The Holy See · Stato della Città del Vaticano
The World's Smallest Country Has the Same NZeTA Requirement as the Largest
Vatican City covers 0.44 km² — roughly the size of 60 football fields. New Zealand covers 268,021 km² — about 600,000 times larger. Vatican City has approximately 800 residents; New Zealand has 5.1 million. Yet for the purpose of visiting New Zealand, the Vatican City passport holder and the citizen of any other visa-waiver nation follow exactly the same path: an approved NZeTA, applied for online, before departure.
Who Holds a Vatican City Passport?
The Vatican City passport (passaporto della Città del Vaticano) is issued by the Holy See to individuals who reside within Vatican City itself — one of the rarest travel documents in the world. Holders typically include:
- The reigning Pope and senior resident cardinals
- Members of the Pontifical Swiss Guard and their immediate families
- Vatican employees and officials who physically reside within the state
- Certain Holy See diplomatic staff posted abroad may hold Vatican diplomatic passports
Most Vatican City passport holders are simultaneously Italian citizens. The Vatican City passport is issued for the duration of residence — it lapses when the holder ceases to reside in Vatican City. It is one of the most restricted and rarest passports issued by any sovereign state.
For New Zealand travel purposes, a valid Vatican City passport qualifies its holder for the NZeTA visa-waiver scheme — no tourist visa or embassy appointment is required. The NZeTA application process is identical to that for any other visa-waiver country.
Vatican City — Key Facts
| Status | Sovereign city-state |
| Area | 0.44 km² |
| Population | ~800 residents |
| Head of State | The Pope (Holy See) |
| Currency | Euro (EUR) |
| Nearest Airport | Rome Fiumicino (FCO) |
| Language | Latin, Italian |
| NZ Entry | NZeTA — visa-waiver |
NZeTA Requirements for Vatican City Passport Holders
All four items must be in place before submitting the application. Details must exactly match your Vatican City passport — the form cannot be partially saved.
Vatican City Passport
Valid at least 3 months beyond your departure from New Zealand. The NZeTA is tied to this passport number.
Digital Face Photo
Recent, plain background, full face visible, no sunglasses. Taken within the last 6 months. Uploaded in the form.
Active Email Address
NZeTA approval is emailed to this address. Keep it accessible at Rome Fiumicino check-in and at New Zealand arrival.
Payment Card
Credit or debit card for the NZeTA fee and mandatory NZ government IVL levy — one transaction, non-refundable.
Valid 3+ months beyond NZ departure. Tied to your NZeTA.
Recent, plain background, full face. Uploaded in the form.
Approval sent here. Keep accessible at check-in and arrival.
NZeTA fee + IVL levy in one transaction. Non-refundable.
How to Apply — Four Steps Online
No embassy. No appointment. Apply from anywhere at our NZeTA application page. Apply at least 3 days before your departure from Rome.
Enter Passport Details
Enter your full legal name, date of birth, Vatican City passport number, and expiry date exactly as they appear in your passport. Cross-check every digit — errors in the passport number will delay processing and require correction before approval.
Upload Photo & Declarations
Upload your digital face photograph and honestly answer the mandatory health and character declaration questions. These are legal requirements under New Zealand immigration law — inaccurate answers are grounds for rejection and can affect future New Zealand entry.
Pay NZeTA Fee & IVL Levy
The NZeTA processing fee and the mandatory New Zealand government International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy (IVL) are collected in a single secure card payment. Payment is non-refundable. Instant confirmation is issued on completion.
Approved by Email
Most applications are approved within 72 hours. The NZeTA is electronically linked to your Vatican City passport — no printing needed. Airline check-in staff at Rome Fiumicino and New Zealand border officers access it automatically on arrival.
NZeTA Permitted and Restricted Activities
The NZeTA covers short-term visits only. See the tourist visa, business visa, and transit visa pages for activities requiring a separate visa.
Covered by the NZeTA
Requires a Separate Visa
Flights to New Zealand — Vatican City Has No Airport
Vatican City is entirely enclosed within Rome and has no airport, railway station, or seaport of its own. All international travel begins at Rome Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino International Airport (FCO), approximately 30 km from Vatican City, or the smaller Rome Ciampino Airport (CIA), approximately 15 km away. FCO is Italy's largest international hub and offers excellent one-connection options to New Zealand. Total journey time ranges from 22 to 26 hours.
Rome Ciampino (CIA) is served by Ryanair and easyJet with European connections — these routes typically require a second connection for the long-haul leg to New Zealand. For Vatican City passport holders, FCO via Qatar Airways or Emirates offers the most efficient routing. Open-jaw itineraries — arriving into Auckland (AKL) and departing from Christchurch (CHC) — allow coverage of both islands without backtracking.
Vatican City and New Zealand — A Timeline of Two Worlds
Vatican City is among the oldest continuous institutions on earth. New Zealand is among the last major landmasses to be settled by humans. Their histories share almost nothing chronologically — but the contrast between the world's most ancient sovereign institution and the world's youngest settler nation creates one of travel's most striking cultural juxtapositions.
4th Century AD
St Peter's Basilica — Foundations of Vatican City
The original Constantinian Basilica of Saint Peter was constructed over the traditional site of the Apostle Peter's tomb — beginning the 1,700-year history of the site that would become the world's most visited place of pilgrimage. The current basilica, completed in 1626, remains the largest church in the world. Vatican City as a sovereign state was formally established by the Lateran Treaty in 1929.
~1250–1300 AD
New Zealand — Among the Last Lands Settled by Humans
Polynesian navigators — the ancestors of the Māori — arrived in New Zealand (Aotearoa) approximately 700 to 800 years ago, making it among the last major landmasses on earth to be settled by humans. At the time of the Māori arrival, the Vatican was already 900 years old as a Christian institution and Sistine Chapel frescoes were two centuries away from Michelangelo. The two histories begin from opposite ends of the chronological spectrum.
1508–1512
Sistine Chapel Ceiling — When the Vatican Was at Its Renaissance Peak
Michelangelo painted the Sistine Chapel ceiling over four years at the peak of the High Renaissance — when Vatican City was the cultural and spiritual centre of the Western world. New Zealand would not be seen by a European for another 130 years. The ceiling remains the most visited artwork in the world — Vatican City's equivalent of New Zealand's Fiordland: a place so beautiful that its reputation has outrun the reality, until people stand inside it.
1642
Abel Tasman Sights New Zealand — Europe Discovers Aotearoa
Dutch explorer Abel Tasman became the first European to sight New Zealand, naming it Nieuw Zeeland. Tasman sailed under the Dutch East India Company — a commercial venture from a Protestant nation — while the Papal States and Vatican City were governed by Pope Innocent X. The two worlds had no direct connection; the Vatican was occupied with the Counter-Reformation while the Pacific's last great landmass was being mapped.
1929 & 1947
Vatican City Sovereignty & New Zealand Independence — Two New Nations
The Lateran Treaty of 1929 created Vatican City as an independent sovereign state — ending decades of the "Roman Question." New Zealand gained full legislative independence from Britain in 1947 with the Statute of Westminster Adoption Act. Two very different nations — one 0.44 km², one 268,021 km² — established their modern sovereignty in the same generation.
Today
Vatican City → New Zealand: Same NZeTA, Different Worlds
A Vatican City passport holder travelling to New Zealand makes one of the world's most striking journeys — from the world's smallest country and most ancient continuous institution to one of the youngest nations in the world's youngest ocean. The Vatican Museums contain the accumulated art of 2,000 years of Western civilisation. New Zealand's Te Papa national museum in Wellington holds the taonga (treasures) of a culture 700 years old. The NZeTA links them with a single online form.
Frequently Asked Questions — NZeTA for Vatican City Passport Holders
Apply for Your New Zealand NZeTA — Vatican City Passport
100% online. No embassy visit. Approved within 72 hours. Valid 2 years with multiple entries.
Start NZeTA Application