I forgot to mention, if you don't have a visa yet, check the Skills Shortage list! If you have any of these professions, you might be able to get a Skilled Migrant visa. If I remember more tips, I'll add them below! skillshortages.immigration.govt.nz/assets/uploads/long-term-skill-shortage-list.pdf?_ga=2.111204173.831852226.1543956452-165319858.1543793947

Why am I watching this, I’ve lived here all my life?

One thing I would say is to make sure to wear sunscreen everyday. Even on cooler or overcast days since the sun is so harsh in NZ.

Hey I moved here from California too. I came on a visitor Visa, then got a working holiday, then got a work Visa, then student Visa, work Visa again, then now a resident Visa lol. This took 6 years.

Anyone else here because they want to move out of the US 😂

What an awesome introduction to NZ!!! Thank you!!! As a New Zealander, this is exactly what I would want visitors/immigrants to know before going to NZ. Excellent advice... Im certainly going to recommend this video 👍👍

Good information. Gotta get out of the US. Its getting crazy here.

After everything happening in the US right now, my wife and I have talked about leaving Colorado for a while. NZ sounds like a great place to start fresh. Thanks for this video. We appreciate the knowledge.

I’ve started by watching your videos on NYC and now I’m watching this one on New Zealand it’s crazy how time flies

What a lovely introduction to our beautiful awesome country! As a kiwi I'm so greatful that people like you are honest and real. Every country has it's quirks and learning about is up to the person so it lovely to hear ! Welcome to our extremely beautiful country!Love and light from NZ

Thank you! The best video so far! Appreciate all ur tips and the way u presented it is better then the rest of the video...

What an intelligent summary! I'm a Kiwi living in Australia and I've spent most of the last 40 years working with and alongside Americans. I've had quite a few visits to the USA and I feel i have a strong ideaa of the differences between NZ and USA. Your summary of things to know is spot on.

randomly stumbled to your video but as a kiwi, I'd say this is one of the best advice videos I've seen and that this is definitely a video that any traveller/immigrant should definitely watch as you pretty much hit the mark :)

As a Kiwi living elsewhere, I absolutely loved your video, Mari. The one thing that really impressed me was your Maori pronunciation, which was fantastic for a non-local. Ka pai wahine. I hope your NZ experience is going fantastically.

all the advice I have been looking for. Thank you.

Here's a big one you forgot; In order to watch the Sun go from East to West, you have to face North because New Zealand is in the Southern Hemisphere. In the Northern Hemisphere the Sun travels clockwise. In the Southern Hemisphere, the sun travels counter-clockwise.

Thank you Mari, this helped me a lot

Kia Ora Mari, good video as Kiwi living here interesting to hear another's perspective but totally accurate one. I spend a fair bit of time in the U.S. particularly California so know what you are talking about! So if you are coming to NZ, take note of the all tips in this video you will appreciate it.

When I was a baby I imigrated to new Zealand, so it's I ever known. But I will always love this wonderful country

Nice work Mari, warm, friendly and informative. Many will appreciate your video.

Would love more NZ content like this! I hope everything is going well for you. Haven't seen too many uploads lately!

Wow! A great video Mari and the first I’ve seen of yours. And great tips for people moving to NZ. Mine was totally different. I’m British and had been living in Australia for 3 years but couldn’t get a work permit. I’m a qualified chef but a cartoonist by trade. I managed to get sponsorship in NZ in the year 2000 as a cartoonist which is amazing because there’s no cartoon industry as such in this country! And the guy sponsoring me was a fellow cartoonist but wouldnt be able to afford to actually employ me, lol! I said that was okay and I wouldn’t be a financial burden to him. I also had a place to stay with a family in an Auckland suburb for 1 week. Anyway, I arrived here with $300 in my pocket, which is the total I needed to open a bank account back then and I wasn’t going to be able to touch that money for 48 hours. So my first day in Auckland, after getting a SIM card and new phone number for my mobile that I’d bought with me from Australia and opening my bank account, I went and got my IRD number from the tax office on Queen Street. They were super friendly and helpful there. Then I went down to the viaduct where the America’s Cup was taking place. It was super busy. So I went into a restaurant there and asked if they had any waiting jobs going. They said not right now but invited me to fill in an application form. Just as I’d completed the application, a manageress came up to me and asked if I could make coffee and I said yes. She threw me an apron and said, you’ve got a job because the coffee person had just been fired on the spot for whatever reason! She pointed to where I had to go and there was a coffee machine with order dockets all around it! I thought she meant making coffee by putting a teaspoon of instant coffee into a cup and adding boiling water, or even percolated coffee, but I was totally unaware of how to be a coffee barista, lol!?! So I called out to various waiting staff for help and managed to pull it off! That night, getting to know the staff around me, I met someone who shared a house up the road in Herne Bay and someone was moving out in a week, so I had a place to move into. All this was accomplished within my first 24 hours of arriving in a new country. Remember this is before internet etc. Within 2 weeks of starting work at this restaurant, I became the manager and stayed working there for a year as I got my footing as a cartoonist in NZ. In 2004 I bought a house in Wairoa, Hawkes Bay, because like you Mari, I love living close to nature. By 2006 I became a resident of NZ. By 2008 I became a Kiwi citizen. I love New Zealand and as a cartoonist, I have plenty of it as it’s a bit of a niché market in this country. And now with the internet, my website does all the advertising for me. Check it out at seangaskin.com So all up, I’m a very happy chappy in my beautiful adopted country of Aotearoa! 😄🙌

Cool and untypical pros & cons. THANK YOU!!!

You were just perfectly concise here, thanks so much!

Thanks very much for a great informative video that is also full of life and joy. God bless you Mari!

Love it. Spot on

I can hear the New Zealand accent coming through with the way you speak hahaha awesome video 🙌🏻

Thats awesome Mari, good suggestions, Thanks 🙂👍

I really like your video it is very informative ! Cheers from Costa Rica ! Thanks again !

Thanks a lot for sharing those tips. ;-)

Super helpful, thank you so much!

very informative, thanks for makin this video

Thank you Mari ! I am a Californian married to a Kiwi , currently living in the US . We are thinking of moving to NZ and your videos have been so helpful . I guess we will stop complaining about the high cost of gas here (around 4 dollars a gallon) seems like a bargain compared to NZ ! Keep up the good work , your videos are so well done and very much appreciated . MB

Hi Mari. I just successfully completed my application today as a potential skilled worker and I'm waiting to hear back from an immigration official. I'm lucky -- my half sister's parents have a house in New Zealand -- so maybe that will help my transition if I go out there. I won't have to start from square one (but new beginnings energize me!). I am deeply impressed by New Zealand's response to the recent massacre in Christchurch. I love that New Zealand respects its habitat and nature and asks visitors to honor that. I'd much appreciate a slower way of life and to dry my sheets in the sunshine -- that sounds heavenly. After hyper-competitive Washington DC for several years, I'd welcome being around a culture of people who are more friendly, cooperative, and open-minded. Thank you so much for posting this highly informative video and sharing this wealth of information with the rest of the world. Cheers!

This is very informative, love it!

Great video, thank you for sharing!

Hi Mari.. are you coming to Welly anytime soon!? Btw luv the outdoors too..south island is great choice for the scenery..

Would it be possible for you to caption what you're saying? I'm deaf and I depend on captions to understand what's being said. Thank you

Mari, thank you. Excellent information, beautifully and clearly presented and I certainly agree with what you say. A couple of extras, you need to shop around for utilities, power companies, for example, there is a lot of differences between them, some have telephone too, and can be combined. Phone and broadband can be expensive, again shop around.

This is so comprehensive. Thank you so much.

You're awesome e hoa (my friend). Love the tips and touched you embrace the people and the land. You're a kiwi now as far as I'm concerned. Nga mihi mahana (warm greetings) :)

Yeah, I'm Kiwi and its bloody expensive here, still during the season we have many South American travellers on a working holiday and they say the wages here are much better than home. So it bloody should be, it cost a bloody fortune to live here.

Thanks for the video. Really helpful.

Thank you Mari. Wonderful to have great info.

Thank you for this Mari! I’m heading to New Zealand in about 2 months with the working holiday visa so I’m thankful you chose this topic! A question I had was whether or not a car is necessary. After you mentioned the gas prices I got a little apprehensive, but I know that the public transport can’t always take you exactly where you need to go based on my research. Any thoughts you have would be helpful as I start to build my budget! Thanks!

Regarding shipping cargo : I think it depends if you are moving to NZ or you just over a few weeks/months. If you move to NZ it is much cheaper to send a container with all your goods than buying them in new in NZ. A lot of things are waaaaay more expensive.

Thanks for the great info Mari.

This info is really helpful can't wait for me

I enjoyed your video. As a Kiwi I like to see how foreigners view our country and I have seen some really cringe videos. Well done 😊👍

Wait she got your IRD no for you while opening your account?! Amazing!

Hi Mari! Thanks for the valuable information. 🌈

Great and useful tips! 👍

Hi Mari, this is an excellent video. Very informative. Here in Australia, we used to be able to travel to New Zealand without any passports or anything else, though that has changed in recent years. I would love to see a video about how you prepared to move from living in Australia to living over there. That would describe fairly similar to if any of us here decided to move there. My mum was born in New Zealand and some of her relatives still live over there. What exactly is an IRD number? Is that something like an ABN number here in Australia? We need an ABN number with our income tax here. You are right about the cold houses. Back in April 1974, I stayed with relatives in Wellington. It was very cold at the time and I kept suggesting of walking into the open fireplace and sitting in the fire to keep warm!!! My relatives didn't think that was a good idea. LOL. Thanks again for sharing. All the best, Robert.

Thanks for the helpful informations. I live in New York City, and I'm considering to move to NZ. I'm thinking Christchurch since its close to the mountains and the beaches. Thanks again and see you out there soon! 👍😉

you are cool..... I am a returning New Zealander ( 30 years) and I learnt something.... cheers

Nice one good job 👍 thanks for the upload.

i'vebeen trying and trying to talk my wife into moving there for 2 years now. I am in florida. I think the issue I found was job hunting. i contacted a few companies in the industry I am in (life insurance), and its very limited there. I've heard getting a job anywhere in NZ is hard to come by, especially for someone coming from another country. great video, i'm very jealous haha

Hi Mari. I would really like someone to make an in-depth video on driving in New Zealand. You mentioned a few of the obvious differences. You said that NZ roads are "dangerous". Yes, some of them can be difficult to negotiate but I believe the main problem is that tourists and short-term visitors do not adapt. If you talk to Mr or Mrs Average Kiwi, they will relate a tale about a bad encounter with a tourist driver. If you are a professional driver who is on the road all day and every day, you would have half a dozen such tales every day. You would be the ideal person to tackle this problem with your background and now that you live here. Many thanks. Stew

What a wonderful video, absolutely stunning!

I know New Zealand from photographs, and it appears to be one of the most beautiful places on earth.

it’s always been my dream to move here. I live in Hong Kong right now and I just don’t like the big busy city vibes here. New Zealand has beautiful nature and overall its a pretty chill place and I seriously wanna live there. Even the big cities in New Zealand are not nearly as cramped, crowded and stuffy the city centers are in HK. I really really just wanna go here 😔

She’s kinda picked up the accent 😂

Hi Mari, I'm an expat kiwi living in Australia married to an Indonesian. I am so wanting to come home but Ozzi visas for hubby have kept me here so far. Hoping that this year we can come home...and yes I just love Chch....its FLAT! I was there in July for a holiday and saw the new CBD....well done Chch. Want to move either to Chch or a little further out....not sure yet....but wherever we get to...it will be home.

l would add tipping is not compulsory, and most kiwis dont tip

Very informative! I am watching it for fun ...but you quite persuaded me to move there !

Hi! I want to follow up with this video and let you and the viewers know that you DO NOT have to be 30 when you land in NZ for your visa and turn 31 in the country in order to come. This really freaked me out as I leave for NZ in 60 days and turned 31 8 days ago. I called the immigration office to triple check because the info you gave about turning 31 isn’t anywhere on the website and they confirmed I am fine and since my visa is approved, it doesn’t mater that I just turned 31 in the USA, I can still come to NZ and use my working holiday visa normally

Hi Mari, huge fan of all your videos. I’m from the Bay Area and I’ve been watching since I traveled out of the US on my own for the first time to NZ! So awesome to watch your journey unfold! I was wondering how doing taxes worked for you during your working holiday visa did you have to file taxes in both countries on your year in NZ? Thanks!

Thanks for some pieces of information about it.

Really good tips! Thanks

4 seasons in one day: On a tramp (hike) I went on in my early teens, we started the day with sunshine and about mid 20°s C. Just after mid day, the weather turned, we went from clear skies to ominous grey in about 20 minutes, then the rain set in. By mid afternoon, we were marching into a heavy sleet which was being blown up the slopes by the gale force winds. As we got to the hut, the weather turned again, sleet dropped back to rain which petered out in about 15 minutes, and by sundown, we had calm and sunshine. This is why people get in trouble in our back country. "It's a lovely day, I wont need a warm top or a raincoat" An hour later ❄❄❄ And an hour after that 🌤 Which is a little late when they've collapsed from hypothermia.

superb awesome Fentastic superb

Thanks for a great video ! Cant wait to move to NZ!!!!

Great video! Thanks! 👍🏿

I can detect You absorbing a NZ accent . I was there Yeas ago I was an Extra in Xeena, Hercules and Lord of the Rings … Might go back to meet the friends I made there.Good Tips !

Auckland pretty expensive and the traffic bloody horrible. Transport also expensive as well.

Thank You! Great video!

good to know you are good and back after a long gape

Your freckles make me happy.

Could you introduce how to find a apartment or house to rent in NZ?

An enjoyable watch! A great summary. Come to Rotorua at some time and I can show you around.

What an excellent introduction to NZ!!! Thank you so much, !!! As a New Zealander, this is exactly what I would want visitors/immigrants to know before going to NZ. Excellent advice... Iam certainly going to recommend this video too

Ambulance is ONLY free in the Wellington area, otherwise it's about 100.00 including GST.

So in New Zealand you get paid weekly and pay rent weekly? Everytime I read that I wonder if it's a literal thing

You are GREAT, Mari. Keep it up!

Great information. Thank you.

Omg you’re beautiful welcome to Aotearoa.

You could pass as Maori! :)

Brilliant video thanks a lot I just got Job offer and moving to Tauranga in January. I spent three months pre covid living in different parts and although I had no job the people are wonderful. the countryside is so beautiful. It is like an unspoilt paradise and i really hope it stays that way. I will treasure and respect all their cultures, and what they hold dear and allow it to stay the wonderful country I wanted to move to. Great advise re the te reo maori I will definitely brush up on that before I go. Thanks for this wonderful video and tips it has been a great help.

Helpful video

Hey Mari, Yes, I know that New Zealand is understandably protecting itself from the viral chaos. I didn't expect to visit New Zealand until the pandemic has magically disappeared or more likely a vaccination / immunization is developed. I don't blame New Zealand in the least. The pandemic did take its toll on the US, but most of the people who succumbed had co-existing health problem... cardiovascular, pulmonary or some immune issue. As you are likely aware, quite a few of the politically closed countries are no disclosing the true numbers of infections and fatalities. At least in the US, there is some semblance of honest disclosure or at least I hope so. The US is not so homogenous as New Zealand's population which is a much more peaceful culture. This is the reason so many Americans would love to live in the most beautiful country in the world. I hope KIWI's realize how fortunate they are. If I lived in New Zealand, I would certainly close the door to immigration and not make the mistake Europe and the US has made by letting anyone reside and dramatically change our culture. But you play the hand that life deals you. Be well Mari.

You look part Maori

Thx for the guide next year I’m gonna go to live in New Zealand 🇳🇿 so yea,thx

THANK YOU SO MUCH MARI I HOPE TO MOVE TO NZ IN 18MTHS TIME‼️

For some reason all these "Before moving to NZ I wish I knew.." videos are popping up in my feed today. I shake my head and think "bahahaha, they have no idea the price of GAS IN AUCKLAND". I've got a great tip before you move here, don't! 😁✌

I’m a New Zealander and I can’t understand why anyone would want to live here it’s expensive most of the rivers are pullouted

Beneficial information!thank you!

Thank you for the video 🤗

NZ is so expensive !!

Wow ...i thought u were maori ...untill i heard u

Hey Mari. This was a well researched vlog. Well done. I cant wait to experience everything you explained there!