Home to over 10 lakhs international students, New Zealand is one of the trending overseas education destinations. If you are a study abroad aspirant looking forward to pursuing your higher education from the high-ranked university located in New Zealand, you would most likely require an overseas education loan to finance your international degree. In fact, applying for an overseas education loan should be one of the first steps that you must consider. But we understand that comprehensive information is required for the same and through this article, you are going to know everything relating to an overseas education loan for studying in New Zealand.
The cost of education comprises tuition fees, living expenses, travel, and other miscellaneous charges. The major expenditure will be on the tuition fees and it entirely depends on the type of qualifications and the university a student has opted for. However, the average cost of study programs at different levels in New Zealand is as follows:
| Sr. No. | Study Program | Cost (in NZ$) |
| 1. | Undergraduate program | $20,500 - $25,000 per year |
| 2. | Master’s degree | $19,000 - $29,000 per year |
| 3. | Doctoral degree | $6,500 - $9,000 per year |
| 4. | MBA | $31,000 - $50,000 per year |
Considering all the expenses of an international student, right from grocery shopping, meals, travel, social activities and emergencies, the average cost of living in New Zealand falls somewhere between NZ$13,000 to NZ$16,000 annually. However, the exact cost of living entirely depends on the students as per their standard of living.
As a sponsor for an overseas education loan, the New Zealand Embassy only accepts parents, siblings or grandparents and any third-party sponsors are not acceptable. All the financial institutions registered under RBI accepts the education loan application for New Zealand.
As we all know that overseas education loans are bifurcated into two types i.e., Secured Education Loans and Unsecured Education Loans. Let us understand these terms:
A secured education loan is the type of education loan that is given based on collateral security pledged against an education loan. For secured education loan, the government banks also grant overseas education loans that are pledged against third party assets as collateral however the New Zealand embassy does not consider this as a funding source. Hence, it is advisable to avoid borrowing an overseas education loan by pledging a third party’s assets as collateral security.
If the applicant is looking forward to borrowing an education loan against Fixed Deposit, they must ensure that their FDs are 6 months old. The New Zealand embassy only accepts an education loan taken against 6 months old FDs as a funding option.
An unsecured education loan is the type of overseas education loan that does not require collateral security to be pledged against an education loan. This type of loan is majorly lent by NBFCs that are also called private lending institutions. But the majority of the students face difficulties in securing an unsecured education loan to study in New Zealand and this is because the New Zealand Embassy rarely accepts an education loan without collateral as a funding option for higher education.
To study in New Zealand, getting a student visa is a mandatory requirement. It is like a gateway to pursue higher education in New Zealand. Following are the steps to secure a student visa:
1. Secure admission in a global university for UG degree, UG diplomas, Graduate Diploma, PG Diploma or Master’s degree in New Zealand.
2. Prepare a docket of all the documents that are required for the student visa in New Zealand.
3. Undergo for a medical check-up and certain tests at the New Zealand immigration.
4. Arrange a police clearance certificate from the local police station or a regional passport office.
5. Fulfil the necessary financial requirements to qualify for a student visa in New Zealand.
1. Duly filled New Zealand student visa application form
2. Identity proof
3. Admission Letter or letter of acceptance from the university
4. Bank statement or proof of finances
To show the proof of finances, a loan sanction letter can be submitted for securing a New Zealand student visa.
For securing a New Zealand student visa, applicants are required to fulfil certain financial pre-conditions to qualify for the same.
1. Students are required to deposit the living expenses of one year in a bank located in New Zealand. – This is not mandatory.
2. The payment of the tuition fee is required to be made prior to the visa process. – No, it is incorrect, tuition fee deposit is required after AIP (Approval in Principle) from INZ.
3. Once the student receives the unconditional offer letter, they are required to arrange visa documents. For this, they must require documents supporting education loan, loan against property, personal loan.
4. Proof to show 6-month-old saving account and fixed deposits.
5. Proof of provident fund letter withdrawal amount and PPF account withdrawal amount.
6. Proof of Fixed deposits and savings.
Once the process of visa documents is ready with the students, they can submit the online visa application through the Immigration New Zealand portal. For the New Zealand Visa Process, it will take around one to three months hence it is recommended to file for a visa at least two to three months prior to the commencement date of the course.
Students will be required to submit the show money for the New Zealand Visa process. For this, students are required to submit a detailed loan letter covering the tuition fees and living expenses for the total duration of the course.
For pre-visa disbursement of the tuition fees and living expenses, AIP is required.
One of the biggest advantages of a New Zealand student visa process is the Approval in Principle (AIP) visa. AIP is a temporary proof of confirmation of a New Zealand student visa.
For this, applicants are required to submit all the necessary documents to the embassy and in return, the New Zealand embassy provides an AIP to the student. Once the New Zealand embassy verifies and confirms all the necessary financial documents, the confirmation of an actual student visa is done. Hence, even if the student visa of the candidate gets rejected, he/she does not end up losing a lot of money.
In the New Zealand Visa Process, there are two types of AIP i.e., AIP with FTS and AIP without FTS. For AIP with FTS, students are required to transfer the first-year tuition fees in University account and one-year living expenses (i.e. NZD 15000) into their bank account in ANZ bank whereas for AIP without FTS, they are required to transfer only one-year tuition fees into the university account and show the living expenses for one year (NZ$ 15000) in one’s savings account.
Funds Transfer Scheme (FTS) is a scheme offered by ANZ Bank that allows applicants to transfer money (NZ$15000 annually) from banks and financial institutions overseas to the ANZ bank account of a student in New Zealand. These funds are released periodically i.e., NZ$1,250 for each month to support the day to day living expenses of the students while they are in New Zealand.
To fulfil the AIP requirements, if the applicant has shown any loan from the bank as a financial document in the visa application, then he/she is required to show a loan disbursement letter including loan account number and loan account statement.
Once the student pays the fees from the financial sources declared in the visa application, the student will need a receipt of wire transfer of tuition fees and living expenses to forward further to the New Zealand University and the ANZ bank, respectively. After completing the AIP requirements, Immigration of New Zealand releases E-visa within 5 working days.
At ELAN Loans, our expert team assists study overseas aspirants in the entire overseas education loan process for New Zealand. We will not only guide you in your foreign education loan process, but we will also coordinate with the respective financial institution.
So, do get in touch with us at ELAN Loans and we will make sure that you get your education loan sanctioned to study in New Zealand.
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