FAQs

Why do I need to provide my identity documents (ID)?

The New Zealand Education Act 1989 requires education providers to verify the identity of both international and domestic students.

If you are a domestic student some of your fees are subsidised by the Tertiary Education Commission: a portion of the cost of delivering your study is paid for you, to your education provider.   Why? Because New Zealand uses some of the money that we pay in taxes to invest in education for our population. Tax-payer money can’t be used for students that are not domestic students.

What kinds of documents is MIT likely to want?

MIT might ask to see a legal document or documents that show your:

• full legal name
• date of birth
• gender
• citizenship or residency status.

For New Zealand citizens this would be one or more of the following documents:

1. a New Zealand birth certificate, or
2. a New Zealand passport, or
3. a New Zealand certificate of citizenship,

For New Zealand residents this would be of one or more of the following documents:

1. a passport with a current returning residency class visa (a passport with a visa label), or
2. a passport, and letter or email, confirming current returning residency class visa (label-less visa, followed by confirmation with Immigration New Zealand, where appropriate), or
3. a certificate of identity from Immigration New Zealand if the student is a refugee.

What if I am not a New Zealand citizen or resident?

Give us a call and we’ll give you some advice on what documents we might need from you:

0800 62 62 52

If I went to another education provider would I still need to show my identity documents?

If you are enrolling in the same programme of study, yes you would.  This requirement is the same across all education providers.

What if I don’t have any ID?

You can order your birth certificate from the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) by phone, post or in person (or online if you have a RealMe account).

Prices start from $33 for a standard birth certificate and will take approximately 8 days.  Here is the DIA Request for Birth Certificate Form

You’ll need a referee to sign the form — that is someone who is over 16 years old, and has known you for at least 6 months.

Post the completed form to:

Certificate Team
Births, Deaths and Marriages
PO Box 10526
Wellington 6143
New Zealand

What are my options when providing my ID?

You can either bring your ID in to any of MITs Ask Me! Service Centres and we will take a copy, or you can email/send us a certified copy of your ID.

What’s a certified copy?

A certified copy is a copy of your ID that has been authorised as a ‘true copy of an original document’ by a person listed in New Zealand’s Oaths and Declarations Act 1957.

This person could be a:

• Barrister or Solicitor of the High Court
• Justice of the Peace
• Notary Public
• Court Registrar or Deputy Registrar
• Member of Parliament
• Land Transport New Zealand, Public Trust, or local authority employee designated for this purpose.

How does the Certifier certify my documents?

Take your original ID to the certifier along with a copy (photocopy).

The certifier will sign the copy with the date and their official stamp on each page to say that the copy matches the original document that you brought to them.

You can scan and email or post the copy that the certifier signed to MIT.

Where do I find someone who can certify my documents?

1. Please bring in your ID documents to an Ask Me! Student Services Centre. We can certify these on site.
2. Find a local Justice of the Peace (JP) and take your documents to them.  Many JPs work from their homes and there will likely be one in your community.
3. Some JPs also work for the Citizen's Advice Bureau (CAB) so you can also take your documents to your nearest CAB to get them.

I live in a remote area where there are no JPs and no CAB, what can I do?

If you live in a remote area you can get your documents certified by a member of the New Zealand Police, your local school principal, minister of religion, or Doctor (general practitioner).