Immigration officials say they have discovered an asylum fraud in which more than 150 people claimed to be in danger from loan sharks.
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An interpreter is facing charges under the Immigration Act and all but two of the cases have been withdrawn or dismissed. The Indonesian and Malaysian applicants were already in New Zealand on temporary visas when they applied for asylum.
One Indonesian woman who made a claim could not initially remember her husband's name under questioning and when she did it was not the same as the name her son gave.
Three people alleged that they previously ran clothing stores which had burnt down. Some had used identical wording to outline their fear of being attacked by moneylenders.
The Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment (MBIE), which houses the decision-making Refugee Status Unit (RSU), said it noticed 'striking similarities' between some Indonesian and Malaysian claims from December 2019.
All set out stories of fearing harm from moneylenders, they all lived in the same city in New Zealand - including some at the same address - and had the same legal representative.
MBIE told the Immigration and Protection Tribunal (IPT), which hears appeals from asylum seekers turned down by refugee officers, they "appeared to be part of a deliberate scheme seeking to exploit New Zealand's refugee and protection system".
An interpreter who signed several of the claim forms faces five charges of supplying information to a refugee and protection officer knowing it was false or misleading.
Of 158 claims thought to be part of the same cohort, 119 were by Indonesians and 39 by Malaysians - of which 78 were unsuccessful, 67 were withdrawn and 11 are still to be decided.
Two successful Malaysian claims were found to have credible accounts, unrelated to the issues they raised about moneylenders or loan sharks.
In a recent case decided by the IPT, the tribunal ruled the inconsistencies in a man's evidence, and similarities between the father of five's claim and the others, led it to reject his appeal. He said he had invested $10,000 in a fish business in Indonesia with money borrowed from loan sharks.
"[The IPT] finds that his concern about returning to Indonesia is not linked to a fear of being harmed for an unpaid loan, but a desire to earn more money to be able to start a business and provide for his family, in particular due to the difficulties finding employment in Indonesia due to Covid-19, and low pay rates."
The revelation comes as the number of asylum seeker approvals fell to levels not seen in more than 10 years, with fewer than one in four accepted as refugees.
More people than usual had withdrawn their claims, which were included in the figures for rejected claims, Immigration New Zealand said in a statement.
In the case of the Indonesian woman, her representative said the Refugee Status Unit had taken a common perspective to the claims, which encouraged predetermined decision-making and was "dangerously flawed".
But the IPT found there were "concerning similarities".
"The tribunal accepts that Indonesia continues to struggle with ongoing and serious human rights violations. Further, moneylenders, whether licensed or unlicensed can place significant pressure on borrowers to repay money, which can have tragic outcomes. However, there is no credible evidence before the tribunal to establish that [she] has had or will in the future have problems with moneylenders."
INZ refugee and migrant services acting general manager Loretta Elive-Daunakamakama said all claims are raised on INZ systems and undergo a triage process by a manager, before a Refugee Protection Officer (RPO) is allocated.
"This particular scheme was detected during processing, prior to it being allocated to an RPO. It was apparent that a high number of similar claims were being lodged. When the scheme was detected an agency notification was initiated. As a result of further investigation work, charges have now been laid and the case is due to go before the courts."
