Record exodus of New Zealand citizens heads to Australia for pay and opportunities

More than 71,000 New Zealand citizens left the country in the 12 months ending in October, the equivalent of more than 1 percent of the nation’s 5.1 million people, and many are moving to Australia in search of better pay and opportunities, officials and recent migrants say. Tory Whanau, the former mayor of Wellington, said she is preparing to move to Melbourne and that “there seems to be a brighter light overseas.” Official estimates show about 71,000 citizens departed while roughly 26,000 returned over the same period, and more than half of those who leave go to Australia, where a reciprocal visa arrangement allows New Zealanders to live and work indefinitely.

Relocation firm owner Mark Berger said migrants cite higher salaries, career advancement and a lower cost of living, and added that “people are really just chasing hope.” Economists point to a weak post-pandemic economy: by one HSBC estimate New Zealand had the largest GDP contraction among developed countries in 2024, and the unemployment rate is 5.3 percent, the highest in nearly a decade, a reversal Mr.

Shamubeel Eaqub links to the end of pandemic stimulus. Sociologist Paul Spoonley said the outflow skews toward people in their mid-20s and 30s as well as retirees joining family in Australia, and warned that the country could be losing skilled workers it cannot afford to lose.

Key Topics

World, New Zealand Exodus, Australia, Tory Whanau, Wellington, Hsbc