An 18-year-old New Zealand-born teenager who has never set foot outside the country is facing deportation to India after losing his appeal for residency, a decision that has reignited debate over the rights of children born to overstayers.
According to a report by RNZ, Navjot Singh, born in Auckland in 2007, has lived his entire life in New Zealand without legal status after his parents overstayed their work visas.
His plea for ministerial intervention was declined last week by Associate Immigration Minister Chris Penk, leaving the teenager stateless and at risk of deportation to a country he has never known.
Singh’s case mirrors that of 18-year-old Daman Kumar, another overstayer who was granted residency through ministerial intervention earlier this year. Kumar, who spent nearly two decades in the country without a valid visa, described the government’s handling of Singh’s case as “totally unfair.”
New Zealand’s Citizenship Amendment Act 2006 ended automatic citizenship for children born to non-resident parents. Since then, many children like Singh have grown up in legal limbo, unable to access basic rights such as education, healthcare, or employment.
Singh said he learned about his undocumented status at the age of eight when he asked his mother why he was not allowed to attend school.
“Ever since, I’ve been living in fear. I couldn’t even be honest with my friends,” he said, reported RNZ.
As reported by RNZ, his father was deported to India when Navjot was just five days old, and his mother lost her visa in 2012, leaving the family without legal status. “I don’t think I’ll survive in India,” Singh said. “I don’t speak Hindi. I’ve heard even people with higher qualifications struggle to find jobs, what would I do?”
Immigration lawyer Alastair McClymont, who is representing Singh, called the decision “inhumane,” arguing that New Zealand needs to align its laws with those of countries like Australia and the United Kingdom, where children automatically qualify for citizenship after living in the country for 10 years.
As quoted by RNZ, “Once a child has lived here from birth for a decade, they should be eligible for citizenship,” McClymont said. “Deporting kids who have grown up here to a foreign country is incredibly cruel.”
McClymont said the current legal framework makes no sense for children like Singh, who cannot reasonably appeal to the Immigration Protection Tribunal within 42 days of birth.
Despite his uncertain future, Singh remains hopeful.
As quoted by RNZ, “I just want to live a normal life,” he said quietly. “That’s the dream. If you were in my place, what would you do?”
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