Cook Islands resident stuck in visa limbo after New Zealand rejects transit bid

Ruchira Ranasingha, 50, has been unable to leave the Cook Islands for three years.

She left Sri Lanka in 2018 to work in Hong Kong after closing a T-shirt factory and facing debt. In December 2022, she moved to New Zealand on a two-month visit visa. She applied for asylum citing threats from lenders in her home country. New Zealand granted her an open work visa that allowed her to work for a restaurant. The employer agreed to sponsor a longer-term employment visa.

Ranasingha sought advice from Immigration & Secretarial Services. Manager Sylviane Gallant told her to leave New Zealand temporarily to file a fresh employment visa application from overseas. Ranasingha booked a short stay in the Cook Islands. Her new application was rejected. Her departure from New Zealand also breached the terms of her existing asylum-linked visa.

New Zealand authorities have since refused to issue her a transit visa to fly home. They have rejected three such applications. Australian authorities have rejected four transit visa applications. Hawaii and Tahiti require biometric data that can only be collected in person in New Zealand, blocking those routes as well.

Ranasingha has paid thousands of New Zealand dollars in fees to the advisory firm. Gallant told her the situation was her fault and that there was nothing more she could do. Gallant did not respond to follow-up inquiries from the BBC.

Immigration New Zealand stated it was not satisfied Ranasingha had a genuine intention to transit through the country. The ministry noted that handcuffs or escorts do not prevent an individual from making an asylum claim. A representative for the immigration minister’s office gave this explanation.

Sri Lanka’s foreign ministry says it is taking all necessary steps to facilitate her return. Her brother said the family has tried every possible avenue. Ranasingha is staying in staff accommodation at a local hotel and earning a small income by sewing. She has lost money on multiple airline tickets during her three-year stay.