Living in New Zealand under the Trans-Tasman arrangement: what you get, and when

The Trans-Tasman arrangement lets you move to New Zealand with a passport and a plane ticket. What it doesn't do is make you a Kiwi on day one. Some rights start at the border, others take two or three years.

The short version

• The Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangements date from 1973 and let Australians and New Zealanders visit, live and work in each other's country [1].
• Australian citizens normally get an Australian Resident Visa on arrival, free, with no limit on how long they stay or where they work [2][3].
• That visa expires every time you leave. After two years you can apply for a Permanent Resident Visa, from NZ$315, which removes that problem [3][4].
• Full public health eligibility comes after two years in New Zealand, or earlier if you can show you intend to stay that long [5].
• Most benefits need two years' continuous residence, and student loans usually need three [6][7].

What the arrangement is, and what it isn't

DFAT describes the Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangements as freedom of travel between the two countries since 1973, allowing Australians and New Zealanders to "visit, live and work in either country without restrictions" [1].

In practice, for Australians, it works through New Zealand's immigration system. You aren't exempt from immigration law. You're granted a specific visa, the Australian Resident Visa, automatically at the border if you meet the requirements [2]. That visa carries real rights, but also some conditions that catch people out.

It's also lopsided. DFAT estimates around 670,000 New Zealand citizens live in Australia and around 75,000 Australians live in New Zealand [1]. If you've heard Kiwi friends complain about the rules for New Zealanders in Australia, the Australian experience in New Zealand is generally more generous, but it isn't identical to being a local.

The Australian Resident Visa

How you get it

You don't apply in advance. Australian citizens "can normally live, work or study in New Zealand without applying for a visa before coming here" [2]. When you arrive, you'll normally receive the Australian Resident Visa if you hold a valid Australian passport and meet the character requirements [2]. There's no fee [3].

What it lets you do

• Stay in New Zealand indefinitely [3].
• Work in any occupation, for any employer [3].
• Study [3].

Character matters

Immigration New Zealand says you may not meet its good character requirements if you have a criminal conviction, have been deported or excluded from another country, or may pose a security or public order risk [3]. You'll answer character questions in your New Zealand Traveller Declaration, and being refused residence is possible [2]. If you have any conviction history, check the detailed character rules before you sell the house.

Australian permanent residents

If you hold Australian permanent residence but not citizenship, you normally need an NZeTA before you travel. You can then receive an Australian Resident Visa at the border if your Australian visa lets you return to Australia and you meet the character requirements [2].

The catch: your visa ends when you leave

This is the bit most Aussies don't know. Your Australian Resident Visa expires each time you leave New Zealand [3]. For a holiday back home, you simply get a new one on your return, assuming you still qualify.

It matters in two situations:

• Long trips away. Before you leave, you can apply for a variation of travel conditions, which lets you travel for up to 24 months without affecting your residence status [3].
• Counting time for permanent residence. The Permanent Resident Visa needs two years in a row on a resident visa [4], so plan big trips with that clock in mind.

Permanent Resident Visa

After 24 months of continuous residence, Australian citizens can apply for a Permanent Resident Visa [2]. Fees start from NZ$315. The visa has no conditions and lets you live, work, study and travel in and out indefinitely, as long as it's in a valid passport [4]. You'll also need to show commitment to New Zealand and be of good character [4].

Your rights over time: a timeline

Here's how the main entitlements build up for an Australian citizen living in New Zealand.

Always check your own situation with the agency involved, because each one applies its own rules.

Health, benefits and study in detail

Health

Under the reciprocal agreement, Australians on a temporary stay can get immediately necessary care, prescriptions, hospital and maternity services. Funded ambulance trips and subsidised GP care aren't included [5]. Once you've lived in New Zealand for two years, or can show a reasonable intention to stay that long, you're fully eligible and can enrol with a primary health organisation [5]. A job contract or lease helps show that intention.

Benefits

Jobseeker Support needs a residence-class visa or citizenship, plus at least two years' continuous residence in New Zealand since you got it [6]. If you lose your job in your first two years, you may have little to fall back on, so keep an emergency fund. Work and Income says an Emergency Benefit may be possible for people who don't meet the residence rules, case by case.

Study

To get a student loan, you generally need to be a New Zealand citizen, or ordinarily resident with at least three years' residence and three years on a residence class visa [7]. If you're moving with teenagers who plan to go to university in New Zealand, start counting from your arrival date.

Retirement savings, pensions and tax

KiwiSaver

You can join KiwiSaver if you're a New Zealand citizen or entitled to live in New Zealand indefinitely, and you live or normally live there [8]. The Australian Resident Visa allows indefinite stay [3]. Your Australian super doesn't disappear when you join; see Your super while you live overseas.

Pensions

New Zealand and Australia have a social security agreement covering payments including NZ Superannuation and Australia's Age Pension. It lets you add together periods of residence in both countries to meet certain criteria [9]. If retirement is in your plan, talk to Work and Income's International Services team early.

Tax

Immigration status and tax status are different things. You become a New Zealand tax resident once you've been there more than 183 days in any 12-month period, backdated to your first day, or earlier if you have a permanent place of abode [10]. Your Australian tax residency is a separate question; read Are you still an Australian tax resident once you move?

Five steps to protect your rights

1. Keep proof of your arrival date. Health, benefits and student loan eligibility all hang off time in New Zealand.
2. Apply for a Permanent Resident Visa after two years so long trips home don't put your status at risk [4].
3. Apply for a variation of travel conditions before any long stint overseas while still on the Australian Resident Visa [3].
4. Build an emergency fund to cover your first two years without benefits [6].
5. Check citizenship once you're settled. After several years as a resident, New Zealand citizenship may become an option; the Department of Internal Affairs sets the requirements.

Living it already? Share what you learned in Cooee New Zealand, our Facebook group for Australians in New Zealand.

Sources

1. New Zealand country brief – Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
2. Australian citizens and permanent residents travelling to New Zealand – Immigration New Zealand
3. Australian Resident Visa – Immigration New Zealand
4. Permanent Resident Visa – Immigration New Zealand
5. Reciprocal health agreements – Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora
6. Jobseeker Support – Work and Income
7. Student Loan – StudyLink
8. Joining KiwiSaver – Inland Revenue
9. Social security agreement with Australia – Work and Income
10. Tax residency status for individuals – Inland Revenue

Keep reading

• Moving to Auckland from Australia: the complete guide
• Aussie life in Auckland
• Medicare when you live abroad
• Moving back to Australia: the return checklist