Young New Zealanders fleeing to Australia for higher wages
About 77,500 New Zealanders aged 18 to 30 left for Australia in 2023-2025, with more than four in ten unlikely to return.
New Zealanders are leaving for Australia in record numbers, drawn by higher wages and lower living costs. The Ririnui family moved from Auckland to the Gold Coast just three months ago.
Despite Jayden working fewer hours, the family has more money left over each week. Lisa Robb's husband moved to Perth and now earns three times what he made in New Zealand while working Monday to Friday instead of seven days a week.
In the year to March 2026, about 47,900 New Zealanders moved to Australia while about 19,900 moved the opposite way. Research shows that more than four in ten of the 77,500 young people who left between 2023 and 2025 are not expected to return, potentially costing NZ$12 billion in lost education and healthcare investment.
Unemployment in New Zealand sits at 5.7 per cent, an 11-year high, compared with 4.7 per cent in Australia.
- 27,900 people
- Net migration loss
- 77,500 aged 18 to 30
- Young departures 2023-2025
- NZ$12 billion
- Potential investment lost
- 5.7 percent
- New Zealand unemployment
Why it mattersNew Zealand's economy could lose a generation of young workers permanently if wages do not improve, and the country has failed to close the income gap with Australia for decades.
AustraliaAustralia continues to attract skilled workers from a nearby source, boosting its workforce in health, trades and construction as New Zealand struggles to retain young people.
✓ Claims checked against the source. checked 2 h ago
