Paulo Reyes Garcia

Paulo Reyes Garcia is a New Zealand politician and was from 2019-20 member of Parliament in the House of Representatives for the New Zealand National Party. Garcia was born in the city of San Juan, part of Metro Manila, Philippines, in 1965. He is a graduate of the University of the Philippines and also attended the Academy of American and International Law in Texas in the US. He was a barrister before entering Parliament. In the Philippines, where he practiced for ten years, his focus was commercial law, particularly as it applied to foreign and multinational companies operating in that country. After moving to New Zealand, he practiced commercial law and immigration law with a focus on investor migration. After initially working for McLeod & Associates and Corban Revell Lawyers, he established his own firm, Garcia Law – now called Paulo Garcia Barristers & Solicitors. Garcia was appointed honorary consul general of the Philippines in Auckland in 2012 and was also involved in establishing the New Zealand Philippines Business Council. In the 2017 general election, Garcia stood for the National Party and was ranked 50 on their party list. He entered Parliament in 2019, becoming New Zealand's first MP of Filipino descent. In 2020, he was briefly deputy chairperson of the parliamentary committee on foreign affairs, defense and trade. He ran as a list-only candidate ranked 25 in the general election that year but was not returned to the legislature.