A baby stroller is seen as mothers play with their children at a public area in downtown Shanghai November 19, 2013.
A baby stroller is seen as mothers play with their children at a public area in downtown Shanghai November 19, 2013. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

A Chinese man has been denied entry to New Zealand because he tried to pass off a baby as his own. According to the Immigration and Protection Tribunal, the man attempted to bring the baby into New Zealand to gain residency permits.

Reports said although the husband lived in the country since 2008, he was denied re-entry in 2012 after Immigration New Zealand found out that the baby's documents, including the birth certificatem were forged.

The tribunal ruled that the man failed an assessment on good character and tried to present false evidence to bring the baby into the country from China. The man had appealed the decision of the tribunal.

Immigration New Zealand said the Chinese couple attempted to pass off the baby as their own which was equivalent to child trafficking. The couple had been working on getting their residency in New Zealand for four years, but their application was put on hold while their relationship was under investigation.

When Immigration discovered the baby's documents were forged, the work visa of the husband was cancelled which meant he won't be allowed to enter the country. The wife tried to reason out that the baby was unwanted and would have ended up in an orphanage.

The tribunal upheld the ruling of Immigration New Zealand. Wendy Hawke, executive director of Inter-Country Adoption New Zealand, said even if the baby was an orphan, the Chinese couple would still be denied of their application for entry.

She said The Hague Convention states that the couples in one country should try to adopt children in that country before considering other places. Hawke added adoptive parents should have permanent residency in New Zealand.

She called on Chinese authorities to investigate where the baby came from or if he or she was taken from someone else. On the issue of the wife's deportation, the immigration department has yet to decide whether or not it will press charges. The couple admitted adopting a baby from China to give their relationship a sense of normalcy and stability.