Are you planning or thinking about making the big move across the ditch from New Zealand to Australia? You are part of the thousands of New Zealanders who, every year, take the leap of faith and join our neighbours in the west.
Why are people making the move from NZ to Australia?
Many people are drawn to Australia by the bright lights of cities like Sydney and Melbourne, as well as the potential for higher wages and more opportunity for work and professional development. Australia is a city which is popular for people from all over the world. It is close enough to New Zealand that a short plane ride will find you back home within a few hours, so you are never too far from your family and friends.
New Zealanders moving to Australia find transitioning to be quite a smooth process due to the many similarities between Australian and New Zealand culture. Australians tend to share our positive happy-go-lucky attitude that we are so proud of here in New Zealand.
Whilst Australia may lack the world class ski fields and volcanic mountains that we are so proud of here in New Zealand, it is a country which is full to the brim with beautiful scenery such as the Great Barrier Reef, Kakadu National Park and the Great Ocean Road, that will keep you busy on your weekends. There are also several Ski fields in New South Wales and Victoria that you can visit in the winter months if you find yourself unable to return to New Zealand for ski season.
Australia is home to some of the world’s most prestigious sporting events such as the Australian Open, the Melbourne Cup and the F1. It hosts a Bledisloe Cup match each year so you can watch the All Blacks and cheer for them in their away games! For Kiwis looking for a place to live abroad, this is a significant draw card as our own culture is also highly centred around sport.
Australia is home to the Gold Coast, a coastal town in town an hour south of Brisbane. The Gold Coast offers those who live there a relaxed beach lifestyle, with warm weather all year round and beautiful white sand beaches that stretch on for miles. Life on the Gold Coast is relaxed, with warm weather meaning that locals spend lots of time in the outdoors enjoying the sunshine and the ocean. Gold Coast is home to numerous cafes, restaurants and bars, meaning you will always have something to do on your weekends.
Considerations for your move
Australia is an incredibly diverse country and so when moving from New Zealand to Australia there are many things that you will need to consider when choosing where you will settle. Different cities in Australia will all offer you a different lifestyle due to the diversity in scenery and people. Byron Bay will offer people that typical, laid back, surfer Australian lifestyle whilst Sydney is more of a glamorous city with a bustling CBD alongside white sand beaches.
If you are looking for more of a European experience, then Melbourne is the city for you with cafes and restaurants and shopping strips that rival that of the Champs Elysees in Paris. If you are looking to move to Australia to have a stint in the mines then be sure to look towards Western Australia and Perth for your new home.
Before you move to Australia you should sit down with your family and discuss what it is that you would like to get out of your move. Make sure that you include everyone in the conversation including children so that everyone feels like they are taking part in the move, this will make the transition a lot easier as everyone is up to date with all developments.
When Choosing Your New Home Consider Things Like:
- Do you want to live near the coast, in the city or in the countryside?
- What kind of climate would you like to live in?
- What work do you do and where in Australia has the best opportunity to continue your work?
- Do you want your child to attend public or private school?
- Some towns and cities do not have private schools and so you may be required to travel if that is where you would like your child to go.
- Do you need a good public transport system or will you have access to a car? If you will be using a car then you will need to get an Australian drivers license once you arrive.
Before you Leave New Zealand
Before you leave New Zealand, there are number of things that you should endeavour to get done.
- Start looking for a job – there is nothing worse than making the move across the ditch and then fining yourself without a job and unable to get one. You should start your job search as soon as you make the decision the move so that you move straight into a position when you arrive in Australia.
- Start looking for/find a school – Begin looking for a school for your child before you arrive in Australia. To ensure that your child has the smoothest possible transition and does not miss out on any school try to have a school lined up for your child in Australia.
- Find short term accommodation – There is nothing worse than arriving in your new home in Australia and finding that your house is not ready or discovering that finding a home is not as easy as you previously thought! Try to have the first few weeks of accommodation sorted prior to leaving New Zealand.
- Book your moving company – Booking your moving company in advance will help to ensure that you move when you want and how you want. Allied are industry leaders in international moving and have been moving people around the world for over 300 years.
- When you move to Australia with Allied you have the option of choosing from a number of added extras such as Valet Packing and Unpacking, house cleaning and pet transport.
- Open a bank account – You can open a bank account as far as 12 months before you move to Australia. Opening a bank account prior to your move means that you have one less thing to worry about when you arrive and you can focus on getting settled in.
- Register with a foreign currency provider – registering with a foreign currency provider will mean that you will get a much better return for your money when you transfer it to AUD.
- Register with Medicare – Australia has a world class health care scheme which provides Australian residents with access to healthcare. To register with Medicare, you will need to provide a number of documents to confirm that you are living in Australia. Make sure you check the Australian Department of Human Services website for more information.
- Get a tax file number – you will not be able to do this until after you arrive in Australia but if you will be working in Australia you will need to get a tax file number. You can apply for an Australian tax file number at an Australia post, at a Department of Human Services centre or by post. Visit the ATO website to find out more.
Packing for your move
When packing to move to Australia you can choose to have the professional staff at Allied do it all for you. Our well trained and experienced staff will do all the packing for you and will use only the highest quality packing materials to ensure that your belongings do not fall subject to damage of any kind during transit.
When choosing what you will bring with you to Australia, consider the kind of home that you will be moving into. If you are moving into an apartment or your house is smaller than your house in New Zealand, then you will need to consider the size of your apartment or house and choose which furniture you will bring with you. You may need to put some of your furniture into storage.
Allied have a number of storage facilities in both Australia and New Zealand, so if you cannot bear to part with your dining table or dresser but it will not fit in your new home, you can store it in one of our secure storage facilities.
When you store your belongings with Allied we do not require a lock in contract so whenever you would like your belongings returned to you, all you need to do is give us a call and we will have them returned to you by our trained staff no matter where you are now located.
Transporting your belongings from New Zealand to Australia
Furniture is not designed to be transported and whilst we at Allied take every precaution to ensure that your belongings arrive at their destination in perfect condition, sometimes factors outside can result in items becoming damage. To make sure that you are protected in the case of any items becoming damaged, consider Allied Insurance.
We offer a range of different insurance options such as pairs and sets and new for old. Be sure to speak to your move consultant when booking your move to get a more comprehensive overview of our products.
Arriving in Australia
Once you arrive in Australia it is time to get settled into your new Aussie lifestyle. Australians are very keen on sport, and joining a sporting club is a great way of making new friends as often clubs will host a number of social events throughout the year.
Joining the parents and friends group of your child’s school or the local rotary club are also great ways of meeting new people as well as putting back into the local community.