Summary for Latvian travellers
If you are a Latvian citizen planning a holiday, family visit or business trip to New Zealand, you don't need a visa. You do need an NZeTA (New Zealand Electronic Travel Authority). It became mandatory on 1 October 2019 for everyone travelling on a visa-waiver passport, and your airline will check for it before you board.
In short: apply online, wait up to 72 hours for approval, and travel for up to 90 days per visit. One NZeTA covers multiple trips for up to two years, as long as your passport remains valid.
Latvia's community in New Zealand is small but active, and the country attracts Latvian hikers, students and professionals, especially those who are already travelling in Australia or Asia.
Latvian citizens and non-citizens
Latvia is unusual because some long-term residents hold a non-citizen passport (nepilsoņa pase) rather than a citizen's passport. New Zealand's visa waiver applies to Latvian citizens. The two documents look similar but are treated differently.
Latvian citizen passport
Visa-waiver travel. Apply for an NZeTA and visit for up to 90 days.
Latvian non-citizen passport
Not covered by the visa waiver. Check the requirements; you are likely to need a visitor visa.
If you hold dual citizenship, for example Latvian and British or Latvian and Irish, choose one passport and use it for your NZeTA application, flight booking and arrival.
Children with Latvian citizenship need their own Latvian passport and their own NZeTA. If a child holds a second nationality through one parent, decide in advance which passport they will travel on, and use it consistently.
Passport, eID card and photo
| Item | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Latvian passport | Valid for at least 3 months after you leave New Zealand |
| eID card (personas apliecība) | Not accepted for New Zealand |
| Photo | Recent, in colour, face clearly visible, plain light background |
| Payment | Debit or credit card |
| To receive your NZeTA decision |
Latvian names and diacritics
Latvian uses letters such as ā, č, ē, ģ, ī, ķ, ļ, ņ, š, ū and ž. On the NZeTA form, use only plain Latin letters, matching the two machine-readable lines at the bottom of your passport. For example:
- Jānis Bērziņš is entered as JANIS BERZINS
- Līga Ozoliņa is entered as LIGA OZOLINA
Latvian surnames change form for men and women, so family members often have slightly different surnames. That is normal. Enter each person's surname from their own passport, rather than copying one family surname for everyone.
Applying online
Our NZeTA application form takes about 10 minutes. It is in English, and every application is checked for errors before it is submitted.
Contact details and speed
Enter your email and choose Normal (48–72 hours), Emergency (24–48 hours) or Rush (12–24 hours).
Passport details
Add each traveller's passport information, without diacritics.
Questions
Answer a few health and character questions for each traveller.
Photo and payment
Upload a photo for each person and pay by card. The fee includes the IVL tourism levy.
Prices for each option are on our NZeTA fees page.
If you are already travelling, for example in Australia, you can still apply online. Your NZeTA is linked electronically to your passport, so there is no need to visit an embassy or print anything. Keep the confirmation email in case your airline asks to see it.
What the NZeTA allows
With an NZeTA, Latvian citizens can:
- Travel as tourists, from city breaks in Wellington to multi-day tramps
- Visit friends and relatives
- Attend business meetings, conferences or trade shows (see business travel)
- Study for up to 3 months
- Transit through Auckland International Airport
You can't work on an NZeTA or stay longer than 90 days on one visit. New Zealand offers working holiday visas to young people from a number of European countries; if you are aged 18 to 30 and want to work, check whether a scheme is open to Latvian citizens. It would be a separate application.
Latvian professionals in IT, logistics and forestry sometimes visit New Zealand for meetings or conferences. That is allowed on an NZeTA, as long as you are not paid by a New Zealand organisation and don't take on a job there. If your plans include any hands-on work, check the visa rules first.
From Riga to New Zealand
From Riga International Airport, most routes connect through a European hub such as Helsinki, Frankfurt or Istanbul, then on via the Gulf or Asia to Auckland. Some travellers fly via Doha or Dubai directly. Expect 26 hours or more of travel. New Zealand is 9 to 11 hours ahead of Latvia, depending on daylight saving in each country.
The seasons are reversed. When Latvia celebrates Jāņi at midsummer, New Zealand is in midwinter. December to February, the darkest months in Latvia, are New Zealand's long summer days.
At the border, show your passport, a return or onward ticket, proof of funds and your accommodation details, and complete the New Zealand Traveller Declaration before you fly. The border officer makes the final decision on entry.
Declare food from home. Smoked fish, sausages and other meat, cheese, honey, dried mushrooms, berries and seeds must be declared. Clean hiking boots and camping gear before packing. Undeclared items can lead to an instant fine.
Apply for your NZeTA from Latvia
Complete the form in minutes and get your decision by email.
FAQs for Latvian travellers
No. Latvian citizens can visit New Zealand without a visa for up to 90 days per visit. You must hold an approved NZeTA before you travel.
The visa waiver is for Latvian citizens. Holders of a Latvian non-citizen passport should check the requirements before booking, as a visa is likely to be needed.
No. The eID card can be used within the EU and Schengen area, but not for New Zealand. You need a Latvian passport.
Enter your name as it appears in the machine-readable lines of your passport, where diacritics are removed. For example, Bērziņš becomes BERZINS.
Yes. You can add up to 10 travellers to one application. Each person, including children, gets their own NZeTA.
No. The NZeTA is linked to the passport you applied with. If you renew your passport, you need to apply for a new NZeTA.