Update on Coronavirus (COVID-19) from YWAM Furnace New Zealand
Last updated: Monday, 16 May 2022 [12:55 PM NZDT]
Kia ora from New Zealand,
As a leadership team, we have been monitoring the continued outbreak of coronavirus (COVID-19) on a regular basis, we deeply desire to respond in faith while also recognising the impact this virus is having globally.
Since December 3rd 2021 New Zealand has implemented a COVID response system known as the "Traffic Light System". This means the country will not go into lockdowns anymore, but there will be restrictions on each level of the traffic light.
The New Zealand government is opening the borders up in stages:
Visa Applications and Processing:
- 16 May 2022 - Visitors from a Pacific Island Forum country (excluding Australia), can apply for a New Zealand visitor visa. (The countries included are Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, French Polynesia, Kiribati, Nauru, New Caledonia, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.)
- 4 July 2022 - applications for work visas open, including the Accredited Employer work visa
- 31 July 2022 - applications for visitor visa and student visas open
New Zealand’s border will reopen to all tourists and visa holders from 11:59pm 31 July 2022.
Currently Air New Zealand requires that all international passengers will need to be fully vaccinated, except for people 18 and younger, and those who can't take the vaccine for medical reasons.
Please be aware for those of you applying for a school that has an outreach component (such as DTS, SOW, SOFM), many overseas countries will require full COVID-19 vaccination for entry. This could also apply for transit stops on route to the outreach destination.
The YWAM Furnace NZ team members who remain in-country are adhering to all governmental requirements. The health, safety, and well-being of our team remain our highest priority at all times, and we are so grateful to be together.
This is a dynamic and rapidly changing situation, we are having to adapt and respond to this situation often. Please see the below updates as things stand today. We will provide further updates as necessary.
COURSES
- Currently, we are only processing students who are in New Zealand - all other students are encouraged to apply for the September 2022 schools.
- Quarter 3
- Quarter 4 (September 19th)
PRAYER ROOM
Join us for the Furnace Prayer Room, we open to the public again and are operating under the Governments guidelines for health and safety. We are facilitating both at Faith Bible College (749 Welcome Bay Road) and at The Sanctuary (159 Durham St, Tauranga CBD). The hours that the Furnace Prayer Room is specifically leading are:
- Tuesday: 8 AM-10 AM at Faith Bible College
- Thursday: 8 AM-10 AM at Faith Bible College and 8 AM - 11 AM at The Sanctuary
- Friday: 8 AM-10 AM at Faith Bible College and 9:30 AM - 11:30 AM at The Sanctuary
As YWAM Furnace New Zealand, we are committed to:
- Taking the precautionary measures to keep all our homes and facilities clean and safe for all team members and residents
- Following the guidelines and requirements of the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Ministry of Health (MOH) of the New Zealand Government
- Timely and relevant communication with all our team members, residents, and applicants about important changes and updates related to COVID-19
We invite you to join us in prayer for the healing of those affected, wisdom for global leaders, and supernatural peace for those experiencing fear.
If you have any questions please feel free to email info@yfnz.org
Sincerely,
Josh Cole
Core Leadership Team
YWAM Furnace NZ
Tauranga, New Zealand
For current status of COVID-19 in New Zealand, see Ministry of Health:
https://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/diseases-and-conditions/covid-19-novel-coronavirus
