A dummy ticket for a New Zealand Visitor Visa is optional. Immigration New Zealand asks for a ticket out of New Zealand or proof you have the money to buy one. A reservation on hold is not a purchased ticket, so it does not meet the first option; proof of funds meets the rule on its own. The visa costs NZD 441 for one applicant in India (September 2026).
- Immigration New Zealand asks for a ticket out of New Zealand or proof of money to buy one. It does not ask for a flight reservation.
- A reservation on hold does not meet INZ's word "ticket". Proof of funds, or a paid refundable fare, does.
- The Visitor Visa costs NZD 441 for one applicant in India: NZD 300 fee, NZD 41 immigration levy and NZD 100 visitor levy (INZ Fees Guide, May 2026).
- From 1 October 2026 INZ stops accepting paper Visitor Visa applications, except in exceptional circumstances.
- INZ recommends not booking any non-refundable travel until the visa is approved.
On this page
- Dummy ticket for New Zealand visa: does INZ ask for one?
- Which visa Indian passport holders need
- New Zealand visitor visa fee: NZD 441
- Applying from India: online only from 1 October 2026
- Processing time and when to apply
- What INZ's India checklist lists
- At the border: a paid ticket or funds on every trip
- Where a flight reservation fits in a Visitor Visa file
- Before you apply: a short checklist
A dummy ticket for New Zealand visa applications is optional. Immigration New Zealand (INZ) asks applicants paying their own way to show either a ticket for travel out of New Zealand or proof of enough money to buy one. The second route needs no flight document at all, and it is the route to use if you do not want to buy a ticket before the decision.
A flight reservation from Dummy Tickets Visa (DTV) has a smaller job in this file. It is a booking held in the airline's system, with a PNR you can check on the airline's website, and it can give the day-to-day itinerary that INZ's India checklist lists as optional a fixed route and dates. It is not a purchased ticket, so it does not meet INZ's "ticket" option.
Dummy ticket for New Zealand visa: does INZ ask for one?
No. The Visitor Visa page does not list a flight ticket, reservation or itinerary as a required document. It asks instead for evidence that you can leave New Zealand at the end of your stay, and it gives two ways to show that.
| Option INZ names | What you would submit | Does a reservation on hold meet it? |
|---|---|---|
| "Your ticket for travel out of New Zealand at the end of your stay" | A ticket to a country you have the right to enter | No. A hold is not a purchased ticket |
| Money to buy that ticket | Bank or credit card statements showing the fare, on top of your living funds | Not needed. This route has no flight document |
INZ's wording on the Visitor Visa page: if you are paying for yourself, provide either "your ticket for travel out of New Zealand at the end of your stay" or statements showing enough money to buy one, in addition to your living funds. A sponsor can cover the outward travel instead. You need one route, not both.
INZ's own advice: "We recommend that travellers do not book any non-refundable travel until after their Visitor Visa is approved." A reservation on hold keeps you inside that advice because no fare is paid. A fully refundable fare does too.
Which visa Indian passport holders need
Indian citizens apply for the Visitor Visa. India is not on INZ's visa waiver list, so an Indian passport holder cannot enter on an NZeTA alone. INZ names a few exceptions, such as Australian permanent residents and some cruise passengers.
If you live in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman or Bahrain, your residence does not change this. Those countries are on the waiver list for their own passports, and the list goes by passport, not by where you live. Our page for Indians living abroad covers applying from outside India.
INZ decides the type of visa you get: multiple entry for stays of up to 6 months within 12 months, or single entry for up to 9 months within 18 months. If approved, INZ issues an eVisa and sends you a copy.
New Zealand visitor visa fee: NZD 441
For one Indian citizen applying from India, the total is NZD 441, the "From NZD $441" shown on INZ's Visitor Visa page. INZ's Fees Guide (INZ 1028, May 2026) splits it into three parts.
| Part | Amount | Charged |
|---|---|---|
| Application fee (Band C, rest of world) | NZD 300 | Once per application |
| Immigration levy | NZD 41 | Once per application |
| International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy (IVL) | NZD 100 | For each person on the application |
| Total, one applicant | NZD 441 | INZ's figure |
| Total, applicant and partner | NZD 541 | INZ's own worked example |
A partner and dependent children aged 19 or under can go on the same application, and only the IVL is added for each extra person. Say you, your spouse and your 15-year-old apply together: NZD 300 + NZD 41 + (3 × NZD 100) = NZD 641, not 3 × NZD 441. When you apply online, the IVL is included in the one payment. INZ says the visitor levy is not refunded even if the application is declined. The rupee amount depends on the exchange rate on the day you pay.
Applying from India: online only from 1 October 2026
Apply through Immigration Online. INZ calls it the best way to apply, and an approved visa comes as an eVisa. From 1 October 2026 INZ stops accepting paper applications for the Visitor Visa and several other visitor and transit visas, except in exceptional circumstances. Paper applications lodged before that date are still processed.
INZ's India checklist names the New Zealand Visa Application Centres in India, run by VFS Global. That checklist is dated July 2024, before the online-only change, so ignore its instructions for lodging the paper form at a centre. We could not confirm which services the centres keep after 1 October 2026. Check with VFS Global before you plan a visit.
Processing time and when to apply
INZ's headline is 80% of Visitor Visa applications decided within 2 weeks. Its wait-times page, updated weekly from applications decided in the previous 4 weeks, showed an average of 1 week when we read it on 27 September 2026. These are worldwide figures, not India figures. INZ also says it receives many visitor applications over summer, especially for Christmas travel, and suggests applying as early as possible for trips at that time of year.
If you include a reservation, have it issued the day before you submit the online application, and check the PNR on the airline website before you upload it. A hold is temporary, and how long it stays live depends on the airline, not on DTV. Our guide to how long a reservation stays live explains the airline side.
What INZ's India checklist lists
INZ's India checklist (July 2024), for stays under 6 months, asks for evidence that you can pay for your stay and your outward travel, and every example it gives is financial: sponsorship forms, bank deposit books, bank statements or payslips, credit card statements and income tax returns. Our guide to a bank statement for a visa file explains what officers read in those.
Under "You may also want to include" the checklist lists a cover letter, a "Day to day Itinerary to reflect your travel plans", visas from countries you have visited, and an Aadhaar card. No flight ticket appears anywhere on it.
The optional itinerary is where a reservation helps: it gives your written plan fixed dates and a route without buying a ticket. It does not replace the funds evidence. Keep the same dates across the itinerary, your cover letter and your leave letter. Two more figures from INZ: your passport must be valid for at least 3 months after you plan to leave New Zealand, and living funds are at least NZD 1,000 a month, or NZD 400 a month if your accommodation is already paid.
At the border: a paid ticket or funds on every trip
The same rule applies each time you land. INZ's wording: "Every time you travel here, you must have a ticket to leave New Zealand or proof you have enough money to buy one." Entry can be refused without either, unless your visa says "Return/onward travel not required". For visa-waiver travellers, INZ's visa-waiver visitor page states that "Your onward tickets must be paid for before your travel." A reservation on hold does not meet that wording. Our guide to the onward ticket rule for New Zealand covers check-in and arrival.
Where a flight reservation fits in a Visitor Visa file
A reservation fits in one place: the optional day-to-day itinerary, backed by proof of funds. It is a booking made in the airline's reservation system and held without paying the fare, delivered as a PDF by email or WhatsApp, typically 10–20 minutes after payment, at ₹699 per passenger for one-way or return. It cannot be used to board. The table compares it with the other two ways to cover the leaving evidence.
| Approach | Meets INZ's wording? | Money at risk if refused |
|---|---|---|
| Proof of funds only | Yes, the funds route | None beyond the visa fee |
| Proof of funds, plus a reservation on the itinerary | Yes, through the funds. The reservation only shows dates | ₹699 per passenger, non-refundable once issued |
| Paid refundable ticket | Yes, the ticket route | Whatever the fare rules deduct on cancellation |
A refundable fare is the only option here that meets the "ticket" wording. It has a real e-ticket number, and the refund amount and timing depend on its fare rules, so read them before you pay. Our page on a flight reservation for visa files explains how a hold differs from an issued ticket. For a couple or family, one DTV order carries every name on one itinerary; see family and group bookings.
Before you apply: a short checklist
- Choose your leaving-evidence route: bank statements showing money for a ticket, or a paid ticket
- Check the NZD total on INZ's Visitor Visa page on the day you pay
- Apply through Immigration Online, not on paper, after 1 October 2026
- Show living funds of NZD 1,000 a month, or NZD 400 if your accommodation is paid
- Confirm your passport is valid for 3 months past your planned departure from New Zealand
- If you add a reservation to your itinerary, receive it the day before you apply and check the PNR before you upload it
- Do not buy non-refundable travel until the visa is approved
This page reports Immigration New Zealand's wording as read on 27 September 2026. Fees, wait times and the paper-application rule can change, so confirm them on INZ's pages before you pay or apply. DTV is not affiliated with INZ, VFS Global or any airline.
For other countries, the visa guides hub lists every destination we cover. If a reservation helps your itinerary, you can order one online for up to 9 passengers on one booking.
Frequently asked questions
Can a reservation on hold stand in for the ticket INZ asks for?
No, not on INZ's wording. INZ asks for "your ticket for travel out of New Zealand", and a reservation held without payment is not a purchased ticket. INZ's other route, bank or credit card statements showing money to buy a ticket, needs no flight document. A reservation can still give your optional day-to-day itinerary fixed dates and a route.
Can I send a paid ticket instead of bank statements?
Yes. A ticket out of New Zealand at the end of your stay, to a country you can enter, meets the rule. INZ also recommends not booking non-refundable travel before approval, so if you take this route, buy a refundable fare and read its cancellation conditions first. Our comparison of a reservation and a refundable fare sets out the cost of each.
Is the New Zealand visa fee refunded if my application is declined?
Not all of it. INZ says the NZD 100 visitor levy is not refunded even if the application is declined. For the NZD 300 application fee and the NZD 41 immigration levy, read INZ's refund rules before you pay. Budget for losing the full NZD 441 per application if you are refused, and apply only when your file is complete.
Do I need a hotel booking for a New Zealand visitor visa?
INZ's India checklist (July 2024) does not list one. Accommodation matters for the funds you must show: at least NZD 1,000 a month, or NZD 400 a month if your accommodation is already paid. A reservation that you have not paid for does not count as paid accommodation, so show the higher figure unless you have paid.
What should a day-to-day itinerary for New Zealand include?
One line per day: the date, the town you are in, where you sleep and how you move on. Put your arrival and departure flights at each end. The dates must match your cover letter, your leave letter and any flight reservation. Our travel itinerary template shows a worked example you can adapt.
Do I need the New Zealand Traveller Declaration as well as the visa?
Yes. INZ says everyone entering New Zealand must complete the New Zealand Traveller Declaration (NZTD). If you arrive by air, you can submit it from 24 hours before your journey starts. It is separate from the Visitor Visa and has nothing to do with your application file.
- Immigration New Zealand: Visitor Visa
- Immigration New Zealand: visa waiver countries and territories
- Immigration New Zealand: Fees Guide (INZ 1028, May 2026)
- Immigration New Zealand: paying the International Visitor Levy
- Immigration New Zealand: Visitor Visa and NZeTA wait times
- Immigration New Zealand: changes to paper applications for visitor and transit visas
- Immigration New Zealand: India Visitor Visa checklist (INZ 11223, July 2024)
- Immigration New Zealand: visa-waiver visitor visa
Last reviewed by the DTV Editorial Team. Visa requirements change, so confirm the current checklist with the embassy, consulate or official application centre before you apply. A reservation supports a visa file and cannot guarantee a visa decision.