Photo: RNZ
The Foreign Affairs Ministry has updated its travel advice for New Zealanders travelling to the United States in its first update since Donald Trump became president again.
The strengthened travel advisory comes as the ministry tells RNZ 17 Kiwis have sought assistance since November 2024 because they have experienced immigration difficulties in the US.
While travel advice to the US remains at level 2, meaning "exercise increased caution", the advisory now includes more cautionary wording about the potential for detention at the border.
It warns Kiwis could be detained, deported and banned from re-entering the US if they are judged to have breached entry conditions by border officials.
It also cautions travellers about laptops, mobile phones and other electronic devices potentially being subject to border security inspection.
In a statement to RNZ, the ministry says 17 New Zealand passport holders have sought assistance in the three months since November 2024.
MFAT said this was because they have experienced immigration difficulties in the US.
MFAT said in the 2024-2025 year to date: "24 New Zealand passport holders have sought our assistance because they have experienced immigration difficulties in the US (including at the border).
"Typically, we would see 14-25 cases per year, although this figure dropped off during the Covid and immediately post-Covid years when fewer people travelled. In 2023-24, there were eight cases," said the statement.
Trump's return to the White House has seen an already tough border control regime toughen up, resulting in a growing number of tourists and backpackers being detained and strip-searched at American airports, then deported, even when they have return tickets and visas.
Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom, along with several European countries, have now updated their travel advisories for the US to reflect the added risk at the border.
Otago and Auckland Universities have already alerted academic staff to the issues they may face if travelling to the US.
Otago University Professor of international relations Robert Patman said at present, he would not travel to the United States.
"International academics, and who've been critical of Mr. Trump and his administration, mainly because of the moves against universities in the United States, and that's resulted in them having their travel arrangements severely complicated," he said.
"There's lots of people in every sector, science sector, social science, commerce, are not comfortable what's going on. I mean, if you're an economist, for example, many economists have been very critical of the tariff policy that Mr. Trump has imposed on the world.
"It's not just academics, but it's a whole range of people who are affected," said Patman.
Another New Zealand University academic said he was concerned about increased scrutiny at the United States border.
Dr Paul Taillon is a US history lecturer at Auckland University. He is a dual American-New Zealand citizen, but was also born in Australia.
Taillon said while he did not know of any Auckland University staff having issues at the US border, he had heard experiences of other academics receiving extra attention at the US border recently.
He said he had travelled to the United States without issue for the past 25 years, but was anxious ahead of his next visit.
"I am due to travel to the United States this June, and I am anxious because on my passport, it indicates the country of my birth is Australia and so I am bracing myself for some extra questions.
MFAT's update also warns travellers about electronic devices like phones and laptops potentially being subject to border security inspection.
Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA) applications for short-term entry into the US ask for traveller's social media profiles, although this was not a mandatory requirement.
Patman said a traveller's social media activity could create added scrutiny at the US border.
"The administration seems to be utterly determined to move against, both domestically and internationally, those they consider woke or critical of the sort of agenda that this administration has embraced," said Patman.
Some people RNZ spoke to today - who wished to remain anonymous - said they had been put off travelling to the US.
"Previous to the MFAT advice, America isn't a place I'd want to go in this point in time," said one person.
Others said the increased scrutiny at the US border was intimidating.
"I think that's really nerve racking for a lot of people of course you don't want to be questioned and you know, the fear based tactics will put people off."
"I just think all their restrictions with the Trump administion, I just think it isn't worth the hassle," said another woman to RNZ.
Despite that, Stats NZ spokesperson Kim Dunstan said travel to the United States had not seen an impact so far.
"The annual number of New Zealand residents travelling to the US was pretty similar in the last year compared with the year earlier 169,000 returned in the year end of March 2025, just up on 168,000 in the year earlier.
"We've seen in the March 2025 year a record number of New Zealand resident returning from trips to China, Cook Islands, India, Indonesia, Japan, Samoa and the Philippines."
Dunstan said March 2025 was the first annual period to exceed 3 million arrivals by New Zealand-resident travellers since March 2020 (3.05 million), and was up from 2.84 million in the March 2024 year.
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