KEY POINTS:
Immigration Minister David Cunliffe has cautiously welcomed a further fall in the number of overstayers.
"Department of Labour figures estimate there were 17,400 overstayers at October 31, 2006, compared with 19,100 six months earlier," Mr Cunliffe said.
Countries with significant estimated decreases are Tonga, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Thailand and Brazil.
Those with no significant decrease are Samoa, China, Great Britain, Malaysia, Tuvalu, Philippines and the Czech Republic.
