🇦🇺 Commonwealth of Australia vs 🇳🇿 New Zealand

Commonwealth of Australia: Check the travel facility and conditions on the Australian visa you are considering. Do not substitute the rights of an Australian citizen for those of a permanent resident, or treat a New Zealand citizen’s SCV as a general skilled-migration route. New Zealand: A New Zealand resident visa and Permanent Resident Visa are different. The latter normally requires at least two consecutive years holding residence, compliance with conditions and evidence of commitment to New Zealand. It permits indefinite travel in and out; it is not awarded automatically after two years. If regular international travel matters, compare the actual return rights on the grant—not just the word “permanent”. Citizenship has separate eligibility and application requirements.

Your passport, existing residence status and job offer can change the answer before points or costs enter the comparison. For applicants without trans-Tasman rights, compare a specific Australian visa with a specific New Zealand pathway—not two country-wide points totals. Start with the citizenship and job-offer branches above, then check the chosen route’s occupation, qualifications, pay and family conditions. A route count or a points estimate is not a likelihood of approval.

In the last 6 months: 1 logged policy change for Commonwealth of Australia, 3 for New Zealand. See the recent-policy section above for the details, each linked to its primary source.

Among the routes covered here, Commonwealth of Australia has 6 marked as not requiring an employer sponsor, compared with 5 for New Zealand. This is a database classification, not a count of routes open to you without a job offer. A route can require an eligible job even where formal employer sponsorship is not required; New Zealand SMC is one example. Check your chosen route’s actual conditions.

Commonwealth of Australia: The subclass 189 points-tested visa application charge is A$6,135 for the primary applicant, plus A$3,070 per additional adult and A$1,540 per child under 18. A couple pays A$9,205 in first-instalment charges. Conditional English charges and separately paid assessment, testing and document costs are extra. (source checked 2026-09-10) New Zealand: New Zealand publishes NZD 6,450 as the application cost for the Skilled Migrant Category Resident Visa, with no separate EOI submission fee. (source checked 2026-07-01) These summaries may combine government charges with an explicitly labelled worked example or third-party expenses. Compare the itemised fees for the same household and application stage before judging which route costs less; amounts in different currencies are not directly comparable.