Where New Zealanders move
679.8K New Zealanders live abroad — #89 largest source of emigrants worldwide
Considering a move from New Zealand? — See top destinations, regional flows, and how it's changed since 1990.
Where emigrants go
The top 3 countries receive 96% of all emigrants
↑↓ — change vs 2020
| Country | Emigrants |
|---|---|
| Australia | 588088 |
| United Kingdom | 50762 |
| Canada | 10875 |
| China | 3811 |
| Japan | 3785 |
| Singapore | 3378 |
| Cook Islands | 2718 |
| Hong Kong | 2425 |
| Papua New Guinea | 1789 |
| Samoa | 1164 |
| South Africa | 1026 |
| Denmark | 1003 |
| Italy | 959 |
| American Samoa | 727 |
| Norway | 706 |
| Fiji | 631 |
| Malaysia | 592 |
| Greece | 530 |
| Chile | 400 |
| Niue | 342 |
| Vanuatu | 331 |
| Brazil | 320 |
| Finland | 299 |
| Hungary | 290 |
| Argentina | 255 |
| Brunei Darussalam | 236 |
| Malta | 221 |
| Tokelau | 172 |
| New Caledonia | 122 |
| Iceland | 118 |
| Sri Lanka | 112 |
| Luxembourg | 112 |
| French Polynesia | 111 |
| Tajikistan | 107 |
| Croatia | 102 |
| Cyprus | 97 |
| Panama | 90 |
| Bulgaria | 87 |
| Isle of Man | 86 |
| Bolivia | 78 |
| Solomon Islands | 70 |
| Timor-Leste | 69 |
| Cayman Islands | 69 |
| Slovakia | 68 |
| Kiribati | 59 |
| Portugal | 54 |
| Namibia | 53 |
| Falkland Islands | 37 |
| Slovenia | 32 |
| Estonia | 30 |
| Bhutan | 25 |
| Bahamas | 25 |
| Costa Rica | 24 |
| Eswatini | 23 |
| Maldives | 18 |
| Venezuela | 15 |
| Latvia | 12 |
| Lithuania | 12 |
| Antigua and Barbuda | 11 |
| Liechtenstein | 6 |
| Nauru | 3 |
| Guinea | 0 |
| Saint Lucia | 0 |
By destination region
Oceania is the leading destination region at 88%
596.3K
55.5K
14.6K
10.9K
1.3K
1.1K
97
Interesting facts
Notable statistics about emigration from New Zealand.
Australia is the primary destination for emigrants
Australia attracts 87% of all emigrants from New Zealand, while the second-largest destination receives just 7%.
A significant share of the population lives abroad
1 in 8 residents of New Zealand has emigrated — 679.8K out of 5.3M, representing 12.9% of the population.
How emigration changed over time
Total emigrant population by year
| Year | Emigrants |
|---|---|
| 1990 | 329134 |
| 1995 | 381056 |
| 2000 | 454340 |
| 2005 | 518239 |
| 2010 | 620805 |
| 2015 | 675441 |
| 2020 | 679479 |
| 2024 | 679772 |
Top destinations over time
Emigration to the 5 largest destination countries
| Year | Australia | United Kingdom | Canada | China | Japan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 263301 | 39953 | 7382 | 1787 | 1174 |
| 1995 | 304515 | 47640 | 7925 | 2119 | 1970 |
| 2000 | 366287 | 56738 | 8499 | 2523 | 3132 |
| 2005 | 424120 | 60058 | 9315 | 3003 | 3743 |
| 2010 | 520509 | 62311 | 11496 | 3574 | 3272 |
| 2015 | 575163 | 58621 | 12381 | 3580 | 5518 |
| 2020 | 583769 | 54300 | 10929 | 3452 | 5855 |
| 2024 | 588088 | 50762 | 10875 | 3811 | 3785 |
Fastest-changing destinations
How emigration to each country has changed since the selected year
New Zealand as an emigration source
Share of immigrants in each country who originate from New Zealand