If you’ve started researching the cost of moving to New Zealand, you’ve probably realised one thing…
Nobody seems to agree on how much it actually costs.
One website says you can relocate for a few thousand pounds.
Another suggests you’ll need tens of thousands before you even think about booking your flights.
The reality is that every family’s situation is different.
Your visa, where you’re moving from, whether you’re shipping furniture, the size of your family and even where you decide to live in New Zealand will all affect the final cost.
That’s exactly why we’ve decided to publish every expense as we go.
Rather than giving estimates, we’re documenting the real cost of our family’s move from the UK to New Zealand, including the expected expenses, the unexpected surprises and the hidden costs that many relocation guides don’t mention.
We’ll keep updating this page every month as we continue moving to New Zealand, making it a living record of what it actually costs a family of four to start a new chapter of life in New Zealand.
Hopefully it helps you build a more realistic budget for your own move.
Our Moving Costs at a Glance
| Expense | Cost |
|---|---|
| Straight to Residence Visa | ~£3,000 |
| Medical Examinations | ~£900 |
| Police Certificates | ~£300 |
| Solicitor Certification | ~£150 |
| Flights | Updating |
| Shipping | Updating |
| Temporary Accommodation | Updating |
| Rental Bond | Updating |
| First Grocery Shop | Updating |
| Car Purchase | Updating |
| Hidden Costs | Updating |
Running Total So Far: ~£4,350
We’ll continue updating this table throughout our relocation journey so you can see exactly how much our move ends up costing.
Visa Costs
As a family of four applying through the Straight to Residence Visa, our application has cost around £3,000.
Although it’s a significant amount of money, it’s also the foundation that allows us to begin our new life in New Zealand.
Without the visa, none of the other planning really matters.
If you’re researching your own move, remember that visa costs will vary depending on the pathway you’re applying under and the number of people included in your application.
Our Visa Costs
- Straight to Residence Visa: ~£3,000
Running Total: £3,000
Medical Examination Costs
As part of our visa application, we also needed immigration medical examinations.
For our family, these came to around £900 in total.
It’s one of those costs that’s easy to overlook when budgeting because many people focus purely on the visa application fee.
In reality, the medical examinations are another essential part of moving to New Zealand, so it’s worth factoring them into your budget from the beginning.
Our Medical Costs
- Immigration medical examinations: ~£900
Running Total: ~£3,900
Police Certificates & Document Certification
Another expense that surprised us was the amount of paperwork involved.
For our visa application, both my wife and I needed police certificates, which came to around £300 altogether.
On top of that, many documents needed to be officially certified by a solicitor before they could be submitted.
Our solicitor charged £5 per document, and by the time we’d certified passports, birth certificates, marriage certificates, qualifications and other supporting paperwork, we’d ended up with around 30 documents.
That added another £150 to the overall cost.
None of these fees are individually huge, but together they quickly add up.
They’re exactly the kind of hidden expenses that often get forgotten when people estimate the cost of moving to New Zealand.
Our Documentation Costs
- Police certificates: ~£300
- Solicitor certification: ~£150
Running Total: ~£4,350
What We've Learnt So Far
One of the biggest lessons we’ve learnt already is that it’s rarely the large expenses that catch you out.
You expect to pay for visas.
You expect medical examinations.
But it’s all the smaller costs around them that slowly increase your budget.
Certificates.
Photocopies.
Solicitor appointments.
Passport photos.
Postage.
None of them seem particularly expensive on their own, but together they can easily add hundreds of pounds to the overall cost of moving to New Zealand.
That’s exactly why we’re tracking every expense.
Not just the obvious ones, but everything else that comes with starting a new life in New Zealand.
Flights to New Zealand
Flights will almost certainly be one of the biggest expenses left on our list.
At the time of writing, we haven’t booked them yet because we’re waiting for our visa to be approved before committing to a departure date.
From our research, flight prices vary hugely depending on the time of year, the airline and the number of stopovers. Travelling as a family of four also means small price differences quickly become significant.
Rather than simply booking the cheapest option, we’re looking at:
- Flight times and total journey length
- Number of stopovers
- Baggage allowances
- Seat selection
- Family-friendly flight times
- Flexibility if plans change
We’ll update this section once we’ve booked our flights so you can see exactly what we paid and which route we chose for our move to New Zealand.
Estimated Cost: This will be around £3000
Finding Somewhere to Live
One of the biggest costs of living in New Zealand will obviously be somewhere to call home.
We’ve spent a lot of time researching rental prices before arriving so we know what to expect.
At the moment, we’re looking around the Bay of Plenty, where my wife will be working.
From everything we’ve researched, a family home suitable for us is likely to cost somewhere between NZ$500 and NZ$750 per week, depending on the location, size and condition of the property.
One thing that surprised us is the upfront cost.
Unlike renting in the UK, many rentals in New Zealand require a bond before you move in, usually between two and four weeks’ rent, along with rent paid in advance.
That means you need a sizeable amount of money available before you’ve even unpacked your first box.
Our Estimated Rental Costs
- Weekly rent: NZ$500–750
- Bond: 2–4 weeks’ rent
- Rent in advance: Updating once secured
We’ll update this section as soon as we’ve signed a tenancy agreement so you can see the exact costs involved.
Buying Our First Car
A car is another expense we’ve been budgeting for from the very beginning.
Although public transport works well in some parts of New Zealand, we know we’ll be doing plenty of driving between work, school runs and weekend adventures.
One of the reasons we’re excited about New Zealand living is being able to explore beaches, national parks and hiking trails as a family, so having a reliable car feels more like a necessity than a luxury.
At the moment, we’ve set ourselves a budget of around £3,000 for our first vehicle.
Rather than buying our dream car immediately, we’re planning to purchase something dependable that gets us from A to B while we settle into our new life in New Zealand.
We’ll also be tracking all the additional costs that come with owning a car, including:
- Registration
- Insurance
- Fuel
- Servicing
- Maintenance
- Any unexpected repairs
We’ll update this section once we’ve bought our first car.
Our Current Budget
- Car purchase: ~£3,000
- Running costs: Updating
Temporary Accommodation
Although we’d love to move straight into a long-term rental, we’re also preparing for the possibility that we’ll need temporary accommodation first.
Many families moving to New Zealand choose to stay in an Airbnb, motel or holiday park while they attend property viewings and organise paperwork.
We’re considering doing exactly the same if it gives us more flexibility and allows us to find the right home rather than rushing into the first property available.
We’ll update this section with:
- Where we stayed
- How many nights
- Total accommodation cost
- Whether we’d recommend it
Shipping Our Belongings
This has probably been one of the easiest decisions for us.
After spending nine months travelling around Latin America with just four suitcases, we’ve realised we don’t actually need as much as we once thought.
Instead of shipping an entire house worth of furniture across the world, we’re planning to keep things simple.
We’ll take the items that genuinely matter and replace many of the larger household items once we’re living in New Zealand.
Not only does this reduce shipping costs, but it also gives us the freedom to start fresh without paying to transport furniture that may not suit our new home anyway.
We’ll update this section once we’ve finalised exactly what we’re taking and whether we use sea freight, air freight or additional luggage instead.
The Costs We're Still Expecting
Although we’ve already spent thousands preparing for our move, we know there are still plenty of expenses ahead.
Some of the biggest costs we’re expecting over the coming months include:
- Flights
- Rental bond
- First month’s rent
- Buying our first car
- Furniture and household essentials
- Our first grocery shop
- Utility connections
- Mobile phone plans
- Internet
- School uniforms and supplies
These are the costs that will really shape our first few months of life in New Zealand, and we’ll continue updating this article as each one becomes a real expense rather than just another item on our budget.
Im also creating a moving to new zealand from the uk checklist.
Our First Grocery Shop
One of the things we’re most curious about is our first proper grocery shop after arriving.
It’s easy to compare the price of milk or bread online, but that doesn’t tell you what a normal weekly shop for a family actually costs.
Once we’re settled, we’ll share exactly what we spend, including photos of our trolley, so you can see what everyday life in New Zealand really looks like.
We’ll be tracking the cost of things like:
- Fruit and vegetables
- Bread and milk
- Eggs and cheese
- Cereal
- Snacks
- Vegetarian food
- Household essentials
- Toiletries
We’ll also compare what we paid in the UK so it’s easier to see where prices are higher, lower or surprisingly similar.
Our First Grocery Shop
Coming soon after we arrive in New Zealand.
The Hidden Costs of Moving to New Zealand
The biggest lesson we’ve learnt so far is that the headline costs are only part of the story.
You expect to pay for visas, flights and accommodation.
It’s the smaller expenses that quietly add up along the way.
Some of the hidden costs we’ve already come across include:
- Police certificates
- Solicitor certification fees
- Passport photos
- Printing and photocopying
- International postage
- Currency exchange fees
- Extra luggage
- Travel accessories
- Plug adapters
- Snacks and drinks during appointments
Once we arrive, we’re expecting plenty more hidden costs that don’t always appear in relocation guides, such as:
- Utility connection costs
- Kitchen essentials
- Cleaning products
- School uniforms
- Sports equipment
- Furniture
- Mobile phone plans
- Internet installation
These aren’t the expenses that stop people moving to New Zealand, but they’re definitely worth budgeting for because they can quickly add hundreds, or even thousands, to your overall moving costs.
Our Monthly Moving Costs
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to move to New Zealand from the UK?
The answer depends on your visa, family size and where you choose to live.
So far, we’ve spent around £4,350 before booking flights or securing a home, and we know there are still significant costs ahead.
We’ll continue updating this guide so you can see exactly what our final moving costs look like.
What’s been the biggest expense so far?
Without question, our Straight to Residence visa.
At around £3,000, it’s currently the largest single cost of our move.
How much money should you save before moving?
Everyone’s circumstances are different, but we’d recommend planning for much more than just the visa and flights.
Rental bonds, groceries, transport, furniture and all the smaller expenses can quickly increase the amount you need when starting life in New Zealand.
