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Moving to New Zealand from the United States of America
Do you wonder whether New Zealand might be the right place for you?
Maybe you would like to live somewhere more relaxed, in a peaceful country where people look out for each other and with services like subsidised healthcare?Why do American Citizens choose New Zealand?
New Zealand and the USA have a lot in common.
We enjoy much of the same popular culture and share English as our most-used language.
People who have moved here from the USA find that New Zealanders are relaxed, friendly, and easy to get along with.
One of the differences is our pace of life. Many migrants from America find New Zealand quieter and gentler with a great work/life balance.
In New Zealand, we are geographically distant from political issues troubling many other parts of the world, but we still take a strong interest in world affairs.
We are active voters and enjoy a long tradition of calm and polite political debate.
In general elections, each enrolled New Zealand citizen or permanent resident has two votes.
Political parties must get at least 5% of the party vote or win an electorate seat to have a seat in Parliament.
Usually no party gets enough votes to govern alone. Parties often need to come to an agreement with others to form a government or pass legislation.
Unlike the US, New Zealand does not have a president, we have a Prime Minister.
New Zealand is known worldwide for its quality of life and relaxed pace.
New Zealanders have a strong work ethic but also believe in having a good work life balance. Even in our biggest cities, you are never too far from a beach, bike trail, or national park. We love the outdoors, and like to make time for rest and relaxation with our friends and families.
Workmates and employers alike respect the fact that you have a life outside the office, to pursue your own interests or simply to share in quality time with your family. And why wouldn’t they - when they’ll also be out there doing the same: taking advantage of all the opportunities New Zealand offers for relaxation, recreation and exploration.
In the 2020 HSBC Expat Explorer survey New Zealand was voted No.1 for Mindset (cultural values, personal development and personal achievements), No. 2 for Living, and No. 3 Overall.
One of the most important things we can offer is a great environment to raise a family.
Families enjoy our famously clean air and also feel very safe here. The 2020 Global Peace Index — comparing 160 countries for the risk of personal violence — rated New Zealand the world’s second safest country after Iceland.
Along with affordable, quality education, we give children the opportunity to get close to nature and enjoy a diverse range of healthy sport, recreation, and adventure activities.
If there is one major difference between the USA and New Zealand housing, it is space. When you are looking for a home here, you have plenty of choices.
Whether you want a large home in the suburbs with a garden and room for children and pets, open space and land in the countryside, or a smart downtown flat in the city, New Zealand has options for the lifestyle you’re looking for.
Unless you settle somewhere particularly remote, you can expect to enjoy your home without wasting hours of your life commuting.
The quality of New Zealand’s education is another attraction.
We ranked third just behind Finland and Switzerland in The Economist’s 2018 Worldwide Educating for the Future Index of 50 major countries, and we are among the world’s main ‘host nations’ for international students.
At the other end of the scale, all eight New Zealand Universities are in the top 500 of the 2019 QS World University Rankings. All of them offer at least one subject ranked in the world’s top 100.
Along with affordable, quality education, we give children the opportunity to get close to nature and enjoy a diverse range of healthy sport, recreation, and adventure activities.
Public healthcare in New Zealand is free or low cost — if you are a citizen, resident or hold a work visa valid for 2 years or more.
The New Zealand Government pays for some of our healthcare fees, which means you only have to pay a part of the fee when you see your local doctor — also known here as general practitioner or GP. This makes health care much more affordable than in the USA.
Accident and emergency treatment at hospitals is free, but you may need private healthcare for elective procedures.
Accident-related medical care:
If you are injured in an accident, your medical and recovery costs are likely to be covered by our Accident Compensation scheme (ACC) — even if you were at fault. It is paid for by levies that get taken from your salary. Because of ACC, we do not sue for injuries in New Zealand.
New Zealand has a temperate climate, which means we have relatively warm, dry summers — December to February — and mild, wet winters — June to August.
New Zealand is renowned for its scenic beauty — from sweeping surf beaches, densely-wooded native forests and snow-covered volcanoes in the North Island to the mighty Southern Alps, unique braided rivers and deep fjords in the South Island.
The breath-taking landscape is why New Zealand often features in movies with dramatic outdoor settings, like The Lord of the Rings.
The quality of our Fusion Service is completely unique in New Zealand.
We are not just doing hopeful paperwork for your visa, or giving you generic job search guides and CV templates.
Our Visa Assistance Service and our Job Search Service are expertly aligned with each other. Your Licensed Immigration Advisers and Job Search Professionals will cooperate closely throughout your entire immigration process,
We will as assist your employer through the steps of legally hiring you, such as Labour Market Testing.
Read what our actual clients had to say
No matter which visa type might be right for you, to get started fill in the Free Assessment form and let us know your plans for New Zealand.
Our Licensed Immigration Advisers will carefully assess the information you have provided and will give you their honest and upfront opinion on whether you might qualify for a visa.
If we assess your chances as realistically good, we will invite you to our popular Free Immigration Webinar, where you will learn everything you need to know about your visa and job hunt to make an informed decision about your next step on your way to living in New Zealand.
The decision of migrating to a new country is one of the most important decisions you will make in your life and we want you to be fully informed at all times during your decision making process.
To prove to you that we actually mean this, we are happy to provide all necessary information for your decision making process to you for free: Our Free Assessment Process.
We stand by our word to provide the best level of support you can get for your move to New Zealand, and as we know how important this decision is for you, we want to give you a solid base for your decision making process.
Base your move on solid grounds: Ask us for a Free Assessment first!
We stand by our word to provide the best level of support you can get for your move to New Zealand, and as we know how important this decision is for you, we want to give you a solid base for your decision making process.