New Zealand

parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm

name: Wellington geographic coordinates: 41 18 S, 174 47 E time difference: UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in September; ends first Sunday in April time zone note: New Zealand has two time zones: New Zealand standard time (UTC+12) and Chatham Islands time (45 minutes in advance of New Zealand standard time; UTC+12:45) etymology: named in 1840 after Arthur WELLESLEY, the first Duke of Wellington, who was famous for his victory at Waterloo in 1815 and was a benefactor of the New Zealand Company that settled North Island

chief of state: King CHARLES III (since 8 September 2022); represented by Governor-General Dame Cindy KIRO (since 21 October 2021) head of government: Prime Minister Christopher LUXON (since 27 November 2023) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor-general on the recommendation of the prime minister election/appointment process: the monarchy is hereditary; governor-general appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the governor-general appoints the leader of the majority party or majority coalition as prime minister; deputy prime minister also appointed by the governor-general

legislature name: House of Representatives legislative structure: unicameral number of seats: 120 (all directly elected) electoral system: mixed system scope of elections: full renewal term in office: 3 years most recent election date: 10/14/2023 parties elected and seats per party: National Party (49); Labour Party (34); Green Party (14); ACT New Zealand (11); New Zealand First (8); Te Pāti Māori (4); Others (2) percentage of women in chamber: 45.1% expected date of next election: September 2026

highest court(s): Supreme Court (consists of 5 justices, including the chief justice) judge selection and term of office: justices appointed by the governor-general upon the recommendation of the attorney- general; justices appointed until compulsory retirement at age 70 subordinate courts: Court of Appeal; High Court; tribunals and authorities; district courts; specialized courts for issues related to employment, environment, family, Maori lands, youth, military; tribunals

history: New Zealand has no single constitution document; the Constitution Act 1986, effective 1 January 1987, includes only part of the uncodified constitution; others include a collection of statutes or "acts of Parliament," the Treaty of Waitangi, Orders in Council, letters patent, court decisions, and unwritten conventions amendment process: proposed as bill by Parliament or by referendum called either by the government or by citizens; passage of a bill as an act normally requires two separate readings with committee reviews in between to make changes and corrections, a third reading approved by the House of Representatives membership or by the majority of votes in a referendum, and assent of the governor-general; passage of amendments to reserved constitutional provisions affecting the term of Parliament, electoral districts, and voting restrictions requires approval by 75% of the House membership or the majority of votes in a referendum

ADB, ANZUS, APEC, ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CD, CP, EAS, EBRD, FAO, FATF, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, Pacific Alliance (observer), Paris Club (associate), PCA, PIF, SICA (observer), Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMISS, UNOOSA, UNTSO, UPU, Wassenaar Arrangement, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

1.2% of GDP (2024 est.) 1.3% of GDP (2023 est.) 1.3% of GDP (2022 est.) 1.3% of GDP (2021 est.) 1.5% of GDP (2020 est.)

New Zealand Defense Force (NZDF): New Zealand Army, Royal New Zealand Navy, Royal New Zealand Air Force (2025) note: the New Zealand Police, under the Minister of Police, is the primary law enforcement body agency of New Zealand and responsible for internal security

17 years of age for voluntary military service for men and women; soldiers cannot be deployed until the age of 18; no conscription (2025) note: New Zealand opened up all military occupations to women in 2000; as of 2024, women accounted for about 20% of Regular Force personnel

the NZDF is responsible for protecting New Zealand s sovereignty, promoting its interests, safeguarding peace and security, and conducting peacekeeping, humanitarian, and other international missions New Zealand is a member of the Five Powers Defense Arrangements (FPDA), a series of mutual assistance agreements reached in 1971 embracing Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, and the UK; the FPDA commits the members to consult with one another in the event or threat of an armed attack on any of the members and to mutually decide what measures should be taken, jointly or separately; there is no specific obligation to intervene militarily New Zealand has been part of the Australia, New Zealand, and US Security (ANZUS) Treaty since 1951; however, the US suspended its ANZUS security obligations to New Zealand in 1986 after Auckland implemented a policy barring nuclear-armed and nuclear-powered warships from its ports; the US and New Zealand signed the Wellington Declaration in 2010, which reaffirmed close ties between the two countries, and in 2012 signed the Washington Declaration, which provided a framework for future security cooperation and defense dialogues; in 2016, a US naval ship conducted the first bilateral warship visit to New Zealand since the 1980s; New Zealand has Major Non-NATO Ally (MNNA) status with the US, a designation under US law that provides foreign partners with certain benefits in the areas of defense trade and security cooperation (2025)

small numbers of NZ military personnel are deployed on a variety of international missions in Africa, Antarctica, the Asia-Pacific region, and the Middle East (2025)

$257.117 billion (2024 est.) $257.443 billion (2023 est.) $253.903 billion (2022 est.) note: data in 2021 dollars

$48,200 (2024 est.) $49,100 (2023 est.) $49,600 (2022 est.) note: data in 2021 dollars

-0.1% (2024 est.) 1.4% (2023 est.) 3.5% (2022 est.) note: annual GDP % growth based on constant local currency

2.9% (2024 est.) 5.7% (2023 est.) 7.2% (2022 est.) note: annual % change based on consumer prices

54% of GDP (2022 est.) note: central government debt as a % of GDP

$61.799 billion (2024 est.) $59.029 billion (2023 est.) $57.485 billion (2022 est.) note: balance of payments - exports of goods and services in current dollars

$67.998 billion (2024 est.) $68.412 billion (2023 est.) $71.35 billion (2022 est.) note: balance of payments - imports of goods and services in current dollars

4.9% (2024 est.) 3.8% (2023 est.) 3.3% (2022 est.) note: % of labor force seeking employment

revenues: $83.167 billion (2022 est.) expenditures: $91.782 billion (2022 est.) note: central government revenues (excluding grants) and expenditures converted to US dollars at average official exchange rate for year indicated

agriculture, forestry, fishing, logs and wood articles, manufacturing, mining, construction, financial services, real estate services, tourism

milk, beef, kiwifruit, apples, grapes, lamb/mutton, potatoes, wheat, barley, chicken (2023) note: top ten agricultural products based on tonnage

total: 5,161,211 (2024 est.) male: 2,584,607 female: 2,576,604

0.83% (2025 est.)

0-14 years: 19% (male 503,120/female 475,490) 15-64 years: 64.2% (male 1,674,407/female 1,638,276) 65 years and over: 16.9% (2024 est.) (male 407,080/female 462,838)

12.4 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)

6.93 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)

2.83 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)

total population: 82.9 years (2024 est.) male: 81.2 years female: 84.8 years

urban population: 87% of total population (2023) rate of urbanization: 0.92% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

European 64.1%, Maori 16.5%, Chinese 4.9%, Indian 4.7%, Samoan 3.9%, Tongan 1.8%, Cook Islands Maori 1.7%, English 1.5%, Filipino 1.5%, New Zealander 1%, other 13.7% (2018 est.) note: based on the 2018 census of the usually resident population; percentages add up to more than 100% because respondents were able to identify more than one ethnic group

English (de facto official) 95.4%, Maori (de jure official) 4%, Samoan 2.2%, Northern Chinese 2%, Hindi 1.5%, French 1.2%, Yue 1.1%, New Zealand Sign Language (de jure official) 0.5%, other or not stated 17.2% (2018 est.) note: shares sum to 124.1% due to multiple responses on the 2018 census

Christian 37.3% (Catholic 10.1%, Anglican 6.8%, Presbyterian and Congregational 5.2%, Pentecostal 1.8%, Methodist 1.6%, Church of Jesus Christ 1.2%, other 10.7%), Hindu 2.7%, Maori 1.3%, Muslim, 1.3%, Buddhist 1.1%, other religion 1.6% (includes Judaism, Spiritualism and New Age religions, Baha'i, Asian religions other than Buddhism), no religion 48.6%, objected to answering 6.7% (2018 est.) note: based on the 2018 census of the usually resident population; percentages add up to more than 100% because respondents were able to identify more than one religion

natural gas, iron ore, sand, coal, timber, hydropower, gold, limestone

Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS) note: details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in the Terrorism reference guide

refugees: 5,622 (2024 est.) IDPs: 26 (2024 est.) stateless persons: 29 (2024 est.)

206 (2025)

total: 4,128 km (2018) narrow gauge: 4,128 km (2018) 1.067-m gauge (506 km electrified)

total: 117 (2023) by type: container ship 2, general cargo 12, oil tanker 3, other 100

total subscriptions: 6.56 million (2023 est.) subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 115 (2022 est.)

percent of population: 96% (2023 est.)