Border crossing numbers remain low

The total number of people crossing the New Zealand border in September 2021 was the lowest since May last year, Stats NZ said today.

There were 16,100 border crossings in September 2021 (down from 41,300 in August 2021), made up of 8,200 arrivals and 7,900 departures. This is the lowest number of monthly arrivals since May 2020 and the lowest number of departures for any month since September 1961.

“Pauses to quarantine-free travel with Australia and the Cook Islands have seen total border crossings fall to levels last seen in May 2020, early in the pandemic,” population indicators manager Tehseen Islam said.

Provisional data for October 2021 shows a small increase in both arrivals and departures. This coincides with the opening of one-way, quarantine-free travel for workers from Vanuatu, Samoa, and Tonga, as part of the Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) scheme.

Visitor arrivals lowest since May 2020

There were 2,300 overseas visitor arrivals in September 2021, the lowest number since May 2020. The countries where most visitors came from were the United States, Great Britain, India, and Russia.

Overseas visitors to New Zealand in September 2021 included members of international Antarctic programmes and fishing industry crew, among others , along with New Zealand citizens who live overseas.

New Zealand-resident arrivals

There were 3,200 New Zealand residents returning from trips overseas in September 2021. The main countries people returned from were the United Kingdom, United States, Cook Islands, and India. Over half indicated their trip overseas was to visit friends or relatives.

“COVID-19 travel and border restrictions have changed short-term travel patterns. For example, September 2021 was the first month the USA has led visitor arrivals since October 1988, and the first month that the United Kingdom has led New Zealand resident arrivals”, Mr Islam said.