New Zealand’s Working Holiday Schemes Reopening
On 3 February 2023, Immigration New Zealand announced the reopening dates of its capped Working Holiday schemes for the year.
Once each scheme opens, it’ll stay open until all allocated spaces are filled. Once all spaces are taken, the scheme will close until 2024.
2023 Reopening dates
The reopening dates for New Zealand’s Working Holiday Schemes are as follows:
| Working Holiday Scheme | 2023 Opening Date | Cap (People per Year) |
|---|---|---|
| Malaysia | 7 February | 1,150 |
| Portugal | 21 February | 50 |
| Mexico | 28 February | 200 |
| Estonia | 9 March | 100 |
| Philippines | 16 March | 100 |
| Hong Kong | 28 March | 400 |
| Slovenia | 6 April | 100 |
| Hungary | 27 April | 100 |
| Slovakia | 4 May | 100 |
| Austria | 11 May | 100 |
| Korea | 18 May | 3,000 |
| Luxembourg | 1 June | 50 |
| Poland | 8 June | 100 |
| Latvia | 15 June | 100 |
| Czech | 22 June | 1,200 |
| Israel | 4 July | 200 |
| Singapore | 11 July | 300 |
| Taiwan | 18 July | 600 |
| China | 1 August | 1,000 |
| Malta | 10 August | 50 |
| Lithuania | 17 August | 100 |
| Thailand | 24 August | 100 |
| Turkey | 31 August | 100 |
| Argentina | 14 September | 1,000 |
| Croatia | 26 September | 100 |
| Peru | 3 October | 100 |
| Brazil | 10 October | 300 |
| Chile | 19 October | 940 |
| Uruguay | 2 November | 200 |
What are the Working Holiday scheme?
The Working Holiday schemes are agreements between New Zealand and other countries allowing the citizens of those countries to work in and explore New Zealand.
The associated visa is a Working Holiday Visa. This visa is available to young people, usually aged 18 to 30, but 18 to 35 in select countries.
More about the Working Holiday Visa
As discussed above, the Working Holiday Visa allows young people to work in and explore New Zealand.
The main purpose of the stay must be to holiday, with both work or a short amount of study as the secondary intentions.
Furthermore:
- Most visa holders can stay in New Zealand for up to 12 months on a Working Holiday Visa. Those from the UK or Canada are eligible for visas up to 23 months.
- Working Holiday Visa holders cannot accept permanent job offers while in New Zealand.
- Each country has its own employment conditions. For instance, some countries stipulate that you can’t work for the same employer for more than three months while in New Zealand, while others don’t.
- Working Holiday Visa holders can study one or more courses for up to six months in New Zealand.
- Visa holders must have enough money to buy a return ticket.
Working Holiday Visa requirements and conditions for each country
Please visit each country’s page on Immigration New Zealand to see the requirements and conditions of its Working Holiday Visa:
Europe
Austria | Belgium | Croatia | Czech | Denmark | Estonia | Finland | France | Germany | Hungary | Ireland | Italy | Latvia | Lithuania | Luxembourg | Malta | Netherlands | Norway | Poland | Portugal | Slovakia | Slovenia | Spain | Sweden | United Kingdom
North America
South America
Argentina | Brazil | Chile | Mexico | Peru | Uruguay
Asia
China | Hong Kong | Japan | Korea | Malaysia | Philippines | Singapore | Taiwan | Thailand | Vietnam
Middle East
What if you want to work in New Zealand permanently?
Visa holders who want to live and work in New Zealand permanently must explore their visa options to allow them to do that.
New Zealand has work visas for skilled migrants and migrants with job offers from accredited New Zealand employers. Partners of New Zealanders also have visa options that allow them to work in New Zealand.
Our advice? Speak with a licensed immigration advisor so that they can assess your eligibility against the requirements of the various visas. It’s the best way to ensure that you know exactly what options are available to you.