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Despite the fears at the borders and a refreshing global economy, New Zealand’s travel corridor remains surprisingly robust, writes Catherine McGregor in today’s bulletin extract.
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Migration raises as a jump of interest to the golden visa
After more than a year of anemic immigration numbers, February saw the largest number of long -term arrivals for any month since September 2023, reports Greg Ninness, from Interest, reports. Helped by a sharp decrease in long -term matches, general net immigration was 29.3% higher than in February 2024. It can be little more than a little dot, warning ninness, as “the migration trend annually is strongly negative, with the overall gain of gain well ahead.”
Meanwhile, the renovated government’s golden visa program is drawing unprecedented attention, with 2,500 people visiting the application page in the first two weeks – an increase of more than 700% in the figures visiting the old investor visa request at the same time last year, RNZ Reports. Although the 43 requests presented in the fortnight of opening may not seem much, this is almost half of the total sent under ancient politics in two and a half years. As Immigration Consultant David Cooper said, he and his colleagues are starting to see “people who are not just talking, who are really committing.”
US tourists are at the top of the charts
Among those who contributed to the increase in immigration in February, there were 537 Americans, “which if confirmed would be one of the highest monthly total of the US ever registered,” The post reports (Paywalled). The number of short -term visitors in the US was even more impressive, with Americans representing 18% of all entry visitors in February, second only to Australians. What’s more, “the 379,000 arrivals of US visitors in the US in February 2025 were a record of any year of that country,” said NZ Stats.
Although the strong US dollar has probably been essential to attracting Americans in the last 12 months, the government expects a larger investment in marketing to keep them coming. On Monday, Tourism Minister Louise Upston announced an international international marketing impetus of $ 13.5 million, building in the campaign ‘everyone should go’, focused on Australia earlier this year.
New Zealanders still crossing the Pacific
While Europeans are canceling the US holidays in a mass-trend captured in a viral post by journalist John Burn-Murdoch-O Even cannot be said of the New Zealandes. The local Daily X account noted that NZ visits the US also fell in March, but only after a huge 31% increase in February, probably due to the departure of Las Vegas dos Warriors. And although it is easy to blame political agitation for any fall, Westpac economist Kelly Eckhold suggests that the main pilot can be much simpler: the high American dollar, which has made it prohibitively expensive vacations in the United States for many. The US remains the third most reserved country in March and April, reports Herald.
Border fears rising
This resilience can still be tested. Over the weekend, Guardian published a disturbing account of a detained, interrogated and deported Australian man from the US, despite having a valid work visa. The man, who has lived in the US for over five years, says he was accused of drug trafficking, denied access to a lawyer and said, “Trump is back in town; we are doing things the way we should always do.”
Its history echoes other people emerging in recent months – including Germany, Canada and the United Kingdom – but, but coming from an Australian, it is likely to approach home in New Zealand. Auckland University has warned its team to expect a “increased scrutiny” on the US border, especially those involved in politically sensitive research, the material reports. The MFAT is currently reviewing its advice to travel to the US and other countries, a gateway told the newsroom.
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