Visas · Cost of living · Study & work
Arrive prepared.
Settle sooner.
The numbers on visas, rent, study and work in New Zealand, in language you can actually use. Rent, transport and living costs come from named sources, with the source and the date we checked it shown beside each table. Where we could not find a source, the figure is labelled an estimate. We don't advise. We show you the data.
Before you come
What it costs, what the visa categories are, what to bring, what to sort from home.
Start here →Landing
First 90 days: IRD number, bank, phone, a place to live, a GP.
The landing checklist →Year one
Work rights, the job market as it actually is, building a network from zero.
Work & study →Years two to five
Residence pathways, bringing family, buying, staying, or deciding not to.
Residence paths →Sources we draw on. These agencies do not endorse or review Custailo
Cost of living
What a week actually costs
Five cities, side by side, sourced and dated below.
Take-home pay
And what actually reaches you
Four example salaries, at Inland Revenue's published rates.
Visas, explained
The paths most people actually take
Information, not advice. Each step explains what the visa is for and links to Immigration NZ for the current rules. For a decision about your case, use a licensed adviser.
Student
Study full-time at an approved provider. Part-time work rights while studying, with limits.
Post-study work
Open work rights after finishing an eligible qualification. Length depends on what you studied.
Accredited Employer Work
An accredited employer offers you a job that meets the wage and skill rules.
Residence
Skilled Migrant points, Green List roles, partner and family routes. Each has its own bar.
Why Custailo exists
Nobody should lose two years finding out what a website could have told them.
Graduates spend months applying into silence because nobody explained how hiring here really works. Families sign for a rental without knowing what similar places nearby are let for. People pay thousands to someone who called themselves an adviser and was not licensed. None of them did anything wrong. They just had no way to check.
Custailo puts the information in one place, cites where it came from, and says clearly what it can't tell you, so you know when it's time to talk to a licensed human.
What we are, and what we're not →The arrival guide
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