jscb311

Hi All,

New to the site and looking for advice. I'm 25 years old and my partner are looking at emigrating to NZ. Fear of the UK going down the plug hole and society in general on a downward spiral, before having children etc, we are looking to move else where. Having friends from NZ and family visiting there, it seems the obvious place to go. We are looking for a decent lifestyle rather than making money (as i've heard Oz is the place to go if you want money!) but wondering where to start first.

Can any recommend the North Island or the South? Can someone give me pros and cons of living in either place? Which place is best for work? Here i am a healthcare assistant in the NHS and my partner runs two successful businesses which he would hope to carry on with out there. Our only hindrance is finding a job there and bringing a terrier along for the ride. We are flexible on where we go and money not too much of a concern.

I'd appreciate any feedback/help.

Kind Regards,
jscb311

bloobird

If you have never been to NZ before, first I would suggest a long holiday to check it out- its lovely but its not for everyone! i was surprised how much it was like the uk in terms of landscape and weather especially! the 2 islands are very different in many ways, the south always reminded me of scotland with the scenery which is very dramatic, and of course it gets much colder there than the north. It depends what sort of lifestyle you are after..visit a few places and get a feel for them, it will be worth it in the long run. good luck with all your future plans!

jscb311

Thanks for your reply. Visit booked for March next year! Just wanting a bit of advice before going as doing a round robin from one island to the next! Cheers

Pom_Chch

I think these two things are totally different in NZ. The South island weather is similar to the UK in a way that it's not tropical or too humid. But I find the summers to be much more consistently sunny, unlike the UK where you're lucky to get a week of sunshine.

The landscape on the South island is soooooo different from the UK. It's beautiful and as bloobird said - very dramatic! After one year of travelling the world and seeing so many different places the NZ scenery still made my jaw drop. The UK can be lovely too if you like fields, fields, fields and some sheep! NZ is much more diverse - mountains, volcanoes, huge turquoise coloured lakes, stunning beaches. There's also so much more to do if you're into wildlife and outdoor activities - whale watching, penguin spotting, kayaking with sea lions, albatross watching, hiking, tennis...

jscb311

Thank you! Appreciate your feedback. Thankfully the partner is very much into outdoor activities, shooting/fishing etc. I will be far more inclined to divulge in sight seeing etc when there is beautiful scenery to see!

MrsFychan

I would say you need to look at what type of visa you would need to get you able to come and live. It would be a shame to come all this way, spend lots of money decide you want to come and then find you don't have a way in to enable a visa to allow it.

jscb311

Absolutely! http://dol.govt.nz/immigration on here looking at the point system etc to work out what we could go for. Thanks for your comment

Pom_Chch

As you are 25 years old (not sure about your partner) you will qualify for a working holiday visa. It is by no means a permanent visa but it could be a good option for you to figure if NZ is for you, work a little, travel around whilst earning some money at the same time. As you are from the UK you can get a two year WHV that allows you to work for up to a year and stay in NZ for another year after that. Other than that unless you have skills in demand or on either the short or long term skills shortage list it will be difficult for you to get in to NZ. I would personally opt for the WHV as it would suit your needs a little more as you are not sure if you'll like it or not.

Justcol

health care assistant wont get you any points or a visa so you'll have to look at what your partner can get.
As has been said look very carefully for your best options.