data loss or other damage arising from use of, inability to use, or reliance on the website or an external link.

Nothing in these terms excludes, restricts or modifies rights, remedies or liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited under New Zealand law. Official legal requirements prevail over any inconsistent website content.

12. New Zealand law

These terms are governed by New Zealand law. Subject to any rights that apply under law, disputes relating to the website are subject to the jurisdiction of New Zealand courts.

If a provision is invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions continue to apply. A failure to enforce a provision immediately is not a waiver of it.

13. Contact

Questions about these terms can be sent to [email protected].