DRMumbai: Tourism New Zealand and Immigration New Zealand have launched an extension of the Tourism Industry Partnership (TIP) Programme to facilitate faster processing of visitor visa applications for Indian leisure travellers. Riding on the success of the previous partnership between Immigration New Zealand (INZ), Tourism New Zealand (TNZ) and key travel agents, TIP now been extended to leisure agents.
The previous programme was launched in November 2014 and focussed on the business and incentive travel sector. It resulted in growth of incentive group trips worth NZ $ 22 million in four years (FY14-FY17) with a 99 per cent approval rate. With the new arrangement, Indian leisure travellers will benefit from a more streamlined visa service, with a faster processing time of three days, compared to the previous online application processing time of 15 days.
Steven Dixon, Regional Manager, South and South-East Asia, Tourism New Zealand, was present at the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between INZ, TNZ and the travel agents at a ceremony in Mumbai. “This new visa process will make it even easier for Indian travellers to experience New Zealand. India is an important market for Tourism New Zealand and it is a pleasure to see the increase in the number of Indians choosing New Zealand as their favoured destination. This agreement will ensure that New Zealand welcomes even more high-calibre visitors,” he said.
Commenting on the partnership, Marcelle Foley, Head of Operations, Immigration New Zealand said: “We have enjoyed the opportunity to partner with Tourism New Zealand and key players in the Indian travel trade to make it even easier for Indian business event travellers to visit New Zealand. This programme has been a real success and we are pleased to be extending it to the travel agents here to include their high quality leisure customers.”
Four key travel agents – Thomas Cook (India) Pvt. Ltd., SOTC Travel Limited, Cox & Kings Ltd. and Kulin Kumar Holidays – are the preferred suppliers for TIP.
Tourism New Zealand markets New Zealand to the world as a visitor destination. In the year ending February 2018, 3.77 million international visitors arrived in New Zealand: an increase of 6.5 per cent on the previous year. International tourism is New Zealand’s largest earner of foreign exchange, pumping over $ 14.5 billion into the economy and directly employing over 188,000 people. Website: www.tourismnewzealand.com
Aspirants may forward their visa application to the TT office in Mumbai or Delhi, which will then be directed to Immigration New Zealand. Website: www.immigration.govt.nz
Airline connections: Connecting flights to New Zealand are available on Singapore Airlines/Air New Zealand, Thai Airways, Cathay Pacific and Malaysia Airlines with stopovers in their respective hubs. New Zealand’s international gateways are Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Queenstown.
Domestic services: You can fly between all New Zealand cities and most major towns using domestic air services. Air New Zealand and Jetstar are the main providers. Their services are complemented by regional airlines, charter companies and scenic flight operators.
For more information, Website: newzealand.com/in
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