NEW ZEALAND: Taking your money for a ride

Sending money overseas is notoriously expensive but greater transparency, regulatory changes and some new competition mean the sky-high sums charged by operators are starting to drop, commentators say.

Transferring money to the Pacific Islands can cost up to 25 per cent extra in fees, according to an international study. In some cases, the one-off fee can be up to NZ$185 for a single transfer.

With more than half a million New Zealand citizens living across the Tasman, Australia is our biggest remittance market – although no records are kept of just how much money is sent to family and friends there.

Some bank customers say sending A$100 to Australia can cost an extra A$50 to cover all the fees and charges. Read more

NEW ZEALAND:Dual-card scheme reduces cost of sending remittances

A campaign by the New Zealand government to put pressure on banks and financial institutions to reduce the cost of sending remittances to the Pacific is meeting some success. That's the claim from the country's Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs. The Ministry's Chief Executive Officer, Doctor Colin Tukuitonga, says the introduction of a scheme where cash deposited in a New Zealand bank account can be accessed through automatic teller machines in the Pacific will see the cost reduced to less than five per cent.

presenter: Bruce Hill.
Speaker: New Zealand Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs CEO, Dr Colin Tukuitonga.
Source

New Zealand: Law change paves way for lower remittance costs

Monday, 22 September 2008, 11:23 am
Press Release: New Zealand Government

Rt Hon Helen Clark
Prime Minister of New Zealand
Hon Winnie Laban
Minister of Pacific Island Affairs

22 September 2008 Media Statement

Law change paves way for lower remittance costs


The Labour-led Government has taken a significant step towards reducing the cost of remitting money from New Zealand to Pacific countries.

Prime Minister Helen Clark and Pacific Island Affairs Minister Luamanuvao Winnie Laban today announced Cabinet’s approval of a new regulation under the Financial Transactions Reporting Act to reduce the high costs of sending money between New Zealand and the Pacific. [Read more]

NEW ZEALAND: Money does talking for migrants

By MARTIN KAY - The Dominion Post Thursday, 7 June 2007
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ROBERT KITCHIN /Dominion Post
SHOW ME THE MONEY: Migrants to New Zealand face tougher residency requirements under changes unveiled by Immigration Minister David Cunliffe.


The richest migrants to New Zealand will no longer have to speak any English - but their money will have to do the talking to the tune of at least $20 million. They also face tougher residency requirements under changes unveiled by Immigration Minister David Cunliffe in an admission that reforms introduced just two years ago were a dismal failure.

Mr Cunliffe said those changes - which required investor migrants to deposit $2 million with the Government for five years with a return at the rate of inflation - had attracted just 18 applicants in the year to date. [Read more]