New Zealanders intending visit Britain for up to six months will continue to have free visa access, Prime Minister Helen Clark said on Thursday.
New Zealanders' traditional right of entry to Britain was at risk because of the rise in immigrant numbers, but its government had decided to keep the access open.
However a decision on ancestral visas was yet to be made.
"The British Home Office has announced overnight its intention to keep the maximum visa free access for tourists at six months," she said in a statement.
"This is of great significance to New Zealand travelers to the UK and follows extensive consultations with our Government," she said.
Clark had raised the issue with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and the New Zealand High Commission in Britain made a submission.
Britain has been reviewing its immigration policy and was looking at halving the period of free entry for tourists and business visitors.
The British government is expected to make a decision next month about ancestral visas.
British officials were looking at abolishing the ancestry visa, which allowed people whose grandparents were born in Britain to live there for four years and apply for residency.
The law change could affect thousands of New Zealanders every year who include work experience in Britain as part of their overseas experience.
In 2006, 1,940 New Zealand holders of visas based on ancestry entered Britain. The British High Commission said it received from New Zealanders about 4,000 applications a year for an ancestry visa.
Source: Xinhua
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