India clear that 5000 NZ visas under trade deal for ‘mobility not migration’
Monday, 13 July 2026
India says it’s very clear what the purpose is of the 5000 Kiwi visas it’s getting in its free trade agreement (FTA) with New Zealand: to increase mobility, not migration.
“The FTA is not an agreement for immigration. Immigration and mobility of skilled manpower are two different issues altogether,” said Rudrendra Tandon, India’s foreign secretary (east).
Foreign Minister Winston Peters, who has been highly critical of the FTA and was out of the country during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Auckland visit on Saturday, has claimed India's government is not aware of the limits placed on the temporary visas in the deal.
Tandon poured cold water on that at a press conference on Saturday. “On the issue of immigration, there is a lot of misunderstanding.”
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He said the mobility commitments in the FTA reflect India's position as an exporter of services, since barriers to mobility can act as a de facto market barrier.
Indian visa applicants have one of the highest decline rates in New Zealand, which Tandon said could be a “loss of opportunity for the speed at which we can build up the relationship“.
Easing mobility between the two countries was the point of the temporary visas, he said.
“It has nothing to do with immigration, which is a completely different phenomenon of people moving and permanently residing.“
Modi himself emphasised the importance of connections during his speeches.
“The biggest strength of our relations is our people-to-people ties,” he told a business event.
“The Indian community has a special place in New Zealand with its hard work and talent.”
India also addressed the cow-shaped hole in the FTA. While the agreement removes or reduces tariffs on 95% of New Zealand's exports, it secures no significant access for the country's $27 billion dairy export sector.
Tandon said dairy remains 'a very sensitive sector' in India because of its cooperative-based farming structure rather than large commercial enterprises, but said there were still opportunities given New Zealand's standing as an “agrotech giant“.
Essentially, instead of trading milk powder and cheese, Kiwis could export ideas and knowledge.
“It is also the government of India's plan to commercialise and to raise farm income, so absorption of new technology is very important part of our agricultural policies,” Tandon said.
Modi echoed the same theme when addressing New Zealand's agriculture sector.
“We have built a very strong framework for cooperation. We believe this will benefit our farmers as well as our livestock producers.”
Modi's one-day Auckland visit on Saturday was designed to “build momentum“ in the relationship between the two countries, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said.
At formal bilateral meetings, the leaders agreed to a Roadmap to 2030 to guide a new strategic partnership, including a goal of doubling two-way trade to NZ$7b by 2030.
The partnership would deepen links in trade, investment, education, technology, sport and tourism while also allowing closer cooperation on defence, maritime security and law enforcement, Luxon said.
'This is a major step in the relationship between New Zealand and India, and signals our shared ambition to do more together,' Luxon said.
Modi said the agreement showed 'renewed energy' and 'renewed resolve' in the New Zealand-India relationship, pointing to shared democratic values and both nations' status as maritime powers.
'It's like we were made for each other,' Modi said.
Labour leader Chris Hipkins has raised concerns over a commitment in the joint communiqué in which the two prime ministers “again acknowledged the value of India joining the Nuclear Suppliers Group, in the context of predictability for India's clean energy goals and its non-proliferation credentials”.
The commitment echoes language used when Luxon travelled to India last year.
The Nuclear Suppliers Group was established in 1974, in response to India's “peaceful“ nuclear test that year. Its 48 members aim to ensure nuclear trade for peaceful purposes doesn't contribute to weapons proliferation. India is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, a prerequisite for NSG membership.
New Zealand has previously objected to India's admission to the NSG, over concerns that access to nuclear materials could be diverted toward weapons development.
Hipkins said New Zealand should maintain that position, given its long-standing nuclear-free stance, and that Luxon was shifting away from it.
“In my view it’s a significant departure from our previous position.”