Immigration levy could hit international student numbers, say universities

RNZ News

2 days ago

Universities New Zealand says the cost of an immigration levy is likely to be passed on to students. File photo.
Photo:
RNZ
Universities say a proposal that could make them pay a levy to Immigration New Zealand might harm international student numbers.
The government is considering a law change that would allow Immigration New Zealand to levy organisations that benefit from its work, such as education providers.
At the moment, it can only charge visa applicants.
"Currently there are people and groups who do not contribute to the broader costs of the immigration system (because they do not pay an immigration levy; only visa applicants can be charged a levy under the Immigration Act 2009 (the Act)), but who do receive its benefits or create risks that require mitigation," a regulatory impact statement said.
The statement said education providers benefited from Immigration NZ services that they did not directly pay for.
"Education providers that enrol international students directly financially benefit from the immigration system by tapping into a wider pool of students who are generally charged high fees than domestic students for their education," it said.
"Education providers that enrol international students also derive significant financial benefits from access to foreign students and benefit from the ICT, border, and settlement activities funded from the levy."
Universities New Zealand said the cost of a levy was likely to be passed on to students and could deter them from enrolling in this country.
It said the government needed to be careful the user-pays model did not cost the country more in lost economic activity than it earned Immigration New Zealand.
"On average, each international student at a New Zealand university spends around $36,000 to study and this flows through to another $22,000 of broader economic activity for the country for a total of around $58,000 per student annually," it said.
"International students have choices as to where they study and cost is a particularly important factor for many of the students from lower income countries."
Universities New Zealand said Immigration NZ increased its student visa fees in October 2024 by 90 percent and actual student enrolments for the university sector for 2025 ended up about 10 percent below forecast.
"As government considers amending settings around making users pay for public services, we hope that government will also consider the public benefits that flow through to the wider economy from these students," it said.
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