A UK expat's guide to New Zealand

New Zealand has much to offer UK expats: the climate is good, there is plenty of space, the scenery is beautiful and lots of people speak English. No wonder it scored highest for quality of life in a recent survey of expats.

It is crying out for skilled young workers and offers Brits under the age of 30 the chance to apply for a working visa that lasts almost two years. Skilled migrants can be granted a stay of up to five years. Pensioners need to make a serious investment in the New Zealand economy if they want to make it their home, but even so, more than 50,000 Brits have chosen to live there in retirement.

If you are worried you might miss using your umbrella, head to Auckland on the North Island which is blessed with 1,240mm of rain a year; if you'd rather see the back of your wellies, Christchurch on the South Island gets half that. It is still, however, recovering from 2011's earthquake.

Things you need to know before you go

You can visit New Zealand for up to six months without a visa, but to stay beyond that you will need to do some extra paperwork. There are several different visas for people who are going to New Zealand to work, including an essential skills visa aimed at highly qualified workers aged under 55 who can fill shortage skills and a working holiday visa for under-30s.

The essential skills visa is usually granted for three years, but if the job you are doing meets the highest level of the government's ranking and you earn at least $55,000 (£28,200) a year, you may get a permit to stay for five years.

If the job is ranked low in the government's list you may just get a one-year visa. The working holiday visa lasts 23 months. There are also "work to residence" visas for employees offered jobs in occupations on the long-term skills shortage list or by accredited employers.

If you want to retire to New Zealand there are two possible ways to get a visa: if you have a child who is resident there you could apply for a visa under the parent category; or you could apply as an investor. The temporary retirement category for investors offers a two-year visa to anyone aged over 66 who is willing to invest NZ$750,000 in New Zealand for two years and has NZ$500,000 in funds to live on and an income of at least NZ$60,000 a year.

Anyone applying for a visa under the parent category will be prioritised if they have a sponsor who earns at least $65,000 a year, their own guaranteed income of $27,203 a year, or at least NZ$500,000 in funds to move to the country. Otherwise they need a sponsor who earns at least $33,675 a year. Anyone applying for an investment visa must have travel and/or health insurance.

You can draw a UK state pension but you will not be entitled to the annual increases. Your pension will be frozen either at the rate it reaches when you move, if you are already drawing it, or at the rate it is when you first qualify if by that point you are already living in New Zealand. If you qualify for the New Zealand state pension, known as Superannuation, the value of your UK state pension will be subtracted from your payout.

Things you need to know when you get there

What airport will you arrive at? The airports in Auckland and Christchurch are the best served by flights from the UK and cost the least to get to.

Local currency New Zealand dollar. The NZ$ is divided into 100 cents. On 12 November 2012 NZ$1 was worth 51p and £1 would buy NZ$1.94.

How do you spot a cab? New Zealand doesn't have any iconic cabs but it does have plenty of taxis to hire.

Price of a hotel room In the first half of 2012 the average room rate was £74, according to Hotels.com.

Price of a house The median house price in September 2012 was NZ$371,000 (£191,000), according to the Real Estate Institute.

Price of a pint of milk 69p, and NZ$2.38 a litre, according to Numbeo.

What language do most people speak? New Zealand has three official languages: English, Maori and New Zealand sign language. English is the most widely used and is the language of the courts, parliament, schools and the public sector.

What tax will you pay? The tax year runs from 1 April to 31 March. If you spend more than 183 days of a year in New Zealand you will be considered a resident for tax purposes, but when you first arrive you may qualify as a transitional tax resident. This will give you exemptions from paying tax on any income earned outside New Zealand for four years, as long as it isn't related to work you are doing while in the country. This means income from a UK pension during this period is not taxable in New Zealand.

There is no tax-free income allowance in New Zealand – everyone is taxed on all of their earnings; the starting rate of tax is 10.5%.

What to tell your friends
• Like in the UK, New Zealanders drive on the left-hand side of the road.

• The place with the longest name in the world is in New Zealand. In full it is Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateapokaiwhenuakitanatahu, but you can usually get away with calling it Taumata.

• You cannot be more than 128km from the sea anywhere in New Zealand.

• New Zealand claims to have the highest number of bookshops and Scottish pipe bands per head in the world.

• As well as the famous kiwi, you can also spot penguins – three species make their home around the country.

• More people die in New Zealand each year playing lawn bowls than scuba diving.

• Frying Pan Lake near Rotorua is the world's largest hot water spring: temperatures reach 200C at its deepest point.