Moving to Australia from NZ: tax & money guide
Moving to Australia from New Zealand? Your guide to tax residency on departure, transferring KiwiSaver to super, overseas student-loan repayments, NZ Super vs the Age Pension, and a NZ-vs-AU take-home comparison.
Tools
- NZ vs Australia take-home comparison
Enter your salary and compare income tax and take-home pay side by side.
- Overseas student loan calculator
Repayments and interest once you become an overseas-based borrower.
Guides
- Tax residency when you leave NZ for Australia
When your NZ tax residence ends, the part-year IR3, and what stays NZ-taxable.
- KiwiSaver when you move to Australia
Why you transfer to Australian super rather than cash out, and the trade-offs.
- Student loan when you move to Australia
Becoming an overseas-based borrower: interest reapplies and fixed repayments.
- NZ Super vs the Australian Age Pension
The trans-Tasman social security agreement and residence rules.
- FIF & investments as an Australian tax resident
What happens to your overseas shares, FIF holdings and KiwiSaver.
- Double tax agreements (NZ–Australia)
How the DTA stops the same income being taxed twice.
Common questions
- Do I pay NZ tax after I move to Australia?
- Once you stop being a NZ tax resident — broadly, you have no permanent place of abode in NZ and you are away more than 325 days in a 12-month period — New Zealand only taxes your NZ-sourced income. See the residency guide for the departure-year IR3.
- Can I cash out my KiwiSaver when I move to Australia?
- Generally no. Unlike a permanent move to most other countries, a move to Australia routes you into the trans-Tasman portability scheme — you can transfer KiwiSaver to an Australian complying super fund rather than withdrawing it as cash.
- What happens to my NZ student loan in Australia?
- You usually become an overseas-based borrower: interest is charged again and you owe fixed repayments based on your loan balance. The overseas student loan calculator estimates these.