Starting a Business in New Zealand

If you’re thinking of setting up a company in New Zealand from the UK you’ll need to figure out the steps to take early on in your journey. Founding a business in New Zealand isn’t too bureaucratic or complicated in itself - but as with any overseas venture, there will be other considerations such as getting a visa and completing incorporation processes, which do take time to complete.

This guide is for you if you’re starting a business in New Zealand and wondering: what do I need to consider and organise in advance? We’ll walk through the key things to think about when setting up a business in New Zealand as a foreigner, and also introduce Wise Business as an easy way to manage your company finances between the UK and New Zealand, with low fees and the mid-market exchange rate¹.

Starting a business in New Zealand

New Zealand may be a dream place to live from a personal perspective - but it’s also a great place to start a business.

New Zealand’s economy is dominated by the services industry, accounting for some 66% of GDP annually². This includes financial services, professional, scientific and technical services, real estate, education, health and retail. UK companies which work in the services sector may find opportunities for growth and expansion in New Zealand. One other sector which makes a huge contribution to the overall GDP in New Zealand is construction - coming in 4th on official figures showing the proportional contribution to GDP by sector.

New Zealand workplace culture tends to be pretty informal, and hands on, which means everyone contributes independently as well as in a broader team. Innovation is valued, and as companies tend to be smaller in scale, you’ll often find that newer or more junior colleagues can be close to senior team members, leading to a ground up way of working without complex hierarchies³. Sounds like your sort of place? Read on.

Key Requirements for Setting up a Business in New Zealand

To live and work in New Zealand you’ll first need to get your visa sorted out, and register your business with the New Zealand Companies Register⁴. There are quite a few different New Zealand visas available for people looking to work or invest in the country⁵ - one especially popular option for new business owners and founders is the New Zealand Entrepreneur Visa⁶.

Under the New Zealand Entrepreneur Visa you can enter New Zealand along with a partner and dependent children, and stay for up to 3 years to set up a business. You’ll get 12 months to found your business, and the second 24 month visa validity is then granted based on your ability to continue to run your company in New Zealand.

Generally to qualify you’ll need to have 100,000 NZD to invest in your new company, and score 120 points or more on the New Zealand immigration points based assessment. There are a few situations in which the investment requirement may be reduced or waived - including if you have a particularly innovative business or one which focuses on export. Processing time for this visa can take up to 2 years, so get your application in as soon as possible to make sure you can continue planning your move.
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Choose your Business Name and Structure

The steps you need to take to start a business in New Zealand may vary depending on whether you already have an established UK company, and the type of business you’re looking to set up.

One of your first jobs will be to choose a relevant and available business name. Once you have a shortlist of potential names you can use the New Zealand Government’s OneCheck⁷ tool to see if the name you like is available for use.

You’ll then need to decide which type of business entity will best suit your personal needs. In most cases you’ll need to pick from a range of business entity types including⁸:

• Limited company
• Representative office
• Branch office
• Sole trader

Let’s walk through these options one by one to give a little more detail - you can also learn more on the New Zealand Government website which has lots of handy tools for business owners and founders⁸.

Limited Company

In a limited company, you create an entity separate to yourself, and in so doing limit your personal liability should anything go wrong with your business. This is different to a sole trader for example, where your personal and business liabilities are seen as one. The flipside is that as the owner of a limited liability business you’ll have additional tax to pay and potentially more paperwork to deal with compared to being a sole trader.

In New Zealand there are a couple of different options to limit your personal liability when setting up your new entity:

Limited Liability Company (LLC)

If you set up an LLC you won’t be responsible personally for any debts your company owes, unless you personally offered a guarantee. You’ll also be able to sell some or all of the business in future if you want to move on.

Limited Liability Partnership

A limited liability partnership works similarly to an LLC, but can include both general and limited partners. Limited partners can only be liable for any debts incurred up to the capital they’ve invested, while general partners have broader responsibilities.

Representative office

A representative office - as the name suggests - can act on behalf of your UK business in New Zealand. Depending on the activities you’ll carry out you are likely to need to register with the New Zealand authorities, but your representative office is not usually seen as a separate legal entity to your UK business.

Branch office

If you have a UK company and want to establish a more permanent base in New Zealand, a branch office may also be an option. This is likely to be a separate legal entity to your UK company, which acts under the laws and rules of New Zealand, and is registered as an entity there. If you’re not sure whether a branch office or a representative office is best for your business it’s a good idea to take legal advice to help you decide.

Sole trader

The most simple way to do business in New Zealand - if you have the right visas or permits for it - is to be a sole trader. Similar to a sole proprietor in the UK, your personal and business finances are considered as one. That means that you’re personally liable for any debts related to your business - but the tax and admin requirements are typically lower compared to having an incorporated company.

Setting up a company in New Zealand from UK - Step-by-step

Once you’ve got an approved business name and decided on the right entity type to fit your needs, you’ll need to take the following steps⁹:

1. Set up an online account with the companies register - this is easiest if you have a RealMe account, which is the online login and authentication tool for several government agencies
2. Get a New Zealand business number¹⁰ - this is the number that will be used whenever anyone or any agency needs to get information about your business
3. Secure your business name by reserving it with the Companies Register - this isn’t needed if you’re a sole trader. Fees of 10 NZD apply
4. Register your company- there’s a fee to do this of just under 120 NZD, and the process can be done online with the Companies Register
5. Register for GST if required- this is needed once earning more than NZD 60,000 year, and can be done at the same time you register your company if you like

There may be other steps required depending on your business type - for example you may need to get licences or approvals for some business types. Make sure you’ve got all the details that apply to your specific business before you get started.

Manage your New Zealand finances with Wise Business

Wise Business can help your company grow in New Zealand - or wherever else you may choose to expand.

Wise Business accounts can hold and exchange NZD and GBP among a selection of 40+ currencies - and whenever you need to convert from one currency to another you get the mid-market exchange rate and low fees from 0.43%¹.

You can get local account details for the UK, New Zealand and a selection of other major economies, to get paid conveniently by customers or through PSPs like Stripe and marketplaces like Amazon, as well as fast low cost payment options for 160+ countries, so you can settle supplier and contractor invoices seamlessly with just your phone.

For business spending you can use a Wise debit card - and you’ll also be able to order expense cards for your team, plus get time saving features including multi-user access, batch payment tools and cloud accounting integrations. Here’s how to register a Wise Business account in just a few simple steps:

1. Download the Wise app or head to the Wise desktop site
2. Tap Register and follow the prompts to apply for a business account
3. Add your personal and contact information
4. Upload the documents needed which are detailed online and in this Wise Business account requirements guide
5. Pay the one time fee to register your account and get a linked payment card if you need one
6. Once your account is verified you can start transacting - your account will be live in the Wise app, your physical card will be posted to you, and you can get a digital card right away for mobile spending

Check out this Open Collective case study to learn more about how businesses make the most of the Wise Business features available to them.

Wise Business Features

New Zealand is a justifiably popular place for UK citizens to live and work - and a great place to set up a new company. Use this guide to start figuring out how best to set up a business in New Zealand from the UK, and check out Wise Business as the perfect way to manage your money when you do.

Sources used for this article:

1. Pricing/fees: Please seeTerms of Use for your region or visit Wise Fees & Pricing for the most up to date pricing and fee information
2. Stats New Zealand
3. New Zealand immigration - our way of working
4. New Zealand Companies Register
5. New Zealand business and work visas
6. New Zealand Entrepreneur Visa
7. OneCheck
8. New Zealand Government - choose a business structure
9. New Zealand Government - guide to starting a business
10. Get a NZBN
    Sources checked on 01-02-2024.