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Parliament's human rights committee wants the government to take stronger action against the Australian government's new visa policy.
At least 180 New Zealanders who have been sentenced to jail terms of a year or more are now in detention centres awaiting deportation back across the Tasman.
Committee co-chair Marama Fox says many have few or no ties to this country and are products of the Australian rather than the New Zealand system.
She says the camps have already been found to breach the human rights of refugees, let along people who have lived and worked in Australia for their adult lives.
"If they are going to be deported, there is no reason they can not return home and await that decision. Some of these don't even have a decision. They don't know what is going on. It is just a length of time that is going on longer and longer. The mental health of these detainees is now suffering as well. The mere fact they are in there is a breach of human rights," Ms Fox says.
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