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  1. Eligibility To Work
  2. Before You Leave Home
  3. Setting Up A Bank Account
  4. Inland Revenue Requirements
  5. Contract or Permanent
  6. Commerce vs Banking
  7. Cost Of Living
  8. Useful Information

Before You Leave Home

Destination: New Zealand

Luggage

3 – 6 months to go:

  • Shop around for flights and travel insurance. Usually the earlier you book, the better the deal.

  • Consider setting up a bank account before you leave your home country. Your 'home' bank may have affiliate banks in New Zealand which will make this process easier.

2 months to go:

  • Update your CV (see our CV Writing page for helpful advice and a downloadable template)

  • Hand in your notice at work (depending on the notice period in your contract), obtain written references (on headed paper) and a certificate of service from your current workplace.

  • Gather personal and professional references. (Not all employers in Australia will require these but recruitment agencies will always perform an independent check with your previous employers from the past five years. Contact details of HR departments or previous managers will suffice)

  • Confirm (and, if necessary, pay for) your flights.

  • If you don't have family or friends to stay with when you arrive, research and book accommodation. For economical options take a look at www.backpack.co.nz or www.yha.co.nz.

  • Arrange for storage of items that you are not taking with you. It is a good idea to make a list of the things you store.

1 month to go:

  • Register your job-hunting details with myJobCaddy if you have not already done so.

  • Leave a photocopy of important documents (e.g. passport and its visa page, references, academic transcripts, academic certificates, airline tickets, etc) with family or a friend at home.

  • Ensure you have met or are aware of the tax obligations in the country you are leaving.

  • Pay any outstanding (and upcoming) bills.

  • If one of your family members is going to be taking care of your financial and legal affairs ensure they have power of attorney for these.

  • If necessary, change your postal address to ensure your mail is sent somewhere safe.

  • Gather landlord references and note all addresses you've lived at for the last five years (necessary for credit checks in the UK.

  • Have some extra passport photos taken of yourself (these will be handy when applying for countries you wish to visit, travel cards, etc).

  • If you intend to drive in New Zealand you may wish to apply for an International Driving Licence which will allow you to drive for up to 12 months.

  • Have a dental and medical check up.

  • Organise foreign exchange. See our FX Transfer page for information and providers.

  • When packing, remember most airlines only allow 20kg of checked-in baggage and 5–7kg of hand luggage in economy class (although this is significantly more when traveling via the USA). Check with your airline for specifics.

  • If you want to transfer funds from a South Africa to a New Zealand bank account you'll need to contact SARS to arrange tax clearance.