New Zealand citizen moving to Australia — visa, PR and family

New Zealand citizens contact a migration practice for a different reason from everyone else. Nobody needs help getting into Australia — the arrangement between the two countries handles that. What people need is a clear statement of what the 444 is and is not, the route from it to something permanent, and — the part that catches families out — what happens to a spouse or a child who holds a different passport.

The Special Category visa (subclass 444) on arrival

An eligible New Zealand citizen who arrives in Australia on a New Zealand passport is generally granted a Special Category visa (subclass 444) on arrival. The 444 allows you to live and work in Australia for as long as you remain an NZ citizen and hold it. There is no application in the usual sense and no sponsor. Eligibility is subject to the usual health and character considerations, which the Department of Home Affairs applies at the border.

The 444 is, in law, a temporary visa. That single fact drives everything else on this page: it is why the questions about permanent residence and citizenship exist at all, and why the position of non-NZ family members needs separate attention.

No employer sponsorship needed

Because the 444 carries work rights, a New Zealand citizen can accept a job with any Australian employer without a 482, a 494 or a 186. There is no occupation list to satisfy, no skills assessment for the purpose of the visa, and no salary threshold. Employers unfamiliar with the arrangement sometimes ask an NZ candidate to "get sponsored" — the answer is that the 444 already provides the right to work, and an employer can verify it through the Department's VEVO service.

The only reason an NZ citizen would consider an employer-sponsored permanent visa is as an alternative route to permanent residence. For most, the 189 New Zealand stream is the more natural path.

Permanent residence: the 189 New Zealand stream

The Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189) has a New Zealand stream, designed for New Zealand citizens who have been living and working in Australia on a 444. It is the permanent-residence route for this group. Its eligibility rules — the required period of residence in Australia, income or other requirements, and the health and character criteria — are set by the Department of Home Affairs and have changed over the years; they must be checked on the DHA 189 New Zealand stream page as they stand at the time you apply. We deliberately do not restate the current conditions here, because a residence period or income figure copied from a page written earlier is exactly what leads people to lodge when they are not yet eligible.

Permanent residence matters beyond the label. It changes access to a range of Australian services and entitlements that are not available on the 444, and it is the usual precondition for sponsoring family members and for the general citizenship pathway.

Australian citizenship for New Zealand citizens

A direct pathway to Australian citizenship for eligible New Zealand citizens exists, alongside the general route via permanent residence. Its conditions — residence period, the date from which residence counts, and the other citizenship requirements — are published by the Department of Home Affairs and should be checked there. Whether the direct pathway or the 189-then-citizenship route is right for you depends on when you arrived, how continuously you have lived in Australia, and your family's position. That is a dated, individual question and one we answer in writing rather than in general.

Partners and children who are not New Zealand citizens

This is where most NZ-citizen enquiries actually turn. The 444 is granted only to New Zealand citizens. A partner or a child who holds a different passport does not receive a 444 and needs a visa of their own.

• A partner who is not an NZ citizen will generally need a partner visa. The visa application charge is A$11,710, whether applied for offshore (subclass 309/100) or onshore (subclass 820/801). Eligibility to sponsor a partner depends on the NZ citizen's own status — which is one of the practical reasons permanent residence, rather than the 444, is worth pursuing.
• Children who are not NZ citizens need their own visa — see our child visa page. A child born in Australia to a 444 holder has a status that depends on the parents' position at the time of birth, and it should be confirmed rather than assumed.
• A partner who is an NZ citizen is in the same position as you and receives a 444 on arrival.

Families in this position should plan the sequence — who moves when, on what visa, and whether the NZ citizen should secure permanent residence first — before anyone resigns or books a flight. The partner visa charge is not refunded if the application fails, and the eligibility to sponsor is the common failure point.

What to do

• Moving alone or with an NZ-citizen family: arrive on your NZ passport, work on the 444, and note the date — residence periods for the 189 and for citizenship count from dates the Department defines.
• Already here on a 444: check the 189 New Zealand stream and the direct citizenship pathway against your arrival date and residence history, and choose deliberately.
• Partner or children on another passport: start with their visa position, not yours. It is the harder and more expensive part.

A consultation is the right first step: bring your arrival date, who is coming with you and on what passports, and you leave knowing which pathway fits and what the family plan needs to look like. $330 inc. GST, credited if you engage.

General information only, not migration advice. Eligibility for the 444, the 189 New Zealand stream and the citizenship pathway is determined by the Department of Home Affairs under rules that change; confirm the current position before relying on it. Advice is provided by Keshab Chapagain (MARN 1576536) after a consultation. No outcome can be guaranteed (s 15, Migration Agents Code of Conduct).