Deportation reprieve for migrant with three partners and their 'many' children

Tuariki Delamere is the man's immigration adviser and representative. Photo / Doug Sherring

A migrant who had three partners in New Zealand that were pregnant to him at the same time has been allowed to stay in the country.

The wealthy Chinese man was facing a deportation liability notice for failing to disclose his multiple relationships to New Zealand Immigration officials.

But a spokesman for Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway confirmed the man's deportation would now be suspended for three years.

The minister last month also cancelled the deportation notices of the man's first wife and her children.

He would not say why they had been allowed to stay when immigration rules did not allow for multiple partners or marriages.

"He has no further comment on individual cases," the minister's spokesman said.

The Herald understands the man moved to New Zealand under the investor category in 2001, and was granted a residence visa.

Under current rules, investor category applicants must invest at least $3 million in New Zealand over four years.

Also included in the original visa application was his first wife and their children.

At the time, the man - who declined to be interviewed - was also in relationships with two other women without the knowledge of his wife.

All three women were pregnant to the man at the same time while the original visa application was being processed.

Immigration New Zealand wrote to the man in 2016 to say they considered him, his first wife and their children to be liable for deportation because of his failure to disclose his two other relationships.

The man engaged Tuariki Delamere as his immigration adviser, and successfully got his first wife's deportation cancelled and the others to remain on unspecified visas.

"He has done a few multi-million dollar developments in New Zealand, including retirement villages," Delamere said.

Delamere said the man had "many" children but could not say how many.

Of the two other women, who the Herald understands are also from China, one holds a residence visa and the other is on a guardianship visa.

According to Delamere, the man is no longer with his first wife and is now married to one of the other women.

"There is a 12-year gap between the residence visas for the two wives," he added.

Delamere said the man would be appealing the Minister's decision to the Immigration and Protection Tribunal.

He said there were concerns over conditions stating the man would be deported if he committed any offence or provide misleading information during the suspension period and would have no right of appeal.

"If there is no right of appeal the appellant is exposed to the potential of being deported for trivial and unexpected occurrences such as driving 60km/h in a 50km/h zone or making an error when filing an application form for any government agency for any country," Delamere said.

INZ manager Stephanie Greathead said applications under the partnership category would be declined if the applicant was already married to or in a civil union with another person.

Greathead said the information on how many applicants with multiple spouses or partners had been granted visas to stay in NZ was not available in a reportable format.