In short: New Zealand is faster and cheaper to get into, Australia is safer to stay in. New Zealand decides work visas in a median of 5 weeks and sets no fixed salary threshold, but the visa hangs on one employer. Australia is costlier and slower at the start, yet its points-tested 189 visa grants permanent residence at once, and a 482 holder who loses their job gets 180 days to find a new sponsor. In our ranking Australia is 2nd of 97 and New Zealand 3rd.
If you pass the points test or find a sponsor: the 189 visa grants permanent residence at once with no employer, the 482 leads to it after 2 years, and citizenship follows 4 years of lawful residence, with dual citizenship allowed. If you lose your job you get 180 days to find a new sponsor and may keep working, and your spouse works without restriction. The price: government charges of AUD 4,015-6,135 per applicant plus a paid skills assessment, 6-8 months for a 189 decision, and a 2026 law allowing visas to be cancelled over hate-motivated conduct even without a conviction.
If you have an offer from an accredited employer: no fixed salary threshold, a decision in a median of 5 weeks, NZD 1,540 per applicant, residence after 1-3 years of work and citizenship after 5 years with no exam. The price: the visa is tied to one employer, after dismissal you cannot work until a change of employer is approved, there is no set period to look for a job, and your partner may work only if your pay is above the threshold.
New Zealand is stronger in 3 of 7 areas, Australia in 1, tied in 3.
One of the most predictable countries in our sample: online filing, published real processing times, about 7% of non-humanitarian applications refused, and more places in the 2026-27 programme. A spouse may work without restriction, and there are no mandatory integration courses or address registration. The difficulties sit at the entrance: a paid skills assessment takes months. After the Bondi Beach terror attack, a law of 20 January 2026 let the minister cancel visas already granted over hate-motivated conduct, on some grounds without a conviction; known uses so far concerned people before entry.
The best in our sample for agency work: processing times are published every week, applications are online with no appointments or queues, and 91-94% of work visa applications were approved in 2025. We found no pressure on legal residents; over the year rules mostly eased, and toughness was aimed at employers, 1,493 of whom lost accreditation. The weak spot is status security: the visa hangs on one employer, and in 2025 the income threshold for sponsoring children rose by 29% with no transition. A bill widening the grounds for deporting residents is before parliament and had not passed when we checked.
With a job offer, New Zealand is easier: no fixed salary threshold and a decision in a median of 5 weeks. Without an employer, Australia is easier: the points-tested 189 needs no sponsor and grants permanent residence at once, while New Zealand offers almost no route without an employer.
New Zealand: a median of 5 weeks for a work visa, 80% of decisions within 7.5 weeks. In Australia half of 189 decisions take 6 months and 90% take 8, while the 482 takes from 83 days to 10 months.
New Zealand: NZD 1,540 per applicant, with accreditation and the Job Check paid by the employer. Australia charges AUD 4,015 for the 482 or AUD 6,135 for the 189 per applicant, plus medicals, an English test and a skills assessment.
Australia: after 4 years of lawful residence, at least 1 as a permanent resident, and a 20-question test in English. New Zealand takes 5 years with no exam. Both allow dual citizenship.
Australia: a 482 holder gets 180 days in a row to find a new sponsor and may work throughout. New Zealand has no set period and you cannot work until a change of employer is approved; if no job turns up, people switch to a visitor visa.
Both sit at the top of our ranking, and the difference lies in the details. New Zealand is stronger on agency work and ease of entry, Australia is clearly safer on status once you are there. In the other areas they are nearly equal.
Every fact on this page comes from the country pages, where the sources are listed. Checked 01/10/2026.