Moving to New Zealand: Customs and Household Effects
Moving to New Zealand with household goods? The Customs concession, form NZCS 218, the packing list and the depreciation table decide what you pay.
A few short questions. Nothing is sent until you check and confirm.
Who qualifies for the household effects concession?
Someone moving to New Zealand for the first time, or coming back after a long spell away. The Customs Service sets the length: “You must have resided or been domiciled outside of New Zealand for the whole of the 21-month period preceding your arrival”, apart from brief holidays or business trips back.
You also need a document that authorises residence, such as a New Zealand passport, an Australian passport or a current residence visa. One group is shut out: “Student visa holders do not qualify.” They may still bring items needed to finish their studies, such as a desk, books or a computer.
The goods have to be yours and used: “Your household effects must have been personally owned and used by you before you depart for New Zealand.” Gifts and items bought for someone else are outside the concession.
What counts as household effects, and what does not?
Customs gives an open list that runs from furniture and appliances to hand tools, personal sports gear and pianos and other musical instruments. Non-motorised caravans and trailers are on it, but motorised vehicles are not.
Wine is allowed in limited form: collections qualify provided “you can prove the purchase of these items occurred over an extended period of time”. Spirits may be considered too.
Brand-new goods are the trap. “If the effects are brand new/ unused, you must declare them, because duty and GST will apply.” Cars, scooters, motorbikes, boats and aircraft are excluded from this concession and have their own rules, set out in the car shipping guide.
Which documents does Customs ask for, and who files them?
The form is NZCS 218, headed Bring Personal Household Items into New Zealand. With it Customs wants a copy of your passport, a packing list of everything you ship, the shipping document (an airway bill, bill of lading or arrival notice) and the Ministry for Primary Industries supplementary biosecurity declaration.
Nothing is started early: “Customs will not prepare or complete a clearance without all documents being received by our clearance team.” You can let the shipping company do it, hire a Customs broker or do it yourself, and the page says the shipping company “should contact you when your effects arrive or are due to arrive in New Zealand”.
After that, “Customs may examine your shipment to verify any of the details you have provided.” If money is owed, “You will be required to pay this amount online prior to the release of your shipment.” Ask your removal firm which of these steps it handles and who prepares the packing list. The UK customs documentation checklist covers what to gather before the shipment leaves, and our sea freight guide explains the shipping documents named above.
What if you do not qualify, or arrive late?
Duty and GST apply, though Customs may reduce the value of used goods by a depreciation rate that depends on how long you owned them: 10% for up to 3 months, 20% for 3 to 6 months, 33% for 6 to 12 months and 50% for 12 to 21 months. The page adds “depreciation cannot be applied to new goods”.
Timing matters as well. If goods arrive “more than five years after the arrival of the passenger into New Zealand”, the concession applies only with a Customs officer's consent. A second shipment sent years after you settle should not be assumed to qualify.
How do personal effects differ from household effects?
Personal effects are clothing, jewellery, toiletries, mobility aids and similar items you own and use, and they have their own Customs page. That page says “You do not have to be in New Zealand when your shipment arrives.” They may be new, with an exception: “can be new, except for personal electronic devices such as mobile phones and laptops.”
Medicines have a limit: prescription medicines are allowed up to three months' supply under Ministry of Health guidelines, and “Controlled drugs must travel with you and cannot be sent as unaccompanied baggage.” The UK to New Zealand guide covers the entry side, and the New Zealand hub lists the city guides.
What could we not confirm?
The Ministry for Primary Industries biosecurity page returned a security shell and the Customs goods levy page did not load, so we state no biosecurity rule, no inspection charge and no levy amount. Customs depreciation rates and the qualifying list come from its page of 5 November 2026. Treat this guide as a map of the questions to put to the removal firm and Customs, not as a ruling on your case.
Questions about Customs and household goods for New Zealand
Do I pay duty on household goods moving to New Zealand?
Not if you qualify for the Customs household effects concession, which needs a residence document and 21 months outside the country.
A goods levy still applies to unaccompanied consignments.
Which form does Customs use for a household move?
Form NZCS 218, with a passport copy, a packing list and the shipping document.
Customs will not start without all of them.
Can students use the concession?
No.
Student visa holders do not qualify, though they may bring items needed for their studies.
Tell us about your household goods
Send what you plan to ship, how long you have owned it and whether any items are new, so the partner firm can help prepare the packing list.
About International Removals Companies
International Removals Companies is an enquiry and introduction service run by DATACONTEXT (UK) LTD, in partnership with AGM Group. We don't move goods ourselves: the removal company quotes for your move and carries it out, so check its credentials and terms before you book. Our service is free. Discuss the quotation and booking terms directly with the removal company.
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