History of New Zealand in Timeline

New Zealand is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, comprising the North and South Islands and over 600 smaller islands. It's located east of Australia across the Tasman Sea. Known for its diverse topography, including the Southern Alps formed by tectonic activity and volcanoes. Wellington is the capital, and Auckland is its most populous city.

1907: North and South islands names become the norm

By 1907, the use of "North" and "South" to distinguish the two largest islands of New Zealand was the accepted norm on maps.

1907: New Zealand becomes a dominion

In 1907, New Zealand became a dominion within the British Empire, reflecting its self-governing status.

1908: Summer Olympics

New Zealand participated at the Summer Olympics in 1908 as a joint team with Australia.

1912: Summer Olympics

New Zealand participated at the Summer Olympics in 1912 as a joint team with Australia.

1920: Summer Olympics

New Zealand participated at the Summer Olympics in 1920 on its own.

1921: Location of median centre of population

In 1921, the country's median centre of population was located in the Tasman Sea west of Levin in Manawatū-Whanganui.

1922: Public radio introduced

Public radio was introduced in New Zealand in 1922.

1923: Imperial Conference decision on New Zealand's treaty negotiation rights

The 1923 Imperial Conference decided that New Zealand should be allowed to negotiate its own political treaties.

1926: Imperial Conference decision on New Zealand's treaty negotiation rights

The 1926 Imperial Conference decided that New Zealand should be allowed to negotiate its own political treaties.

1928: First commercial treaty ratified with Japan

In 1928, the first commercial treaty was ratified with Japan.

1937: Kermadec Islands become uninhabited except for Raoul Island station

Since 1937, the Kermadec Islands have been uninhabited except for about six people at Raoul Island station.

September 1939: New Zealand declares war on Germany

On 3 September 1939, New Zealand allied itself with Britain and declared war on Germany.

1940: Development of the recording industry

The New Zealand recording industry began to develop from 1940 onwards.

1947: New Zealand adopts the Statute of Westminster

In 1947, New Zealand adopted the Statute of Westminster, confirming that the British Parliament could no longer legislate for the country without its consent.

1947: New Zealand gains full statutory independence

In 1947, New Zealand gained full statutory independence, retaining the monarch as head of state.

1950: Abolishment of the Legislative Council

In 1950, the upper house, the Legislative Council, was abolished.

1951: New Zealand joins the ANZUS security treaty

In 1951, New Zealand joined Australia and the United States in the ANZUS security treaty.

1960: Television service began

A state-owned television service began in New Zealand in 1960.

1961: Census Results

In 1961, the census reported that the population of New Zealand was 92% European and 7% Māori, with Asian and Pacific minorities sharing the remaining 1%.

1965: New Zealand Music Awards

The New Zealand Music Awards were first held in 1965 by Reckitt & Colman as the Loxene Golden Disc awards.

1970: Samoan Quota Scheme

In 1970, the Samoan Quota Scheme was established, regulating permanent migration and allowing up to 1,100 Samoan nationals to become permanent New Zealand residents each year.

1973: Export market reduction due to United Kingdom joining the European Economic Community

In 1973, New Zealand's export market was reduced when the United Kingdom joined the European Economic Community, contributing to a severe economic depression.

1975: Waitangi Tribunal set up

In 1975, a Waitangi Tribunal was set up to investigate alleged breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi.

1975: Number of municipalities in New Zealand

There were 249 municipalities in New Zealand in 1975.

1978: New Zealand Film Commission

In 1978 the New Zealand Film Commission started assisting local film-makers.

1979: Energy crisis

The 1979 energy crisis contributed to a severe economic depression in New Zealand.

1982: UNCLOS contributes to New Zealand's economic zone

After the 1982 UNCLOS, the Kermadec Islands contributed significantly to New Zealand's exclusive economic zone.

1982: Lowest per-capita income

By 1982, New Zealand had the lowest per-capita income of all the developed nations surveyed by the World Bank.

1984: Deregulation of agricultural sector

In 1984, New Zealand began deregulating its agricultural sector by phasing out subsidies over a three-year period.

1985: Waitangi Tribunal enabled to investigate historic grievances

In 1985, the Waitangi Tribunal was enabled to investigate historic grievances.

1986: Constitution Act removes residual legislative powers

The British government's residual legislative powers were later removed by the Constitution Act in 1986.

1987: Share market crash

Following the 1987 share market crash, unemployment peaked just above 10% in 1991 and 1992.

1987: Formation of Telecom New Zealand

In 1987, Telecom New Zealand was formed from the New Zealand Post Office, initially as a state-owned enterprise.

1987: Māori language declared official

The Māori language (te reo Māori) was declared one of New Zealand's official languages in 1987.

1989: Reorganisation of local government

In 1989, the New Zealand government reorganised local government into the current two-tier structure of regional councils and territorial authorities.

1990: Increase in dairy farming

Between 1990 and 2007, the number of dairy cows in New Zealand doubled, leading to dairy farming becoming New Zealand's largest export earner.

1990: Privatisation of Telecom New Zealand

Telecom New Zealand was privatised in 1990.

1991: Unemployment peak

In 1991, unemployment peaked just above 10% following the 1987 share market crash.

1992: Formation of Crown Research Institutes

Crown Research Institutes (CRIs) were formed in 1992 from existing government-owned research organisations.

1992: Unemployment peak

In 1992, unemployment peaked just above 10% following the 1987 share market crash.

1993: Last general election under the first-past-the-post voting system

Almost all general elections between 1853 and 1993 were held under the first-past-the-post voting system.

1993: Privatisation of railways

In 1993, New Zealand's railways were privatised.

1994: Press freedom ranking

Since 1994, Freedom House has consistently ranked New Zealand's press freedom in the top twenty.

1995: Sailing Success in America's Cup

New Zealand has seen regular sailing success in the America's Cup regatta since 1995.

1996: First election using MMP

Since the 1996 election, a form of proportional representation called mixed-member proportional (MMP) has been used.

1997: Forest cover in New Zealand occupies only 23% of the land

In 1997, forest occupied only 23% of the land in New Zealand due to deforestation.

2000: Local fashion industry growth

The local fashion industry in New Zealand has grown significantly since 2000.

2001: Venice Biennale Exhibition

New Zealand art and craft achieved an international audience, with exhibitions in the Venice Biennale in 2001.

2002: International students

In 2002, more than 20,000 fee-paying international students and international exchange students were studying in public tertiary institutions.

2002: Pacific Access Category

In 2002, the Pacific Access Category was established, allowing up to 750 Pacific Islanders to become permanent New Zealand residents each year.

2003: Abolishment of final rights of appeal to British courts

In 2003, final rights of appeal to British courts were abolished in New Zealand.

2004: Renationalisation of railways begins

Between 2004 and 2008, the government re-nationalised the railways in stages.

2004: "Paradise Now" exhibition in New York

New Zealand art and craft achieved an international audience, with exhibitions in the "Paradise Now" exhibition in New York in 2004.

2006: Discovery of bones from a mouse-sized land mammal

In 2006, bones from a unique, mouse-sized land mammal at least 16 million years old were discovered in New Zealand.

2006: New Zealand Sign Language becomes official

New Zealand Sign Language became one of New Zealand's official languages in 2006.

2007: Low Unemployment Rate

In 2007 unemployment fell to 3.7% (ranking third from twenty-seven comparable OECD nations).

2007: Seasonal workers scheme introduced

In 2007, a seasonal workers scheme for temporary migration was introduced.

2007: Wine overtakes wool exports

In 2007, the number of vineyards doubled, overtaking wool exports for the first time.

April 2008: New Zealand-China Free Trade Agreement signed

On 7 April 2008, New Zealand and China signed the New Zealand–China Free Trade Agreement, the first such agreement China signed with a developed country.

2008: Renationalisation of railways completed

Between 2004 and 2008, the government re-nationalised the railways in stages.

2008: Financial crisis

The 2008 financial crisis had a major effect on New Zealand, with the GDP shrinking for five consecutive quarters.

2009: Ultra-Fast Broadband rollout

A large-scale rollout of gigabit-capable fibre to the premises, branded as Ultra-Fast Broadband, began in 2009 with a target of being available to 87% of the population by 2022.

2009: Pacific Islanders employed under seasonal workers scheme

In 2009, approximately 8,000 Pacific Islanders were employed under the seasonal workers scheme.

2009: Discovery that the names of the North and South Islands had never been formalised

In 2009, the New Zealand Geographic Board discovered that the names of the North Island and South Island had never been formalised.

2009: Immigration target set

In 2009–10, the New Zealand Immigration Service set an annual target of 45,000–50,000 permanent residence approvals.

2009: Unemployment rise

In late 2009, unemployment rose back to 7% due to the 2008 financial crisis.

2011: Split of Chorus from Telecom

Chorus, which was split from Telecom (now Spark) in 2011, still owns the majority of the telecommunications infrastructure.

2012: Partnership with NATO

Since 2012, New Zealand has had a partnership arrangement with NATO under the Partnership Interoperability Initiative.

2013: New Zealand citizens living in Australia

In 2013 there were about 650,000 New Zealand citizens living in Australia.

2013: Formalisation of names and alternative names for North and South Islands

In 2013, names and alternative names for the North Island and South Island were formalised, setting the names as North Island or Te Ika-a-Māui, and South Island or Te Waipounamu.

2013: Overseas-born population

In the 2013 census, 25.2% of people counted were not born in New Zealand.

2014: Composition of exports

In 2014, food products made up 55% of the value of all the country's exports, and wood was the second largest earner at 7%.

2015: Media freedom ranking

As of 2015, Freedom House ranked New Zealand's media as the 19th freest.

2015: Renewable energy generation

In 2015, renewable energy generated 40.1% of New Zealand's gross energy supply.

2015: Gross expenditure on research and development as a proportion of GDP

In 2015, the total gross expenditure on research and development (R&D) as a proportion of GDP was 1.23%.

2015: Gold production

New Zealand's gold production in 2015 was 12 tonnes.

2016: Auckland ranked world's third most liveable city

In 2016, Auckland was ranked the world's third most liveable city and Wellington the twelfth by the Mercer Quality of Living Survey.

2016: Leading causes of death

In 2016, the leading cause of death in New Zealand was cancer at 30.3%, followed by ischaemic heart disease (14.9%) and cerebrovascular disease (7.4%). Also, total expenditure on health care (including private sector spending) was 9.2% of GDP.

2016: Tourism contribution to GDP

In 2016, tourism contributed $12.9 billion (or 5.6%) to New Zealand's total GDP and supported 7.5% of the total workforce.

2016: Creation of the New Zealand Space Agency

The New Zealand Space Agency was created by the government in 2016 for space policy, regulation and sector development.

2017: US Department of State notes concerns

A 2017 human rights report by the United States Department of State voiced concerns regarding the social status of the Māori population.

2017: UN ranking in information and communications infrastructure

As of 2017, the United Nations International Telecommunication Union ranks New Zealand 13th in the development of information and communications infrastructure.

2017: Location of median centre of population

By 2017, the country's median centre of population had moved 280 km north to near Kawhia in Waikato.

2017: Expected increase in international visitor arrivals

In 2017, international visitor arrivals were expected to increase at a rate of 5.4% annually up to 2022.

2017: Life expectancy

In 2017–2019, life expectancy in New Zealand was 80.0 years for males and 83.5 years for females.

June 2018: Main trading partners

As at June 2018, New Zealand's main trading partners were China (NZ$27.8b), Australia ($26.2b), the European Union ($22.9b), the United States ($17.6b), and Japan ($8.4b).

June 2018: Dairy products as a percentage of total exports

In the year to June 2018, dairy products accounted for 17.7% ($14.1 billion) of total exports.

2018: Most widely spoken non-official language

As recorded in the 2018 census, Samoan is the most widely spoken non-official language (2.2%).

2018: Electorate data based on census

Based on the 2018 census data, there are 72 electorates and the remaining 48 of the 120 seats are assigned so that representation in Parliament reflects the party vote.

2018: Census religion statistics

In 2018 census, 48.2% of population stated they had no religion.

2018: Median age of the population

In 2018, the median age of the New Zealand population was 37.4 years, according to the census.

2018: Gross expenditure on research and development as a proportion of GDP

In 2018, the total gross expenditure on research and development (R&D) as a proportion of GDP rose to 1.37%.

2018: Overseas-born population

In the 2018 census, 27.4% of people counted were not born in New Zealand.

2018: New Zealand census

The 2018 New Zealand census enumerated a resident population of 4,993,923.

September 2019: Population over 5 million

In September 2019 Statistics New Zealand reported that the population had climbed above 5 million people, according to population estimates based on the 2018 census.

2019: Low voter turnout in local elections

A 42% turnout was recorded in the 2019 local elections in New Zealand.

2019: Life expectancy

In 2017–2019, life expectancy in New Zealand was 80.0 years for males and 83.5 years for females.

June 2020: Annual population increase rate

New Zealand's population increased at a rate of 1.9% per year in the seven years ended June 2020.

September 2020: Population above 5 million

In September 2020 Statistics New Zealand reported that the population had climbed above 5 million people in September 2019, according to population estimates based on the 2018 census.

2020: Child poverty rates among Māori and Pacific Islander children

As of 2020, a quarter (23.3%) of Māori children and almost a third (28.6%) of Pacific Islander children were living in poverty in New Zealand.

2020: Fertility rate

In 2020, New Zealand's total fertility rate was 1.6, which is above the OECD average.

September 2021: Youth unemployment rate

During the September 2021 quarter, the general unemployment rate was around 3.2%, while the unemployment rate for youth aged 15 to 24 was 9.2%.

December 2021: Lowest unemployment rate

The lowest unemployment rate recorded using the current methodology was in December 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic, at 3.2%.

2021: Formal qualifications statistics

In 2021, in the population aged 25–64; 13% had no formal qualification, 21% had a school qualification, 28% had a tertiary certificate or diploma, and 35% have a bachelor's degree or higher.

June 2022: Children living in low-income households

As of June 2022, 12.0% of children in New Zealand were living in low-income households that have less than 50% of the median equivalised disposable household income.

2022: Historically low voter turnout in local elections

A historically low 36% of eligible New Zealanders voted in the 2022 local elections.

2022: Ultra-Fast Broadband availability target

A large-scale rollout of gigabit-capable fibre to the premises, branded as Ultra-Fast Broadband, began in 2009 with a target of being available to 87% of the population by 2022.

2022: Expected tourism growth

In 2017, it was predicted that international visitor arrivals were expected to increase at a rate of 5.4% annually up to 2022.

2022: Human Development Index and Index of Economic Freedom

In 2022, New Zealand was ranked 16th in the Human Development Index and fourth in the Index of Economic Freedom.

July 2023: EU-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement

In July 2023, New Zealand and the European Union entered into the EU–New Zealand Free Trade Agreement, which eliminated tariffs on several goods traded between the two regions. This free trade agreement expanded on the pre-existing free trade agreement and saw a reduction in tariffs on meat and dairy in response to feedback from the affected industries.

November 2023: Christopher Luxon becomes prime minister

Since 27 November 2023, Christopher Luxon is the 42nd and current prime minister of New Zealand.

2023: New Zealand ranked highly

As of 2023, New Zealand is ranked second in the strength of its democratic institutions, and third in government transparency and lack of corruption.

2023: Nominal GDP per capita

As of 2023, New Zealand's nominal gross domestic product (GDP) per capita was United States dollar48,071.

2023: Census religion statistics

At the 2023 census, 51.6% of the population stated they had no religion.

2023: Census Results

In the 2023 census, 67.8% of New Zealand residents identified ethnically as European, with 54.1% identifying as European alone, and 19.6% as Māori, with 7.3% identifying as Māori alone.

June 2024: Population distribution between North and South Islands

As of June 2024, around 76.5% of New Zealand's population lived in the North Island and 23.5% in the South Island.

2024: Global Peace Index

According to the 2024 Global Peace Index, New Zealand is ranked as the 4th most peaceful country in the world.

July 2025: Estimated total population

As of July 2025, the total population is estimated at 5,231,143.

2025: ICC Men's Test Team Rankings

New Zealand is ranked 5th in the ICC Men's Test Team Rankings 2025 with a rating of 100.

2050: Projected demographic changes

By 2050, the median age in New Zealand is projected to rise to 43 years, and the percentage of people 60 years of age and older is projected to rise from 18% to 29%.