The global Microsoft outage that began on Thursday, November 12, 2026, is having consequences far beyond the problems experienced by users of Outlook, Teams and Microsoft 365.
Government agencies in several countries are now reporting disruptions to their services, communications and, in some cases, administrative procedures.
In New Zealand, the impact is particularly significant for international travelers and foreign nationals seeking visas.
New Zealand puts all visa processing on hold
In an official statement released on Friday, November 13, Immigration New Zealand (INZ) announced that it had suspended the processing of all visa applications until further notice because of the global Microsoft outage.
The immigration authority also confirmed that applicants are currently unable to submit applications through its new Enhanced Immigration Online platform, which handles several visa categories.
The disruption therefore affects both the processing of applications by immigration officials and access to certain online application services.
The suspension applies to all visa applications, with no exemptions for specific visa categories mentioned in the official announcement. However, the inability to submit new applications is specifically linked to the Enhanced Immigration Online platform. INZ has not indicated that all its other application systems are unavailable.
No date has been announced for processing to resume.
For travelers who have already submitted their applications, the suspension could result in longer processing times, particularly for visitor, work and student visas.
Immigration New Zealand has apologized to applicants for the disruption, which it attributes to circumstances beyond its control.
Immigration system changes delayed from November 16 to November 23
The Microsoft outage has also forced New Zealand authorities to revise the rollout schedule for several planned immigration system updates.
Originally scheduled to take effect on Monday, November 16, 2026, the changes have now been postponed by one week, to Monday, November 23, 2026.
The affected changes include:
- Moving temporary visa applications submitted by certain family members of New Zealand citizens to the Enhanced Immigration Online platform.
- Introducing new provisions for the Short-term Graduate Work Visa (SGWV) and Post-Study Work Visa (PSWV), two visa categories for international graduates seeking employment in New Zealand.
- Expanding the option to submit digital copies of passports when applying for a Visitor Visa or an Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV).
The last of these changes is intended to improve the collection of applicants’ biographical information and increase the accuracy of the data used to issue visas.
The introduction of the new Short-term Graduate Work Visa, initially scheduled for November 16, has also been pushed back by one week.
New Zealand’s NZeTA remains available and fully operational
The outage does not, however, affect the New Zealand Electronic Travel Authority (NZeTA), the electronic travel authorization required for many travelers from visa-waiver countries.
Immigration New Zealand has explicitly confirmed that travelers can continue applying for an NZeTA and that the service is operating normally, despite the disruptions affecting other immigration procedures.
Citizens of the United States and Canada, along with travelers from many European countries, can generally visit New Zealand for up to three months without obtaining a visa in advance, provided they have an approved NZeTA.
British citizens can generally stay for up to six months under the visa-waiver arrangements, while Australian citizens are exempt from the NZeTA requirement.
The NZeTA, which is generally valid for two years, operates separately from the country’s standard visa application process.
Although New Zealand authorities have confirmed that the NZeTA service is functioning normally, travelers should continue monitoring official updates for any changes to its availability or processing times.
The November 13 statement also makes no mention of a general suspension of international arrivals or border control operations.
Travelers with upcoming departures are advised to check the official Immigration New Zealand website regularly for the latest information.
Singapore and Australia report government service disruptions
New Zealand is not the only country where government agencies have been affected by the Microsoft outage.
In Singapore, the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) has warned that responses to certain requests submitted through FormSG, a digital forms platform used by government agencies, may be delayed.
The Government Technology Agency (GovTech) has also confirmed that several government systems have been affected, particularly email services.
However, the SG Arrival Card (SGAC), the electronic arrival declaration that most travelers must complete before entering Singapore, remains operational.
According to GovTech, Singapore’s Singpass digital identity system has not been affected either.
In Australia, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has also issued an advisory about the global Microsoft outage, advising people with urgent matters relating to international sanctions to use telephone contacts instead.
Other Australian government agencies, including the Australian Federal Police and intelligence services, have also acknowledged disruptions.
So far, however, Australian authorities have not announced any suspension of visa applications or electronic travel authorizations, including eVisitor visas and Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) applications, as a result of the incident.
Microsoft continues working to restore services
The outage, which began on Thursday, November 12, has particularly affected Microsoft 365 and its Exchange Online email infrastructure, which is widely used by businesses and government agencies around the world.
Problems have also been reported with Outlook, Teams and several other workplace applications.
Microsoft says it is working to restore its infrastructure and stabilize traffic across its servers. Although some services have shown signs of improvement, it remains unclear when full operations will resume.
The company has also stated that it has found no evidence suggesting the incident was caused by a cyberattack.
Users can monitor developments through Microsoft’s official service status page.
The full duration of the disruption and its potential impact on other administrative procedures and international travel requirements remain uncertain.
The incident is reminiscent of the global Cloudflare outage on November 18, 2025, which disrupted access to several electronic visa portals, including those used by Saudi Arabia, Kenya and Thailand.
VisasNews Take
New Zealand’s suspension of all visa processing highlights how heavily government agencies rely on global digital infrastructure. For travelers, however, it is important to distinguish between standard visa applications and electronic travel authorizations such as the NZeTA, which New Zealand authorities have explicitly confirmed remains fully operational. If the outage continues, its effects could be felt in visa processing times even after IT services have been restored.
