How much will it cost to move?
A few questions, then a likely budget.
This is a planning estimate, not a quotation, and it is a moving budget rather than a cost-of-living calculator. Government charges, regulator fees and tenancy rules change — always confirm the current amount against the official source before making a financial decision.
Official fees where they exist. Realistic estimates where they don’t. No invented numbers.
How the figures work, in full
Published charges, taken from the source
Visa charges and regulator fees are labelled as official, with a link to the schedule they came from and the date we last checked it. Bond and rent in advance are calculated from each country’s own tenancy rules.
Planning estimates, meant to be replaced
Flights, shipping, household setup and temporary accommodation start as realistic figures rather than optimistic ones. Every one is editable, and the estimate gets sharper as you replace ours with quotes of your own.
The gaps we won’t guess at
Pet relocation, an immigration adviser, an English test you may not need: these sit at zero with a note, because a made-up number is worse than an obvious blank. We also show the cash you may need available before any reimbursement arrives.
What people ask about the cost of moving
The cost of an international move is the question we are asked earliest and most often. These are the answers, including the parts that are harder to pin down.
How much does it cost to move to Australia or New Zealand?
There is no single answer, and anyone quoting one is guessing. The cost depends on where you are moving from, who is moving with you, your profession and registration pathway, whether you ship belongings, how long you need temporary accommodation, and the rent on the home you eventually secure. That is why this tool builds the figure line by line from your own circumstances rather than offering an average.
Which costs do people most often forget?
Three in particular. The cash needed to secure a rental — bond plus rent in advance — is usually the single largest cost of arriving, and most of it comes back to you later. Temporary accommodation while you look for that rental adds up quickly. And the gap before your first full salary catches almost everyone: you may arrive several weeks before you are paid properly, and you still need to eat, travel and set up a home in that time.
Is registration or the visa the bigger cost?
It depends on your household and your pathway. Australian visa charges apply per person included in the application, so a family of four is a substantially larger number than one person. Registration is usually the smaller figure — unless your pathway includes an examination or clinical assessment, which can cost more than everything else in your registration put together. The calculator asks about an exam separately for exactly that reason. Our registration pathway checker is the place to work out which route applies to you.
Will my employer pay for my relocation?
Many healthcare employers contribute, and relocation support is a reasonable thing to ask about. What matters as much as the amount is how it reaches you: paid upfront, reimbursed after you have paid, or settled directly with the supplier. A reimbursed package still means the money has to leave your account first, so the calculator shows the cash you may need available upfront as a separate figure from your eventual cost. If you are weighing up an offer, negotiating your offer covers how to raise it.
Are these figures a quotation?
No. Every line is labelled with where it came from — an official fee, a figure calculated from an official rule, one of our planning estimates, or a number you entered yourself — and the estimate carries the date the data was last checked. Fees and tenancy rules change, and exchange rates move daily. Treat the result as a planning document to take into a conversation with your employer, your bank or us, and confirm each amount against the official source before you commit to it.
Does it cover the cost of living once I arrive?
Only the first month or so. This is deliberately a moving budget: what it takes to get there and get established, plus a buffer for everyday expenses until your first full salary arrives. Ongoing rent, groceries, childcare, insurance and transport are a different question, and our destination guides cover them city by city with local figures.
Do I have to give you my details to see the result?
No. The estimate appears as you answer, and nothing is sent to us. Your answers stay in your own browser so you can come back to them, and you can print or save the result as a PDF to keep.