City view of Auckland, New Zealand Photo: Shan Jie/GT

The New Zealand government announced a visa waiver policy on Sunday for Chinese citizens travelling from Australia. This visa facilitation policy not only creates a favorable atmosphere before Prime Minister Christopher Luxon's visit to China next week, but also reflects the New Zealand government's strong emphasis on people-to-people exchanges with China, which have become a key driver of bilateral relations, a Chinese expert said.

According to Immigration New Zealand, starting November 2025, New Zealand will be trialing visa waiver status for Chinese passport holders travelling from Australia with a valid Australian visitor, work, student or family visa. They will be allowed to visit New Zealand for up to three months using a New Zealand Electronic Travel Authority (NZeTA) instead of applying for a traditional visa.

This waiver does not include people transiting through Australia, and applicants will still need to meet the criteria for an NZeTA.

The visa waiver announced on Sunday will be trialed for 12 months and is expected to enhance New Zealand's appeal as a destination for Chinese tourists.

Just a few hours after the announcement, the hashtag "New Zealand trials visa waiver to Chinese citizens travelling from Australia since November" gained wide attention on Sina Weibo, reaching 3.07 million reads.

Within an hour of the announcement, the search volume for New Zealand-related trips on the platform of Ctrip, a leading Chinese online travel agency, increased by 70 percent compared to the same period of the previous day, according to a press release sent to the Global Times by the company.

The implementation of the new policy is expected to significantly boost the passenger flow of Chinese tourists to New Zealand via Australia, further promoting cultural and tourism exchanges among the three countries, vice president of Ctrip Group Qin Jing told the Global Times.

New Zealand's natural landscapes and rich eco-tourism resources have always been highly favored by Chinese tourists, said Qin, noting that from April to May this year, travel bookings to New Zealand on the platform rose by 37 percent year-on-year, while the transaction volume at scenic spots surged by 74 percent.

The announcement came ahead of Luxon's official visit to China from June 17 to 20.

This visit marks Luxon's first visit to China since taking office and comes at a time as the China-New Zealand comprehensive strategic partnership enters its second decade, spokesperson from China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs Lin Jian said at a daily news briefing on Friday.

Luxon's visit will focus on growing trade, which was worth over $38 billion last year, as well as strengthening education and tourism ties and maximizing opportunities for New Zealand businesses, according to a readout published on New Zealand's government website on Friday.

China is New Zealand's largest source of international students and is its third-largest tourism market, according to the readout.

"This visit is about backing the recovery of international education and tourism and putting New Zealand front and center as a world-class destination for travel, study, and long-term connection," Luxon says.

Announcing the visa facilitation policy ahead of Luxon's visit to China has helped create a favorable atmosphere. Moreover, New Zealand's new visa policy for Chinese tourists demonstrates the high importance attached by New Zealand to people-to-people exchanges between China and New Zealand, Chen Hong, director of New Zealand Studies Centre from East China Normal University, told the Global Times.

This visa facilitation policy also comes against the backdrop of the continuous improvement of China-New Zealand relations, Chen said, emphasizing that Chinese tourists have played a vital role in supporting New Zealand's tourism industry and economy.