Moving to New Zealand from South Africa

What changes when you move from South Africa to New Zealand

A few things work differently on this move:

• You'll need a visa for every stage. South Africa isn't on New Zealand's visa waiver list, and New Zealand doesn't have a working holiday scheme with South Africa, so even a short visit needs a visa.
• Your police certificate comes from SAPS, and needs your fingerprints. The South African Police Service issues it from Pretoria, and Immigration New Zealand says to allow up to 3 to 4 months.
• Leaving South Africa is a tax step as well as a move. You confirm with SARS that you've ceased to be a tax resident, and moving your savings out runs through SARS and your bank, within limits set by the South African Reserve Bank (SARB).
• Your driving licence converts more simply. South Africa is on NZTA's exempt-country list, so the conversion process is shorter than for most countries.
• Pets can come directly. South Africa is a Category 3 country for MPI, so cats and dogs can fly straight to New Zealand with an import permit, a rabies blood test and at least 10 days in quarantine. Dogs also need an extra step for a tick-borne parasite.

This is general planning information, not immigration, tax or financial advice. Confirm your own eligibility and current rules with the relevant authority before making a decision you can't easily reverse.

Visa pathways

Most people moving from South Africa come on a work visa first, then move to residence, or go straight to residence through the Green List. The main pathways are below. Fees are "from" figures, because Immigration New Zealand's fees depend on where you apply, and processing times are what Immigration New Zealand says it decides 80% of applications within.

| Visa | What it's for | Cost from | 80% decided within | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Accredited Employer Work Visa | A job offer of at least 30 hours a week from an accredited employer with an approved job check. Up to 5 years in total for most jobs, or 3 years for ANZSCO skill level 4 or 5 | NZD 1,540 | 5 weeks | | Skilled Migrant Category Resident Visa | Residence for skilled workers aged 55 or under, through an expression of interest and an invitation to apply | NZD 6,450 | — | | Straight to Residence Visa | Residence for a job with an accredited employer on Tier 1 of the Green List | NZD 6,450 | 3 months | | Work to Residence Visa | Residence after 24 months working in New Zealand in a Green List Tier 2 job | NZD 6,450 | — | | Post Study Work Visa | Work for up to 3 years after studying in New Zealand, depending on your qualification | NZD 1,670 | 4 weeks |

The Skilled Migrant Category has 3 pathways:

• Points-based: you need 6 points. You can claim them from your qualification, your income, or New Zealand occupational registration, plus up to 3 points from skilled work experience in New Zealand.
• Skilled Work Experience: at least 5 years of directly relevant work experience, including at least 2 years of skilled work in New Zealand.
• Trades and Technicians: a relevant qualification and at least 4 years of post-qualification experience, including 18 months of skilled work in New Zealand.

Qualifications and registration. Qualifications from South Africa usually need an International Qualification Assessment (IQA) from NZQA before they count for a visa, unless your qualification is on Immigration New Zealand's list of exemptions. Regulated jobs such as medicine, nursing, teaching, engineering and accounting also need registration with the New Zealand body, so start that early. See getting your overseas qualifications recognised in New Zealand.

Chest X-ray. South Africa isn't on Immigration New Zealand's list of countries with a low incidence of TB, so if you're applying to stay for 6 months or longer you'll normally need a chest X-ray.

Use Immigration New Zealand's visa tool to match your own situation to these. By law, anyone giving you advice about New Zealand immigration must be licensed by the Immigration Advisers Authority, or be exempt, under the Immigration Advisers Licensing Act 2007. You can check an adviser on the Immigration Advisers Authority's public register before you pay anyone.

Police certificates

• Who needs one: for a work or student visa, you need police certificates if your total time in New Zealand will be 24 months or more. For a resident visa, everyone aged 17 or over needs them.
• Where it comes from: Immigration New Zealand asks for a police certificate from the South African Police Service (SAPS), issued by its Criminal Record Centre in Pretoria. You send your full name, your date and place of birth, and a full set of fingerprints.
• If you live in South Africa: SAPS takes your fingerprints at a police station on form SAPS 91(a). The fee is R190 per application, and SAPS says it takes about 15 working days once it has everything, plus postage.
• If you live outside South Africa: get your fingerprints taken at a police station in the country you live in, or at a South African embassy, and send the application straight to SAPS. Fingerprint scans and copies aren't accepted, and the certificate isn't emailed, so arrange how you'll collect it. See SAPS: applying for a police clearance certificate.
• Timing: Immigration New Zealand says it can take up to 3 to 4 months, and the certificate must be less than 6 months old when you submit your visa application. Start early, but not so early that it expires before you apply.

See Immigration New Zealand's guide to getting a police certificate.

Leaving South Africa: tax residency and moving money

Since 1 March 2021, the old SARB "emigration" process has ended. What matters now is ceasing to be a South African resident for tax purposes.

• Confirm it with SARS. You apply to SARS for a Tax Compliance Status (TCS) for "emigration", on form TCR01. SARS asks for proof of the date you ceased to be a tax resident, and a statement of your assets and liabilities for the past 3 tax years.
• Capital gains tax on leaving. When you cease to be a tax resident, SARS treats your assets as disposed of on the day before (a "deemed disposal" under section 9H of the Income Tax Act), so you may owe capital gains tax even though you haven't sold anything. SARS asks for this calculation with your application, and a tax practitioner can tell you which of your assets it covers.
• Moving your money. Under SARB's guidelines, once SARS confirms you're tax compliant, your bank can transfer up to R10 million per calendar year for each person aged 18 or over. More than R10 million goes through stricter SARS checks, including the source of the funds, and then needs approval from SARB's Financial Surveillance Department.
• The year you leave. SARB lets you transfer up to R1 million as a travel allowance in the same calendar year you cease to be a resident, without a TCS PIN. SARB describes it as a once-off dispensation that can't be used in later years. People ceasing residency can't use any unused part of the R1 million single discretionary allowance that residents get.
• Household goods. You can export household and personal effects worth up to R1 million per family unit in the same calendar year, if they're declared on the SARS customs forms. Anything above that counts towards the R10 million limit.
• Retirement annuities and preservation funds. You can only take these as a lump sum after you've been non-resident for tax purposes for at least 3 consecutive years, and SARS has to issue a tax directive to the fund first.

See SARS: supporting documents for international transfers, our money-transfer limits task and arranging currency exchange. Talk to a tax practitioner and your bank before your last months in South Africa, because the SARS steps take time.

Tax and your IRD number

• Get an IRD number when you arrive. Without one, Inland Revenue taxes your income at 45%, and banks deduct 45% from interest. If you're on a visa, use the new-arrival process before the "must arrive by" date on your visa. See applying for your IRD number.
• Check the transitional resident exemption. If you haven't been a New Zealand tax resident in the previous 10 years, most foreign passive income may be exempt for your first 48 months. Foreign employment income isn't covered. See checking your NZ tax residency.

Healthcare

• Eligibility isn't automatic. If you're not a New Zealand citizen or resident, you're generally eligible for publicly funded health services if you hold a work visa that lets you stay for 2 years or more, counted from your first day in New Zealand or including time you've already spent here lawfully. Children 17 or under can be eligible through an eligible parent. See Health New Zealand's eligibility criteria.
• No reciprocal agreement with South Africa. New Zealand doesn't have a reciprocal health agreement with South Africa, so consider private health or travel insurance until you're eligible.
• Register with a GP once you have an address, and bring proof of your visa when you enrol. See finding a GP.

Driving

• South Africa is an exempt country. NZTA lists South Africa among the countries whose licensing systems are similar to New Zealand's. You convert at a specialist overseas conversion site, with your physical licence, your identification and an eyesight check.
• The practical test. If you've held your South African licence for less than 2 years, you'll need to pass a practical driving test. Your licence needs to show an issue date at least 2 years ago, or you can bring a document from your licensing authority that does.
• Until you convert, you can drive on your South African licence for a limited time after you arrive. The clock restarts each time you arrive, so check NZTA's current limit for your arrival date.

See converting your overseas licence and NZTA: converting to a NZ driver licence.

Pets

South Africa is a Category 3 country for MPI (rabies absent or well controlled), so your cat or dog can fly directly to New Zealand. Under MPI's 2026 import health standard, which came into force on 1 July 2026:

1. Import permit and quarantine booking. You apply to MPI for an import permit, and include your pet's rabies records, the rabies blood test result and a quarantine booking.
2. Rabies vaccination, given when your pet was at least 12 weeks old. A first vaccination must be given at least 6 months before the flight, and it has to stay valid until you travel.
3. Rabies blood test (RNATT), taken 3 to 12 months before the flight, with a result of at least 0.5 IU/mL. Your pet's microchip is checked at the vaccination and the blood test.
4. At least 10 days in an MPI-approved quarantine facility after you arrive.

The extra step for dogs. Any dog that has lived in or travelled to mainland Africa needs treatment for Babesia rossi, a tick-borne parasite, in the 16 days before the flight, or a set of negative test results instead. MPI notes that if your dog may go on to Australia later, the treatment should also meet Australia's rules.

Allow at least 6 months, and consider a pet transport agent. See our pet biosecurity clearance task, our guide to moving with pets and MPI's guidance on bringing cats and dogs to NZ.

Shipping your belongings

Sea freight is far cheaper than air freight but takes weeks, not days. Get at least 2 or 3 quotes, and check MPI's household goods requirements and NZ Customs' household effects concession before you pack. On the South African side, declare your household goods on the SARS customs forms, within SARB's R1 million limit for the year you leave. See arranging international shipping.

Costs to plan for

• Visa fees: from NZD 1,540 for an Accredited Employer Work Visa, NZD 1,670 for a Post Study Work Visa, and NZD 6,450 for a Skilled Migrant Category, Straight to Residence or Work to Residence visa. Check Immigration New Zealand's page for your visa before you apply, since fees depend on where you apply.
• SAPS police certificate: R190 per application, plus postage or courier.
• Chest X-ray, qualification assessment, professional registration and your licence conversion: each has its own fee.
• Tax advice: budget for a tax practitioner to handle your SARS application and the capital gains calculation.
• Freight, flights and pet relocation: these vary too much to give a reliable figure. Get quotes early, especially for a pet.

Documents to gather

Your first days in New Zealand

1. Get a local SIM and data plan as soon as you land, since most of what follows needs a phone number.
2. Apply for your IRD number through Inland Revenue's new-arrival process. If it's approved, the number arrives by text or email within 2 days.
3. Open a New Zealand bank account with your passport, visa and proof of your New Zealand address, and give the bank your IRD number.
4. Register with a GP once you have an address, after checking your healthcare eligibility.
5. Sort short-term transport. You can drive on your South African licence for now, within NZTA's time limit.

Setting up your life in NZ

• Utilities: once you have a fixed address, connect power and gas and set up your internet. Compare retailers on Powerswitch.
• Insurance: New Zealand home insurance includes Natural Hazards Cover for named natural disasters, alongside a separate sum-insured decision for the building itself. See our home and contents insurance guide.
• Housing: tenancy law and bond handling run nationally through Tenancy Services. See our guide to finding a home and our end-of-tenancy and bond guide.
• Schools: enrolment is based on school zones, so the suburb you choose affects which state school your children can attend. See govt.nz's guide to enrolling your child at school.

Choosing where to live

Auckland is New Zealand's largest city and job market, but Wellington, Christchurch, Hamilton and Tauranga are all worth weighing up. They differ in rents, climate and how you'll get around.

Three official sources are worth checking before you decide:

• Community: Stats NZ's 2023 Census data shows population by region.
• Rent: Tenancy Services' market rent tool shows recent median rents for each suburb, by number of bedrooms.
• Climate: NIWA publishes climate summaries for each city. The seasons fall in the same months as in South Africa, with winter from June to August.

If a later move within New Zealand is likely, our Auckland to Wellington and Auckland to Christchurch guides cover that move. For searching, applying for and inspecting a property, see our guide to finding a place to live in New Zealand.

Timeline

Build your personalised moving plan

This guide covers what's different about moving from South Africa. Your own plan depends on your move date, whether you're renting or buying, your household, whether you have pets, and plenty of details a general guide can't know. Navaroa can build a personalised, week-by-week moving plan for your situation, free and with no signup needed to get started.