SAN FRANCISCO — New Zealand first.

That was pretty much Peter Thiel’s feeling a few years ago, when the tech investor and future adviser to Donald J. Trump decided he loved the South Pacific island nation so much he wanted to become a citizen there.

“I am happy to say categorically that I have found no other country that aligns more with my view of the future than New Zealand,” Mr. Thiel wrote in his application. The 49-year-old investor, who was born in Germany, was granted New Zealand citizenship in 2011 but kept his American citizenship.

Officials in New Zealand released documents related to Mr. Thiel’s application and approval Tuesday night, offering new details about his effort years ago to become a citizen in the middle of the current uproar in the United States over President Trump’s border control measures. That citizenship has raised questions in New Zealand about the government’s motivation, as documents show officials citing Mr. Thiel’s financial support and letting other requirements — like living there — slide.

Mr. Trump’s order, signed on Friday, temporarily banned all refugees as well as all citizens from Iran, Iraq and five other predominantly Muslim nations. Nowhere among corporations have the protests been greater than in the technology community, whose employees — and customers — cover the globe.