Karla Cardno's stepfather Mark Middleton will not be deported after Associate Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi stepped in.

Middleton received the news this morning that he had been granted a permanent resident's visa when his lawyer Keith Jefferies called him.

The stepfather of murdered schoolgirl Karla Cardno had been ordered to leave New Zealand after overstaying for more than 30 years.

Middleton told the Herald he and his family were relieved.

"I've just heard from my lawyer that the minister has overturned the decision by Immigration and that I've been granted a visa and I've just got to go through the motions and fill out the necessary paperwork," he said.

"I think the minister has behaved very ethically."

Middleton said he still had issues with the government since Karla's 1989 murder.

"I have to be honest with you, I had a few problems with the system after Karla and what happened with her. It hasn't been a happy relationship but maybe this goes some way to fixing things up a bit."

Middleton said no big celebration was planned. Instead, he would have a quiet evening with his family "and make plans for the future".

Middleton's 16-year-old son, who is Karla's half-brother, was "really stoked".

"He was probably the most relieved of all. "We had a bit of a handshake and a high-five."

A letter from his son, pleading with the minister to let his father stay, was among documents Middleton delivered to Parliament earlier this week to support his application for a review.

Middleton was facing leaving his family and New Zealand when he was picked up at his workplace by Immigration officials and told he was an overstayer.

The 60-year-old moved from England with his parents when he was 4 years old in 1962 and hasn't been back since.

Last week immigration officers stormed his workplace, accusing him of living here illegally, and put him in a cell at a Wellington police station overnight.

The Herald on Sunday revealed at the weekend that Middleton was facing deportation.