New Zealand entry requirements for Australian citizens

How long you can stay

The official source doesn't state a fixed stay length. Check it before you travel.

What you need

• Valid Australian passport
• Meet health and character (good character) requirements assessed on arrival

Good to know

Australian citizens are NOT on the visa-waiver list because they are not treated as ordinary visitors: per Immigration New Zealand, an Australian citizen 'can usually live, work and study in New Zealand without applying for a visa or New Zealand Electronic Travel Authority (NZeTA) before you come here', and is normally granted an Australian Resident Visa automatically on arrival, subject to health/character checks. This resident visa has no fixed day-cap and lasts for as long as the person remains in New Zealand, but it ceases on departure (a new one is granted on each re-entry) — stayPolicy uses the non-computable 'visa_required' placeholder because Immigration NZ does not publish a numeric maxDays for this special-category regime, not because a visa application is required in advance. Note: this row is for Australian CITIZENS; Australian PERMANENT RESIDENTS (non-citizens) are treated differently and must get an NZeTA before travelling, per the same source.

Source Immigration New Zealand — Australian citizens and permanent residents travelling to New ZealandChecked against the source on 2026-08-18