What is form NZCS 150?
NZCS 150, "Request your travel movements", is how you ask New Zealand Customs for the record of dates you arrived in and left New Zealand. It is a request for your own information under the Privacy Act 2020. The current version of the form is dated March 2026. Records are only available from the early 1990s onward.
How do you fill in NZCS 150?
The form has four questions. You can complete the PDF on your computer and save it as you go, or print it and write in capital letters in blue or black ink.
| Question | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Q1 Date range | Tick "All available travel movements", or give a start and end date (dd/mm/yyyy). |
| Q2 Personal details | Surname, given names, date of birth, and any previous legal names used during the period. Leave previous names blank if your name hasn't changed. |
| Q3 Contact details | The email address where Customs should send your record. |
| Q4 Checklist | Tick that you have included the completed form, your ID and, if it applies, evidence of a previous name. |
What documents do you need to attach?
- ID: a current or recently expired passport bio-page, or your driver licence (front and back). If it expired more than 6 months ago, email Customs before you complete the form.
- Evidence of a previous name, only if your name changed during the period: a marriage or civil union certificate, divorce or dissolution certificate, deed poll or name change certificate, or an expired passport in the old name.
Send copies, not originals, as JPEG, PNG, PDF or Word files. Customs can't accept links to Dropbox, Google Drive or similar services, so attach the files to your email.
Where do you send it, and how long does it take?
Email the completed form and documents to movementchecks@customs.govt.nz. Customs says to allow up to 20 working days from the date it has received everything, and it can only start once the form is complete. Neither the form nor Customs' request page lists a fee. Build this time into your plans if you have an application deadline.
Which date range should you ask for?
Ask for at least the period your application looks at, and add a margin in case your application date moves:
- NZ citizenship: the 5 years before you plan to apply, for the 1,350-day and 240-day tests.
- Permanent resident visa: the 2 years before you plan to apply, for the 184-day test.
If you aren't sure, ticking "All available travel movements" covers every case.
How do you use the record in a calculator?
Enter each trip as a departure date and a return date. For New Zealand citizenship and permanent residence, the day you leave and the day you return both count as days in New Zealand, so only the full days between them are absences. For example, leaving on 1 June and returning on 14 June is 12 days absent. The calculators handle this for you, and they share one trip list, so you only need to enter your travel once.
What if you need someone else's records, or a count of days?
- Another person's travel movements: use form NZCS 151, a request under the Official Information Act 1982. You need a separate request for each person, and Customs considers privacy before releasing the records. For a child under 18, you also provide your own ID and evidence that you are the parent or guardian.
- A record of the number of days you have been in New Zealand: Customs refers these requests to Immigration New Zealand. NZCS 150 gives you the dates only. Immigration New Zealand's personal information request can include arrival and departure records, and can take up to 20 working days.