New Zealand is one of the most popular destinations for expats, drawn by its stunning landscape and strong economy, and has one of the highest populations of foreign born citizens in the world with around 20% born overseas.Since 2000 over 14,000 Brits a year have made the move to New Zealand, maintaining the historic trend of immigration which means that today, around 6% of the country’s population were born in the UK.
Employment and Wealth
Like nearby Australia, New Zealand’s economy has weathered the financial crisis well and employment rates have remained higher than those of both the US and the UK.
There is a high demand for skilled workers in areas such as healthcare, IT and engineering and also a severe shortage of workers in the construction industry, in particular around Christchurch where thousands of new homes are being built following the 2011 earthquake.
Salaries compare favourably to the UK with the average wage around £2000 more than Britain.
Travel Prospects
There are hundreds of spectacular destinations across New Zealand, but if you fancy exploring further afield, Sydney and the delights of Australia’s East Coast are just over three hours away from Auckland by plane.
The beautiful Pacific islands of Fiji are also just a short flight away and perfect for a beach-based getaway.
A little further afield, Tokyo, Singapore and Bangkok are all around 11-12 hours away and the western coast of South America is also just a 12 hour flight away.
But How Easy is it to Move There?
– Working holiday visa – Available to all under 30’s and valid for 23 months.
– Work to residence visa – For immigrants offered a job on the ‘skills shortage’ list.
– Essential skills visa – Aimed at qualified, experienced workers moving to New Zealand who meet the required 100 ‘points’ on their expression of interest.
– Investor visa – For anyone under 66 with at least £775,000 to invest for three years.
– Temporary retirement visa – For over 65’s with at least £345,000 to invest, as well as savings of £230,000 and an income of £28,000.
