New Zealanders of average incomes should migrate to Australia. Okay this is a somewhat provocative statement but vast numbers of Kiwis make this exact decision. And why not? Not only will they typically enjoy higher incomes in Australia they will also pay less income tax. Even if they earn exactly the same equivalent income as what they earned in New Zealand they will find that Australia has a much less onerous income tax system. How much less onerous? Lets have a look.
The three tables below do an income tax comparison. For simplicity we can ignored the medicare levy in Australia and the ACC levy in New Zealand as they both modest and roughly the same.
The first and last table show the Australian and New Zealand tax rates respectively. The middle table is the Australian tax rates in New Zealand equivalent currency. The tables assume that an income of NZ$1 in New Zealand is equivalent to A$0.80 in Australia.
The chart below shows in New Zealand dollars the tax taken for various incomes under the two alternate income tax codes. Clearly the Australian income tax code is far more favourable for people of modest income.
The comparison is for tax rates in the 2012/13 financial year. If the New Zealand government wants New Zealand citizens to stay in New Zealand then it ought to reduce the tax rates at the lower end of the income range.
Australian Libertarian Society (old site) 
TerjeP, great comment! I’m surprised it needs to be said, though, since the NZPM is that millionaire, Mr. Key! Maybe you should send this to him- he might simply not be aware of how big the difference is.
On the other hand, firearm laws are much less onerous in New Zealand compared to Australia. I was contemplating last night whether to move there at some point for that reason.
Hey, believe it or not, went against the normality of the trends and moved briefly to NZ from Australia (and to christchurch of all places), people are went to be leaving both country and city.
Tax is only one small impression, cost of living is higher and wages are generally lower, even with the Christchurch rebuild are contracts for work below average, and they want more tradespeople?
food quality is far below normal fare brought in Australian Shops.
Least Fresh Food and Medical are GST free in Australia.
In General, the land of the long white cloud is a poorer, and i mean poor, country compared to Australia.
Oh other surprise, Big Brother has your details, information is openly passed between the different departments.
You forgot the old line about raising the average IQ in both countries. (If anyone here in Australia has to think about that, it rather proves the point.)
Thanks for this. There are a few issues here.
1. When you’re richer, ceteris paribus, you’re more free. Australia is richer, and most workers can expect to be richer in Oz.
2. Paying taxes to a state can be worse than never having earned the money, depending on what the government does with it. So higher average tax rates are bad. Advantage Oz for some parts of the income range. But…
3. It depends what a government does with the money. NZ spends approximately zero on detention camps. I know that zero of my tax dollars are being spent to keep people I’d like as neighbours in internment camps. That matters a lot to me. The Oz police seem more thuggish than the NZ police; I don’t want to pay for thugs. Oz spends more on bombs and tends to join in whatever nonsense the Americans are up to; NZ spends approximately nothing on that.
4. Civil liberties matter more to me, at current margins, than how much money the government steals from me. And NZ’s seemed better on that front.
5. NZ’s wildlife is less likely to kill me than is Oz’s. I can walk through the bush here free to not be bitten by all the scary stuff you guys have.
I think we have 600,000 kiwis here- I wonder how many Aussies work over there?
Eric – on point 5. Don’t be afraid.
Even though it’s ANZAC day, I’ll make one joke here- Why is it that, even in this politically correct age, Australians will always be able to make jokes about New Zealanders?
Because they’ll never get the joke!
Does anyone have a better joke?
NG, didn’t you see the joke I mentioned about average IQ?
Yes PM, but my joke is newer, and thus BETTER! I asked for BETTER jokes!
Based solely on income tax, doesn’t NZ charge a higher consumption tax?
Michael, all those orcs have a high rate of consumption, attacking anything that moves. These consumption attacks are another reason to leave. don’t come back until the largest city is renamed Elfland, not Orkland!
The Libertarian Party of Australia should make a Facebook Page, Twitter etc. Do more promoting!
Michael, I don’t know if there is a Libertarian Party of Australia. This blog is about libertarian thinking, but is not a party.
Well, I do not think its the matter of should or should not but it depends on the person’s choice and priorities that he/she want to migrate to Australia or not.
Very true, but Australia offers more in material prospects at the moment. When I hear of the NZ gold boom, I might emigrate there. (But only after they’ve killed off all those orcs!)