A parliamentary committee has pushed back against fears that the India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (FTA) will open the migration floodgates, saying many of the deal’s immigration commitments are limited, capped or close to settings already in place.

The Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee’s final report was presented to the House of Representatives on Monday, June 22, by committee chair Tim van de Molen.

On Tuesday, the government’s implementing legislation, the India Free Trade Agreement Legislation Amendment Bill, was set down for its first reading.

The trade agreement was signed on April 27, 2026, and referred to the committee for examination the next day.

The committee received 1,780 written public submissions, and heard oral evidence from 52 submitters.

In its final report, the committee has said many submitters were worried the FTA’s immigration provisions would lead to significant increases in migration flows from India.

But it said the commitments made by New Zealand were “relatively narrow” and did not prevent future governments from adjusting other immigration settings.

“Overall, we consider that New Zealand retains sufficient policy flexibility through the ability to adjust other immigration settings as appropriate,” the committee said.

The report comes after intense public and political debate over the India FTA, including claims that the agreement could sharply increase Indian migration to New Zealand.

The committee’s report doesn't say the agreement will have absolutely no impact on migration. Some areas could increase the number of Indian nationals in New Zealand, particularly the working holiday scheme, contractual services suppliers and some temporary work categories.

But the committee’s central finding is that the most politically charged fears about large-scale migration increases are not supported by the actual visa commitments in the agreement.

Student visas: No country cap, but not new

One of the most sensitive areas is student visas.

Under the agreement, New Zealand and India agree not to impose numerical limits, or caps, on students admitted to recognised education institutions, subject to eligibility conditions.

But the committee noted the ministry for foreign affairs and trade has confirmed New Zealand currently has no limit on the number of student visas for students from any country.

That means the no-cap commitment for Indian students is not a new setting.

The report also says Indian students, like students from any other country, would still need to meet standard visa requirements, including evidence of financial capability, good health and good character.

The agreement also commits New Zealand to allow Indian student visa holders to work for at least 20 hours a week.

However, the committee noted that current settings already allow student visa holders from any country to work up to 25 hours a week while in New Zealand.

“In practical terms, the current limit of 25 hours is unchanged,” the report said.

Post-study work: Extra year only for PhD graduates

New Zealand has committed to post-study work visas of up to four years for doctoral graduates, three years for master’s graduates and STEM bachelor’s graduates with first-class honours, and two years for other bachelor’s graduates.

The committee noted that post-study work visas of up to three years are already available for international students in New Zealand.

“The only commitment in the agreement that exceeds current settings is the extra year available for PhD graduates,” the report said.

It concluded that student visa and post-study work visa commitments “broadly reflect, or are less than, immigration settings already in effect”.

“We do not consider that these visa commitments will lead to an increase in immigration flows, or effects on the labour market and availability of course places, in the way that some submitters were concerned about,” the committee said.

1,000 working holiday visas for young Indian graduates

A clearer new commitment is the working holiday scheme.

Under a side letter to the FTA, New Zealand has committed to provide 1,000 annual working holiday visa places for young Indian graduates, subject to conditions.

The National Interest Analysis says these visas will be available to young Indian graduates aged 18 to 30, allowing them to work while holidaying in New Zealand.

The committee described the commitment as broadly consistent with commitments made in other trade agreements.

It noted New Zealand’s FTA with Korea includes a reciprocal commitment to 3,000 annual working holiday visas, while the China FTA included a commitment to 1,000 working holiday visas.

The report also says New Zealand has 45 active bilateral working holiday visa agreements and has granted between 44,500 and 48,000 working holiday visas each year since 2023.

5,000 temporary work visas at any one time

The most politically sensitive work-visa commitment is the Temporary Employment Entry, or TEE, category.

The agreement commits New Zealand to providing 5,000 TEE visas at any one time. Because the visas are valid for three years, the committee says this is equivalent to about 1,667 visas per year.

Of the 5,000 places, 4,400 must be in skills-shortage areas, equal to an annual average of 1,467 visas.

Another 600 places are reserved for “iconic Indian occupations”, equal to about 200 a year.

The National Interest Analysis says these iconic Indian occupations include AYUSH practitioners, music teachers, Indian chefs and yoga instructors.

The committee said applicants for TEE visas must have a job offer, meet English-language requirements and be suitably qualified for the skilled occupation with a relevant tertiary-level qualification.

There is also a three-year stand-down period before visa holders can reapply.

The report says the visas do not provide a pathway to citizenship and do not include a right to bring family members.

However, partners and dependent children can apply for visitor visas based on their relationship to a work visa holder, as is the case for any work visa. Those visitor visas do not include work rights and their duration is tied to the partner’s work visa.

Some increase still possible

While the committee rejected the idea that the student and post-study visa commitments would drive migration increases in the way some submitters feared, the National Interest Analysis is more cautious about some of the new categories.

It says most of the temporary movement commitments are in line with, or below, existing settings.

But it also says the FTA could increase the number of Indian nationals in New Zealand in some areas, particularly through the working holiday scheme, contractual services suppliers and the TEE iconic occupations.

"As with all new visa categories, Immigration New Zealand expects this could lead to some increase in immigration fraud and/or non-compliance, as well as a potential increase in asylum claims," the report states. 

Future governments still have levers

The broader concern raised by submitters was that putting immigration commitments into a bilateral trade agreement could reduce New Zealand’s ability to change policy later.

The committee acknowledged the concern but said New Zealand still has many connected policy levers that influence immigration flows.

That means the FTA does lock in some minimum commitments, such as no student cap for Indian students and at least 20 hours of work rights for Indian student visa holders.

But the committee said New Zealand still retains sufficient policy flexibility through its ability to adjust other immigration settings.

Government moves to enable the FTA

The committee report on Monday was followed by the introduction of the India Free Trade Agreement Legislation Amendment Bill, the Government bill needed to bring parts of the FTA into force in New Zealand law.

The bill says most of New Zealand’s obligations under the agreement are already met by existing law and policy, but several legislative changes are still needed to align domestic law with the FTA.

The bill is mainly about trade implementation rather than immigration. It would amend laws covering dairy export licences, overseas investment screening, tariffs, customs rules and certificates of origin.

It would also set up quota management systems for New Zealand apple, kiwifruit and mānuka honey exports to India.