New Zealanders are relocating to Australia in numbers not seen for over a decade, driven by a severe cost of living crisis, but a leading charity warns that many are finding the dream unaffordable and are being forced to return home.
Unprecedented Migration Figures
Official data from Australia's Department of Home Affairs reveals a staggering trend. More than 92,000 New Zealand citizens applied for Australian citizenship between July 2023 and June 2025. The peak was in 2024 alone, when approximately 30,000 Kiwis made the move across the Tasman Sea – the highest annual figure in more than ten years.
This migration is facilitated by the Special Category Visa (SCV), which allows New Zealand citizens to live, work, and study in Australia indefinitely. The visa is demand-driven and uncapped, granting near-automatic entry subject to character checks.
The Harsh Reality of the Australian Dream
However, the reality for many new arrivals is far from rosy. The Nerang Neighbourhood Centre, a charity on the Gold Coast that supports New Zealanders, reports a sharp increase in people using its service offering an emergency, all-expenses-paid flight back to New Zealand.
'Increasingly with our New Zealand cohort, the only option is going back to New Zealand, more often than not,' said the centre's general manager, Vicky Rose. She explained that the service began a decade ago from a clear need, but demand is now spiking. 'The economic climate here is just getting worse, we're having the conversation a couple of times a week. I dare say we're sending a couple back a month.'
Rose expressed concern for the continuing influx, stating, 'It scares me the amount of numbers that are coming out of New Zealand, at the moment, to Australia. I just hope they've done their research.'
Personal Stories of Struggle
The human impact of the cost of living squeeze is stark. New Zealander Dave Porter, who has lived in Australia for 16 years, typifies the struggle. After losing work due to an injury and being displaced from his caravan park accommodation, he finds the Gold Coast 'way too expensive.'
'We've tried everything,' he told reporters. Despite the hardships, Porter's preference is to remain in Australia rather than return to New Zealand, highlighting the difficult choices many face.
In response to the growing issue, a spokesperson for the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade urged citizens in distress to seek help. 'We are aware that circumstances can change quickly for New Zealanders living in Australia, and some may wish to return home,' they said, directing those in Queensland to contact the New Zealand Consulate-General in Sydney for consular support.
The situation presents a complex picture of trans-Tasman migration, where record numbers seeking opportunity are meeting the harsh economic realities of rising living costs, leaving a significant number in precarious circumstances.
