Are New Zealanders Migrating To Australia

If you've noticed more Kiwis talking about making the move across the Tasman, you're not imagining it. New Zealanders are leaving in numbers that haven't been seen in years, and the reasons go deeper than just chasing better pay. Who's leaving, where they're going, and what it's costing New Zealand is a story worth understanding.

How Many New Zealanders Are Moving to Australia Right Now?

Thousands of New Zealanders are currently migrating to Australia, with around 73,900 citizens departing New Zealand in the year to August 2025 — a record high. Of those who left in 2024, about 58% chose Australia, which equates to roughly 47,300 people. This outflow has contributed to a net migration loss to Australia of around 30,000 people, the largest annual loss since 2012.

The movement is concentrated among younger adults. In the year to September 2025, nearly 40% of those departing were aged 18–30, and the median age was 29. This pattern suggests that early- to mid-career New Zealanders are disproportionately represented in trans-Tasman migration, which may have implications for the labour market, skill availability, and long-term population structure in New Zealand.

Who Is Leaving : and Are They Coming Back?

Behind these numbers are real people, and understanding who's leaving and whether they're likely to return is as important as the overall scale of departure.

The data shows that departures are concentrated among younger adults: nearly 40% of New Zealand citizens leaving are aged 18–30, and around 51% are between 20–39.

Many are moving to Australia in search of higher wages, more diverse career pathways, and to join existing family networks.

Current economic conditions — including relatively weaker labour market opportunities in some sectors and high living costs in New Zealand — reduce the immediate incentive to return.

While some migrants intend their move to be temporary, their likelihood of coming back often depends on changes in job prospects, housing affordability, and family circumstances in New Zealand over time.

Why Kiwis Are Moving to Australia: Wages, Jobs, and a Weak Economy

While higher wages are a central factor in explaining why many New Zealanders relocate to Australia, the overall situation involves several interconnected economic conditions. Australia's GDP per capita is about US$64,400, compared with New Zealand's roughly US$48,000, indicating a higher average level of income and productivity. In sectors such as hospitality, Australian weekend and penalty rates can be more than double those available in New Zealand, making certain types of work significantly more financially attractive.

In addition to pay, Australia tends to offer faster career progression in some professions, more structured graduate and training programs, and a wider range of job opportunities in industries like construction, healthcare, and mining. These sectors have benefited from sustained investment and larger-scale projects, contributing to stronger labour demand.

In New Zealand, comparatively weaker economic growth, rising living costs, and ongoing housing affordability issues are contributing to outward migration. Many households face pressure from high rents or house prices relative to income. As a result, the movement across the Tasman is shaped by both the pull of higher wages and broader opportunities in Australia and the push of constrained economic conditions and cost pressures in New Zealand.

Which Industries Are Pulling New Zealanders to Australia?

Several sectors are attracting New Zealanders to Australia, largely due to higher wages, more stable employment, and broader career options.

In hospitality and casual retail, base pay in Australia often sits around A$30 per hour, compared with about NZ$22.70 in Wellington, with additional benefits such as higher penalty rates for weekend and public holiday work.

Trades and construction have also become a key drawcard, particularly since the slowdown in New Zealand’s building sector from 2025, while demand for skilled labour in Australia has remained comparatively stronger.

Healthcare and aged care roles in Australia generally offer higher pay, clearer progression pathways, and more funded positions, reflecting persistent workforce shortages.

The mining and resources sector provides some of the highest wages on offer, especially in remote or fly-in fly-out roles, a type of work that's limited in New Zealand.

Recent graduates are also responding to these differences. Australian starting salaries in many professional fields cluster around A$70,000, which tend to exceed comparable entry-level offers in New Zealand after adjusting for exchange rates and typical market conditions.

Where Do Most Kiwis End Up Once They Move to Australia?

Most New Zealanders who move to Australia settle in major metropolitan areas rather than regional centres. Around 80% choose large cities such as Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Perth. This pattern reflects the concentration of employment opportunities, higher wages in certain sectors, and greater access to services, education, and established social networks in urban areas.

The urban focus is also linked to the types of migrants making the move. Many are relocating for professional or career-related reasons, which are typically better served in large labour markets. In addition, the New Zealanders moving to Australia aren't a uniform group: in 2024, about 35% of them were born outside New Zealand. This indicates that Australia is attracting a diverse migrant population via New Zealand, and that trans-Tasman migration includes a significant proportion of people with prior international migration experience.

What Does Losing 48,000 People a Year Mean for New Zealand?

Losing roughly 48,000 people a year to Australia is more than a migration statistic; it represents close to 1% of New Zealand’s total population leaving annually.

The impact is most evident in sectors such as construction, healthcare, hospitality, and the trades. In construction alone, there were 12,169 fewer jobs filled year-on-year, indicating a significant reduction in available workers.

This outflow is concentrated among people aged 20–39, a group that typically contributes strongly to productivity, undertakes apprenticeships, and starts or expands businesses.

Their departure reduces the pool of skilled and semi-skilled labour and can slow growth in key industries.

Economic incentives are a major factor. Australia’s GDP per capita is about US$64,400, compared with New Zealand’s roughly US$48,000.

This gap reflects, in part, differences in income levels and perceived opportunities. As long as such disparities remain substantial, the incentive for New Zealanders to relocate to Australia for better pay and prospects is likely to persist.

How Is New Zealand Trying to Retain Skilled Workers?

New Zealand is responding to the loss of young, skilled workers to Australia through a mix of regional initiatives, sector-focused investment, and labour-market reforms.

Programmes such as Priority One’s initiatives in Tauranga and the University of Waikato’s campus expansion aim to strengthen links between students, recent graduates, and local employers. These efforts are designed to improve pathways into skilled employment, reduce underemployment, and make it easier for graduates to find roles that match their qualifications.

At a national level, policymakers are prioritising investment in higher‑productivity sectors such as technology, healthcare, and construction. The objective is to increase the number of skilled, better‑paid positions so that domestic opportunities are more competitive with those available in Australia.

Local and central government measures also target housing affordability, which is a key factor in decisions to move overseas. These include increasing housing supply, adjusting planning rules, and encouraging more medium‑density development in urban areas in an effort to moderate housing costs relative to incomes.

Industry bodies and employers are working to clarify career pathways, expand graduate programmes, and improve professional development opportunities.

However, labour-market analysts frequently point out that these measures have limited impact if real wage growth doesn't keep pace with living costs or with Australian salary levels. As a result, many assessments emphasise that sustained improvements in wages and productivity are likely to be critical if New Zealand is to retain more of its skilled workforce.

Conclusion

If you're watching this trend unfold, you can see it's reshaping both countries. New Zealand's losing tens of thousands of skilled workers annually, while Australia's gaining them. The gap in wages and opportunity isn't closing fast enough to reverse the flow. Whether you're a policymaker, employer, or someone considering the move yourself, you can't ignore what these numbers are saying about New Zealand's economic challenges and the difficult choices its people are making.