New Zealand Immigration Median Wage: Current Rate and Full History
The New Zealand immigration median wage is NZ$35.00 an hour, effective 9 March 2026, derived from Stats NZ June 2025 data. It is the index that sets residence, Green List, partner support and family thresholds across the immigration system. It is no longer a pay rule for the Accredited Employer Work Visa — that was removed on 10 March 2025.
Quick Facts
| Current rate | NZ$35.00 an hour |
| Effective from | 9 March 2026 |
| Derived from | Stats NZ June 2025 quarter median hourly earnings |
| Annualised at INZ's convention | About NZ$72,800 a year (40 hours × 52 weeks) |
| Previous rate | NZ$33.56 an hour |
| Update frequency | Annual |
| Update month | Not fixed. February, February, August, then March across four updates |
| Still a work visa pay rule? | No — removed as a pay threshold on 10 March 2025 |
| What it governs now | Skilled residence, Green List rates, partner support, family and sponsorship thresholds |
The current rate
NZ$35.00 an hour, from 9 March 2026.
At Immigration New Zealand's own annualisation convention of 40 hours a week over 52 weeks, that is about NZ$72,800 a year. INZ uses that 40-hour convention consistently, which is why sponsorship thresholds derived from the median land on clean multiples of NZ$72,800.
The rate is derived from Stats NZ June 2025 quarter median hourly earnings. One INZ page labels the figure "the 2025 median wage" without giving a start date, which has caused some confusion — that label refers to the data year, not the year it took effect. Two other INZ sources state the commencement date explicitly as 9 March 2026.
The full series
| Rate | Effective from | Change on previous |
|---|---|---|
| NZ$29.66 | 27 February 2023 | — |
| NZ$31.61 | 28 February 2024 | +NZ$1.95 |
| NZ$33.56 | August 2025 | +NZ$1.95 |
| NZ$35.00 | 9 March 2026 | +NZ$1.44 |
Two clarifications, because both are commonly published wrong.
NZ$29.66 was February 2023, not 2024. February 2024 was NZ$31.61. A large amount of content has these two rates a year out of position, which then propagates into wrong statements about what applied when.
Be careful with the effective dates for the two middle rates. INZ pages have carried inconsistent commencement dates for NZ$31.61 and NZ$33.56. The dates above are the best-supported ones, but the historic series is not as firmly evidenced as the current figure. The current rate — NZ$35.00 from 9 March 2026 — is confirmed by two separate INZ sources and is safe to rely on. If a historic rate matters to your own case, confirm it with INZ or a licensed immigration adviser rather than with a published table.
The update month drifts — do not expect a date
The single most useful thing to know about the median wage is that its update date moves.
| Update | Month |
|---|---|
| 2023 | February |
| 2024 | February |
| 2025 | August |
| 2026 | March |
Four consecutive updates landed in three different months, including a jump from February to August and then back to March. A great deal of third-party content still tells readers the immigration median wage changes every February. It does not.
The only safe statement is the one INZ's own behaviour supports: the median wage is reviewed annually, derived from the Stats NZ June-quarter median hourly earnings, with the effective date announced by INZ. Anyone planning around a threshold — an employer budgeting a pay step, an applicant timing an application — should watch INZ's news centre rather than a calendar.
The multiples the median wage drives
Most thresholds in the system are not the median wage itself. They are multiples of it, and every one of them moved on 9 March 2026.
| Multiple | Hourly rate | Where it is used |
|---|---|---|
| 1.0× | NZ$35.00 | Skilled Migrant Category skilled work threshold for skill levels 1–3; Green List partner support |
| 1.1× | NZ$38.50 | Skilled Work Experience pathway, from 24 August 2026 |
| 1.15× | NZ$40.25 | Green List trade rate band |
| 1.3× | NZ$45.50 | Green List trade rate band |
| 1.5× | NZ$52.50 | SMC threshold for skill levels 4–5 and unlisted occupations; 3 income points |
| 2× | NZ$70.00 | 4 income points |
| 3× | NZ$105.00 | 6 income points |
The full picture of which threshold applies where is set out in wage thresholds for New Zealand visas.
What the median wage stopped doing in 2025
On 10 March 2025 the median wage was removed as a pay threshold for the Accredited Employer Work Visa. Employer-assisted work visa pay is now assessed against the market rate — a range of pay a New Zealander or resident would be paid to do the same job or equivalent work — with the adult minimum wage as the floor.
That is the single most misreported fact in New Zealand immigration content. Widely-read guides still describe a median-wage pay rule for employer-assisted work visas that has not existed since March 2025. See the median wage removed from work visas and market rate pay.
"Abolished" overstates it, though. The median wage did not disappear from the system — it stopped being a pay rule and remained the index. Thresholds derived from it still govern:
- Skilled Migrant Category skilled work and income points
- Green List pay rates
- Partner support thresholds for bringing a partner on a work visa
- Parent Boost sponsorship income
- Dependent child income thresholds
- Transport Work to Residence and other work-to-residence pay rules
Two figures on the work-visa side still reference the older 2024 median rather than the current rate: a role paid at or above NZ$67.12 an hour is exempt from skill requirements, and sector agreements may permit jobs paying below NZ$29.66 an hour. Both are legacy anchors that were not re-indexed, and both are unusual enough to be worth checking directly if they apply to you.
Who an increase actually affects
An increase in the median wage does not land evenly. It reaches four groups, in roughly this order of impact.
People applying for skilled residence. The skilled work threshold and the income points scale both move on the day the new rate takes effect. A role paid at NZ$34.50 an hour counted as skilled work before 9 March 2026 and did not after it — a gap of 50 cents that changes the outcome of an application. See SMC wage thresholds explained.
Workers wanting to bring a partner. Partner support thresholds are median-linked and rise with it. The skill level 1–3 partner support threshold went from NZ$26.85 to NZ$28.00 on 9 March 2026.
People in Green List roles. Green List pay rates are set as multiples of the median and re-index with it.
Sponsors of family visas. Parent Boost sponsorship income thresholds are clean multiples of the annualised median — NZ$72,800 for a single sponsor supporting one parent, being 1.0× the median over 2,080 hours. When the median moves, every one of those figures moves with it.
Who it does not reach: anyone whose pay is assessed on market rate rather than the median, and anyone who already holds a visa granted under an earlier threshold.
Reading a median wage figure correctly
Three habits prevent most of the errors that circulate about this number.
Always attach the effective date. "The median wage is NZ$35.00" is incomplete. "NZ$35.00 from 9 March 2026" is a fact. Because the figure changes annually and the month drifts, an undated median wage figure is not usable.
Distinguish the data year from the commencement year. The current rate is based on Stats NZ June 2025 data and took effect in March 2026. One INZ page calls it "the 2025 median wage" for that reason. Both statements are correct and they refer to different things.
Check whether a threshold is the median or a multiple of it. Most published thresholds are multiples. Quoting NZ$35.00 where the applicable figure is 1.5× — NZ$52.50 — understates a requirement by half.
The grandfathering rule
This is the reassurance most people are actually looking for when they search for a median wage increase.
If you already hold a visa and the wage threshold for that visa rises, you do not need to meet the new rate. That is INZ's own published position. An increase applies to new applications, not retrospectively to a visa already granted.
From 24 August 2026 a related easing applies to the Skilled Migrant Category: applicants need only meet the wage threshold in force when they started gaining the relevant skilled work experience, not the rate current at the time of application. A five-month grace period also applies where the threshold rose between a work visa being granted and work starting. See the Skilled Migrant Category changes explained.
What happened alongside the 9 March 2026 increase
The median wage rise did not arrive alone. On the same date:
- 47 additional occupations were recognised on the National Occupation List at skill levels 1 to 3
- Three roles moved down from skill level 3 to skill level 4: pet groomer, nanny and kennel hand
- Some applicants had to move to a higher pay step to remain eligible — teachers, for example, moved from Step 4 to Step 5 of the pay scale
See the median wage increase and NOL expansion and the National Occupation List explained.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the New Zealand immigration median wage right now?
NZ$35.00 an hour, effective 9 March 2026. That is about NZ$72,800 a year at INZ's 40-hour convention.
When does the immigration median wage change?
Annually, but the month is not fixed. The last four updates took effect in February 2023, February 2024, August 2025 and March 2026. Do not plan around a specific month — watch INZ's announcements.
What was the immigration median wage before?
NZ$33.56 an hour, and before that NZ$31.61 from February 2024 and NZ$29.66 from February 2023. The commencement dates for the two middle rates have been stated inconsistently by INZ, so confirm a historic rate directly if it matters to your case.
Does the median wage still apply to work visas?
Not as a pay rule. It was removed as a pay threshold for employer-assisted work visas on 10 March 2025 and replaced by a market rate test with the adult minimum wage as the floor. It continues to index residence, Green List, partner support and family thresholds.
What is the median wage annually?
About NZ$72,800 a year, using INZ's convention of 40 hours a week over 52 weeks. INZ applies that convention consistently, which is why sponsorship thresholds land on multiples of NZ$72,800.
Do I have to meet the new rate if my visa was granted under the old one?
No. INZ's published rule is that where you already hold a visa and the wage threshold for it increases, you do not need to meet the new rate. Increases apply to new applications.
Where does the median wage figure come from?
Stats NZ median hourly earnings, June quarter. The current NZ$35.00 rate is based on June 2025 data, which is why an INZ page labels it the "2025 median wage" even though it took effect in March 2026.
What are the median wage multiples?
1.1× is NZ$38.50, 1.15× is NZ$40.25, 1.3× is NZ$45.50, 1.5× is NZ$52.50, 2× is NZ$70.00 and 3× is NZ$105.00. Each is used for a different threshold — see wage thresholds for New Zealand visas.
Primary source: Immigration New Zealand's pay rates for the Skilled Migrant Category Resident Visa page and the INZ news release on new National Occupation List occupations and the annual median wage increase. Verified 20 August 2026. The current rate is confirmed by two independent INZ sources; the historic series is less firmly evidenced and is flagged as such above.
This page is general information about published thresholds. It is not immigration advice and does not assess whether a particular rate applies to you.
