Net Migration Falls To Under 50,000

New Zealand had a net migration gain of 44,900 in the September 2024 year, according to provisional estimates released by Stats NZ today.

"Annual net migration gains have continued falling from the provisional peak of 136,300 in the October 2023 year," international migration statistics manager Sarah Drake said.

"The fall in net migration reflects that arrivals are down, and departures are up."

There were 177,900 migrant arrivals in the September 2024 year, which is still high by historical standards. This compared with a record 235,500 migrant arrivals in the October 2023 year.

There were a record 133,000 migrant departures in the September 2024 year, compared with 99,300 migrant departures in the October 2023 year.

Changes in migration are typically due to a combination of factors. These include relative economic and labour market conditions between New Zealand and the rest of the world, and immigration policy in New Zealand and other countries.

Net migration loss of New Zealand citizens continues to set records

There was a provisional net migration loss of 54,700 New Zealand citizens in the September 2024 year.

This record net loss of New Zealand citizens was driven by a record 79,700 migrant departures, which more than offset 24,900 migrant arrivals.

Based on the latest estimates available, just over half of these migrant departures of New Zealand citizens went to Australia.

Country of citizenship is the nationality of passport used to arrive in or depart from New Zealand and is not necessarily the country of previous or next residence.

Net migration gain of non-New Zealand citizens falls further from peak

There was a provisional net migration gain of 99,600 non-New Zealand citizens in the September 2024 year. This was down from the peak of 177,200 in the October 2023 year, but still high by historical standards.

Citizens of India, the Philippines, and China drove net migration gains in the September 2024 year.

The smaller net migration gain of non-New Zealand citizens was driven by a fall in the number of migrant arrivals. There were 153,000 migrant arrivals of non-New Zealand citizens in the September 2024 year, down from the peak of 212,500 in the October 2023 year. Two-thirds of this fall was due to fewer migrants arriving on work visas.

Migrant departures of non-New Zealand citizens rose to 53,300 in the September 2024 year, up from 35,300 in the October 2023 year.

Who is a migrant

Migrants are people changing their country of residence, regardless of their country of citizenship or visa status. A 12-month threshold is used to classify migrants from non-migrants, aligned with international guidelines on measuring migration.

Migration is a key contributor to population change in New Zealand. For provisional estimates see: 

• National population estimates: At 30 June 2024 (2018-base) (published 19 August 2024)
• Subnational population estimates: At 30 June 2024 (2018-base) (published 25 October 2024).

National population estimates: At 30 September 2024 (2018-base) will be published on 20 November 2024.