Hospital treatment
New Zealand citizens and permanent residents of New Zealand (prior to arriving in Australia) who are temporarily visiting Australia can get free emergency treatment at an Australian public hospital under the Reciprocal Health Care Agreement .
New Zealanders who are 65 or older and live in Australia may be able to get both an Australian age pension and New Zealand superannuation. This depends on the amount of their working life they spent in each country.
The benefits of New Zealand citizenship include:
The ability to live and work in New Zealand permanently. The ability to travel to and from New Zealand without restrictions. The ability to sponsor family members to come to New Zealand. The eligibility to hold a New Zealand passport.
You are considered to be lawfully resident to apply for a benefit or pension if you live in New Zealand and: you are not unlawfully resident in New Zealand or here on a temporary entry class visa or temporary permit*, or. you are a New Zealand citizen, or. you are an Australian citizen.
New Zealanders can apply to become Australian citizens . From 1 July 2023, New Zealand citizens who have been living in Australia for four years or more will be eligible to apply directly for Australian citizenship. They will no longer need to first apply for and be granted a permanent visa.
There are two main differences between the retirement systems of Australia and New Zealand. First, Australia's age pension is means tested while New Zealand's is universal. Second, Australia has a compulsory employer funded superannuation scheme, the Superannuation Guarantee (SG).
If you're a New Zealand citizen living in Australia you may be eligible to get Centrelink payments or concession cards.
As an NZ Citizen, you are eligible for Medicare Australia.
However, you do need to either be living in Australia for 6 months or provide proof that you'll be living here for the next 6 months. The info you will find below in this post: Medicare Enrollment for NZ Citizens.
New Zealanders must provide proof of identity before they can open a bank account in Australia.
New Zealanders buying property from outside of Australia need to pay an additional Foreign Transfer Duty of 7-8% depending on which state the purchase is made in.
To get Age Pension you generally need to have been an Australian resident for at least 10 years in total. For at least 5 of these years, there must be no break in your residence. We may need more information to establish your Australian residence history.
The first full payment at the new rates of pension will be payday 6 April 2023. The maximum rate of single service pension will rise by $37.50 to $1,064.00 per fortnight and the maximum rate for couples will increase by $28.20 to $802.00 per fortnight (each).
Bank interest reviews. We check your bank account information is up to date. We do this to check we paid you the right payment and amount in the past.
From 1 July 2023, eligible New Zealand citizens who have been living in Australia for at least four years can apply for Australian citizenship. An eligible New Zealand citizen is the holder of a Special Category Visa (SCV).
From 1 July 2023, New Zealand citizens residing in Australia on Subclass 444 Special Category Visa (SCV) will be able to apply directly for citizenship if they have resided in Australia for 4 years or more. This is a direct pathway to Australian Citizenship for eligible New Zealand citizens.
When you are granted your first permanent visa you are usually permitted a 5-year travel facility. This allows you to travel in and out of Australia as many times as you like until the travel facility expires.