Man to be deported after losing appeal

A Chinese man who lived illegally in New Zealand for 15 years is to be deported, after his case was dismissed by the Court of Appeal this week.

The man, Deping Zhang, claimed refugee status in 1996. He was granted a temporary visa while his application was considered by the Ministry of Immigration.

In 2001 Zhang was denied refugee status and his visa was revoked.

While in New Zealand, Zhang married and fathered a child. Both his wife and child were legally allowed to live in New Zealand.

The court was told on Thursday that in 2014, Zhang asked the Minister of Immigration to grant him a visa, saying his was a "special case". His request was denied by the ministry.

The ministry's decision had been upheld in a previous High Court hearing by Justice Whata, when the court heard the ministry representative who made the decision did not record reasons for rejecting Zhang's request, which Zhang's lawyer said was unlawful.

At Thursday's hearing, Zhang's defence counsel argued the representative's failure to disclose reasons for rejecting Zhang's application was a breach of his right to justice under the Bill of Rights Act.

Justice Brewer ruled the ministry did not have to disclose its reasons for rejecting Zhang's request and dismissed the case.

The judge found there were no humanitarian concerns to grant Zhang refugee status.