Source: Radio New Zealand
New Zealander Gorka Zozaya is leaving for Europe four days after Christmas, to comply with INZ rules, but his 21-year-old son Enzo will stay in NZ. Supplied
An immigration lawyer says authorities need to crack down on unscrupulous ‘ghost’ agents – not victimise migrants who were defrauded by them.
New Zealander Gorka Zozaya, 52, and his Chinese wife Weili Fu, 46, are leaving for Europe four days after Christmas, to comply with INZ rules.
His 21-year-old son Enzo will stay as he in his second year of a computer science degree at Waikato University.
Gorka Zozaya says it’s a ‘horrible situation’ to be leaving NZ and his adult son, but the couple would otherwise be separated. Supplied
Fu’s second visa application was rejected after INZ discovered her documents were different to the ones submitted by an agent in China, when she first visited New Zealand as a tourist.
The agency refused to give her a character waiver to allow her to stay with her husband, and told RNZ that applicants should be on the lookout for fraudulent agents.
Zozaya, a senior solution architect with a technology company, said his wife had always dreamed of travelling to New Zealand, and made the ‘fatal’ decision to apply through an agent recommended on Chinese social media site WeChat, sending him her documents and photos.
“And this Chinese agent just said, ‘okay, just leave it with me, don’t worry about anything, you don’t need to do anything else’,” said Zozaya. “And In a month’s time, this Chinese agent came back to her with an email, saying, yes, we’ve got your visa and it’s all ready to go. So she only received the visa, only the outcome of the application. She didn’t see what this Chinese agent sent to Immigration New Zealand.”
She flew to visit a niece in Malaysia and onto Auckland. The couple’s paths crossed in a Hamilton food court, he said. “I used to actually go there quite often, and then I suddenly saw this beautiful lady. And then we somehow connected and we just happened to be at the same food court a few times. And then we decided to talk a little bit. And then at the end of August is when we started going out.
“We felt like teenagers again. We developed such a strong connection that I asked her, ‘actually, would you like to move together to my house?’ The relationship is just incredible. She’s an amazing person. She’s an amazing lady inside and out.”
When they discovered that INZ had turned down her next temporary visa application, and the reason why, ‘this is where the whole nightmare started,’ he said.
But they were determined to be together, and got married in February.
“I bent my knee and I asked Weili to get married. We were completely in love and I said, let’s do the move. And I know that we are going to be living together until we go to the other side, I just love her to pieces.”
Their appeal to INZ over their visa had failed, and their last throw of the dice was asking the associate minister for a special direction. Instead of the minister, a delegated INZ staff member refused the request in October.
“And obviously, that was the last resort. That was the last step on this journey. And then they suggested that we needed to leave the country.”
INZ continues to say she was responsible for the original documents, and he maintains INZ should have recognised they were fraudulent when she applied. “The bad side of that is if she didn’t get the visitor visa, that means that I would not be married to her now. But anyway, the destiny is destiny.”
Moving to Spain
Associate Minister of Immigration Chris Penk said delegated decision-makers are used on his behalf ‘to help manage the high number of requests received by my office on a day-to-day basis’.
“Although I did not determine the outcome of this request, I follow the established practice of not commenting on the factors involved in individual cases in order to protect the privacy of all those concerned.”
The couple hope that they can continue their fight from Spain, where Zozaya was born before he moved to New Zealand 22 years ago. He counts himself lucky he has dual citizenship.
“I don’t want to leave her. So it is this drastic. And I’m leaving 22 years of living in New Zealand. I’m leaving my son. My job is going to be affected. It’s just a really, really stressful time for us. But I’m willing to follow the law, right? We want to show Immigration New Zealand that we want to follow what they are suggesting. But I’m not going to leave my wife alone.”
Gorka Zozaya, 52, and his Chinese wife Weili Fu, 46, are booked to leave before New Years, but hoping for a reprieve. Supplied
They have flights booked for 29 December, and will then reapply for her visa from Spain, while Enzo Zozaya will stay in New Zealand. His mother and father never married, and she moved to Australia.
“He has been feeling quite unwell recently. Weili and I are his only family here in New Zealand, and we see each other almost every day. He asked me to promise that, no matter what happens, we will return – and I gave him that promise.”
“We only want to just live our lives like anybody else, like a happy married couple. We love each other so much, it’s just incredible. I’m not a teenager, I’ve been single for more than 50 years. So we have something special, really special.
INZ warning
“I’m trying to be positive. If life gives you lemons, you just make lemonade. So that’s what we are just doing – every step, every day. I’m waking up every day trying to come to the office and keep going, right? And just moving next step, next step, next day, next day.”
The couple provided a privacy waiver so INZ could comment. The agency said it understood it was a ‘very difficult situation’ for them and their son. Its regional operations director Dominic Forde confirmed it found different documents were used in the two visa applications, and said providing false information was a criminal offence.
“Any fraudulent activity, including the provision of false or misleading information by an applicant or their agent, undermines the integrity of the immigration system.
“All visa applicants must ensure that all information and documents presented are genuine. To make an application, all applicants sign a declaration stating that the contents of their application are true and correct and acknowledge the consequences of providing false and misleading or fraudulent information to an immigration officer. “
Fu said she never signed the visitor visa application.
“Applicants must also inform INZ if there is an agent acting on their behalf so we can check if that agent is licensed or exempt.”
“If an applicant, or someone acting for them, provides false or misleading information any future visa applications require the applicant to be granted a character waiver, or the application may be declined on the grounds of not meeting character requirements.”
“A delegated decision-maker declined to intervene in Ms Fu’s case in October 2025.” Under immigration rules, the minister or delegate is not required to provide reasons for their decision.
He said visa applicants should ensure their immigration help comes from a lawyer or licensed adviser, and advised people to complain to the IAA if they are concerned about their agent – although that only applies to licensed advisers.
‘Punishing the victim’
Their lawyer Maricel Weischede said this was not an isolated case.
“Why does Immigration New Zealand continue to penalise migrants who are themselves victims of unscrupulous ‘ghost’ agents? We are increasingly seeing situations particularly involving offshore operations where vulnerable people are misled, misrepresented, and left bearing the full weight of the consequences. There is a genuine concern that this pattern may be occurring at scale in parts of China, and yet there appears to be little appetite to confront it, potentially due to tourism and economic considerations.”
Zozaya said his wife did not know the agent was putting forward false documents to get her visa approved.
“Of course, we believe that she’s allowed to stay because she was not responsible for it. It was completely a scam by this agent. He’s gone. We tried to contact this person, and this man disappeared. We are devastated. And we’ve been fighting saying that we didn’t see any of those documents. It was not her doing. And they kept saying that, well, she’s responsible for that.”
The stress involved in leaving his home of 22 years, his son and job in an international company supporting New Zealand firms – “I’m one-of-a-kind, if I may say” – is compounded by the uncertainty of whether INZ will approve a subsequent visa, or whether it will be a permanent move.
“I know that they need to follow the law. They need to follow what is right in terms of the government law and all that, but the personal side is also critical, right? They need to look at the situation from a global point of view. So who you are, what is your character, who is your husband, who are your friends, what type of person are you?
“I’ve been reading in the news that there is a lot of buzz going around that skilled migrants and skilled people are leaving New Zealand. So [I am] another one of those who are now feeling horrible and then saying, ‘okay, maybe we need to go somewhere else’.”
Nevertheless, they want to return here, as most of Zozaya’s adult life has been spent here and staying close to his son is very important to them.
“Weili came to New Zealand to fulfill a childhood dream-to experience a different culture and learn English for a few months. She never imagined that she would find love and make New Zealand her home.
“We only want to just live our lives like anybody else, right? Like a happy married couple.”
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
