‘I love my country. I don’t want to leave’: readers reflect on the exodus from New Zealand
In the past year, tens of thousands of New Zealanders have left the country, surpassing the last spike in 2012 and raising fears of a “hollowing out” of mid-career workers. Guardian readers share their experiences on why they left – or are thinking of moving out of New Zealand. I found a job in Australia in a week I was searching for employment for seven months back home. I have experience in my field, and was only getting bites here and there from hiring panels who were genuinely more overwhelmed than I was. I found a job in Australia within a week. I dream of scenes from my childhood: beaches, fish and chips, and the bright bloom of pohutukawa trees. But as vivid as those memories are, you can’t build a life on scenery alone. Adam New Zealand not the utopian ideal We are considering leaving for financial reasons and a failing healthcare system. It’s not the utopian ideal that The Hobbit and Air New Zealand sells to the rest of the world. Fifteen to 20 years ago it offered opportunity – a relaxed and balanced work/life (compared to the UK) – now it’s caught up and overtaken the UK in terms of failing social welfare, healthcare and a lack of infrastructure investment. Young people have no future here and only the wealthy … can afford to stay. Ant I wish I could have achieved this in New Zealand I’ve already left for higher level study and now work. I have a stable and well-paying job and stable housing, transport, food costs and other amenities. I could not attain this in New Zealand, nor would I be as successful in my career as I am now. [I feel] very sad. I wish I could have achieved this in New Zealand. Celine The scientific landscape feels uncertain I’m considering leaving – I think it’s quite likely that I’ll leave next year. Between the changes in government research funding, the ongoing amalgamation of the crown research institutes, and the current government’s apathy towards environmental restoration and climate action, the scientific landscape in New Zealand feels a bit uncertain at the moment. I’m worried about my prospects of finding a well-funded research position here and concerned about the cost of living. I love Aotearoa. I would miss my family and friends, the landscapes, and the sound of tui waking me up in the morning. Ultimately, though, I think a move overseas would be the best option for me, both in terms of career progression and my own personal growth. Anonymous It doesn’t feel like home [I’m] considering leaving, no hope for buying a house for the family, the cost of living is very high and housing prices are still insane, even after a slight drop. Too difficult to compete with all the investors who speculate with family homes. Moving is always difficult. But hope for the future is worth it. We are looking for rational house-to-income ratios. [It’s] sad, but the country has changed so much that it doesn’t feel like home. Anonymous I got a 30% pay rise in Australia [I] left NZ two years ago for significantly cheaper IVF treatment – about one-fifth of NZ – and significantly higher teacher salaries. I got a 30% pay rise by moving [to Australia]. A bit sad, but ultimately there aren’t enough good reasons to go back compared to what we’ve got here. The countries just seem to be going in opposite directions. Anonymous New Zealand gets too much grief now I am in the process of leaving for a graduate position in Australia next year. Even without the graduate position, I was already planning my move. I was actually volunteering overseas in 2024, and came back to NZ in early 2025. There were simply just no jobs that would take me. I have a master’s degree, experience with the UN, and found it difficult to even get a part-time job. In Australia, the opportunities are infinite compared to NZ. I can also at least attempt to begin saving for retirement with the superannuation scheme, and even owning some type of property seems more within reach. [I feel] quite sad. I don’t have any friends in the city I’ll be moving to, and most of my friends from NZ I have known since childhood. My parents moved to NZ when I was young, hoping to raise us in a nice, safe country. It still is honestly, and I think NZ is getting too much grief right now. I obtained NZ citizenship, as well as others in my family, in the hopes of really making roots here. So leaving feels like another punch in the gut, in that I feel as though I’m abandoning the country that raised me. Ian Buying a house feels impossible I was previously trained in software development, however, AI destroyed most entry-level jobs and was further exacerbated with the downturn in the economy, so I decided to pivot and train again as a school teacher. I’m considering leaving New Zealand primarily because of wages. It’s well understood one can make a third more in income generally. I know that after my teaching training I could get a lot more over there in income, which is a shame because I would love to stay in New Zealand, however, getting ahead, wanting a family and especially getting on the housing ladder feels near impossible here. I feel sad. I love my country. I don’t want to leave. I hope that things will change and will become easier for young people to get ahead, otherwise New Zealand will sink to an island of the haves and have-nots. Anonymous The mood here is bleak My partner and I have decided to move to Germany next June. Mostly, we just want an adventure; the “big OE” is pretty ingrained in the Kiwi cultural psyche and is basically a rite of passage for a lot of young people – although lately the vibe has definitely shifted where more people are leaving the country out of necessity, not choice. I love Aotearoa, but it’s a very physically isolating place to be from, and I want to experience life in a bigger, more well-connected place (the concept of a country with land borders is mind-bogglingly cool). New Zealand currently feels like it’s at a dead end; our heartless government has gutted our public sector, welfare system, indigenous rights and more, the cost of living is so expensive, and there just aren’t a lot of opportunities in general. While I’m pretty optimistic we’ll have a change of government at next year’s election, our problems won’t be solved overnight, and the overall mood here is a bleak one. I’m not being driven out of the country, but there’s also nothing keeping me here, either. I’m excited to leave; I’ve always wanted to live overseas … The world at large is in a precarious place, and Germany has its own set of problems; but I don’t think I’m any better off staying where I am. This government is failing us, and leaving feels like my own personal “fuck you”. The fact that there’s thousands of others just like me is enough of a statement itself. Anonymous







