Visa charge hits foreign students

Press, 24 March 1988, Page 9

Visa charge hits foreign students

By

CHRISTOPHER MOORE

Many overseas English language students were abandoning! plans to take holiday studies | in New Zealand because of the Government’s student visa scheme, said the managing director of an English language school, (Mr Peter Harris, in 11 Christchurch yesterday, i HI J The $2OOl charged for a student visa was' resulting in a decline in (the number of students coming for the short-term courses. Mr Harris is managing director of the South Pacific English Centre, a company with' branches in Christchurch, 'Auckland and Australia. Students i came ■ from throughout Asia,! the Pacific, South i America and Europe. New Zealand was especially popular as a place to take courses and travel in, he said. "A 16-year-old student wanting to take a twoweek course in Christchurch now has | to pay the $2OO fee on top: of travelling and accommodation costs. Fori many,! this is too much.” ( A group of| 45 Thai

students . recently i cancelled plans to comb to New Zealand for a I holiday course, a decision! Mr Harris ! (believes I was directly caused by the visa charge., I ■ I i : Thje company’s Christchurch school at present accepted between 500 and 60Q Students each year.; “There;; is a spin-off in terms: (of the, money! students; (spend while in New (Zealand. The 'hum-! ber whol take| holidays and| tour the ( country means that the tourist and transport industries are! also affected by the new (visa requirements,” he said. ’ “We promote New Zealand as the ideal place to cornel to study English both from a linguistic and cultural point l of (view! Other: English language schools must be in a similar position.”; I ! ! Tqere were indications that an increasing number of students taking shortterm I courses I were now going to Australia. ! His schools charged between $220 and $260 a week for the language courses. Teaching , staff werd ( fully qualified and

I ' I; ' i i- ; i had overseas teaching experience. ' 1 '/!■■(' 1 ! ’ I "English language, teaching is tightly regulated. The New Zealand holiday cburses compare favourably with any overseas educational institution but this new policy has pulled the rug out from! under our feet. ; | New Zealand was probably the only country in the English speaking world which did not allow pie free entry of students for holiday courses, he said. ; ! j ( :Mr Harris said he had written to the Minister of Education, Mr Lange, and the Minister of Immigration, Mr Rodger! ! lln a reply to Mr Harris, Mr Rodger said that under the Immigration (Act, 1987, the holder of a temporary visitor’s permit could, not take any form of study or training in New Zealand without a student permit I ; i A 'spokesman! for; the 'Labour Department’s Immigration Division, (indiicated yesterday that the visa ! scheme for shortterm; holiday students would continue to be exlamiried.; | 7