In brief: Nauru and the NZeTA
Nauru is one of New Zealand's transit visa-waiver countries. Since 1 October 2019, Nauruan passport holders who connect through Auckland International Airport need an approved NZeTA before they fly. The NZeTA replaces the need for a transit visa, but it is not a visa to visit New Zealand.
Nauru and New Zealand are both members of the Pacific Islands Forum and share close regional ties, and many Nauruans travel through the region for family, education, health care, sport and church events. If Auckland is a stop on your way somewhere else, the transit NZeTA keeps things simple. If New Zealand is your destination, you need a visa.
What a transit NZeTA allows
With an NZeTA you can
- Change planes at Auckland International Airport
- Wait airside for up to 24 hours
- Travel to New Zealand as a cruise ship passenger
- Use it for several transits over up to 2 years
With an NZeTA you can't
- Enter New Zealand after arriving by air
- Leave the airport during a layover
- Transit through another New Zealand airport
- Work or study in New Zealand
The Auckland transit test
Your journey qualifies for transit without a visa only if you can answer "yes" to every question:
Are you flying through Auckland International Airport?
Transit is only possible at Auckland. Christchurch, Wellington and other airports don't qualify.
Will you stay in the transit area?
You can't pass through immigration or leave the airport.
Is your stop 24 hours or less?
Longer layovers need a visa.
Is your onward flight to a third country?
You need a confirmed onward ticket leaving Auckland for another country, on the same journey.
More detail is available in our guide to transiting New Zealand.
Flights from Nauru
Nauru International Airport has a limited number of scheduled services, mostly operated by Nauru Airlines. Many journeys go through Brisbane, and some regional routes connect via other Pacific islands such as Fiji, Kiribati or the Marshall Islands. Schedules can change, so always check the current timetable.
Travellers might connect through Auckland when heading from Australia to Samoa, Tonga, the Cook Islands or Niue, or on longer journeys to the Americas. Nauru is 12 hours ahead of UTC, the same as New Zealand standard time, so jet lag is not much of an issue on these routes, although New Zealand moves an hour ahead during daylight saving.
Transiting Australia too? Your NZeTA covers New Zealand only. Check the Australian transit requirements for Nauruan passport holders if your route goes through Brisbane or another Australian airport.
Cruise passengers
There is one situation in which a Nauruan citizen can enter New Zealand on an NZeTA: arriving as a passenger on a cruise ship. All cruise passengers can travel to New Zealand with an NZeTA, regardless of nationality. If you plan to fly into New Zealand to board the ship, though, you need a visitor visa for that flight. Read more on our cruise ship NZeTA page.
Visiting New Zealand
To visit relatives, attend a tournament, sightsee or spend a few days in Auckland between flights, you need a New Zealand visitor visa. This is a separate process from the NZeTA. It involves a fuller application, assessed by the New Zealand immigration authorities, and you should apply well before you travel.
Important: if you fly to New Zealand on a transit NZeTA and try to enter the country, you will be refused entry and may have to return on the next available flight.
Our visitor visa page explains the main options.
How to apply
You can apply for your transit NZeTA online in around ten minutes. You will need:
- Your Nauru passport, valid for your whole journey
- A clear photo of your face against a plain background
- A Visa, Mastercard or American Express card
- An email address to receive your decision
Select "Transit" as your travel type, or "Visit" if you are a cruise passenger. Enter your name exactly as it appears in the passport's machine-readable zone, then upload your photo and pay. Choose normal (48–72 hours), emergency (24–48 hours) or rush (12–24 hours) processing. Prices are on our fees page, and transit applicants don't pay the IVL levy.
Start a transit NZeTA application
If you get a new passport, you will need a new NZeTA. Keep your approval email handy on travel day, together with your onward ticket and any visa for your final destination.
FAQs for Nauruan travellers
Only if they arrive on a cruise ship. Nauru is a transit visa-waiver country, so when flying, an NZeTA only covers a transit through Auckland International Airport. A visitor visa is needed to enter New Zealand by air.
No more than 24 hours, and you must stay in the international transit area until your onward flight to another country.
Yes, if you stay airside in Auckland for 24 hours or less and travel on your Nauru passport. If you want to leave the airport, you need a visitor visa.
No. Transit passengers don't pay the IVL. It is only charged to visitors.
Up to 2 years, or until your passport expires if that comes first. You can use it for several transits during that time.
Yes. Every traveller needs their own NZeTA, including children. You can add up to 10 travellers in one application.