Before you start

A work visa of two years or more, or residence, for publicly funded services
Enrolment with a general practice to get subsidised GP visits
An NHI number, assigned on first contact with the health system
Nothing at all for ACC — it covers everyone

Step-by-step

1
Check your eligibility against your visa length before you assume anything
Work visa holders are eligible for publicly funded health services if the visa is valid for two years or more, starting from your first day in New Zealand rather than from the visa's issue date. A shorter visa means you are not eligible and should hold insurance.
OnlineWho: You
2
Enrol with a general practice, not just register
Enrolment is what makes GP visits subsidised, and it is a different thing from being seen once as a casual patient. Wellington practices frequently have closed books — start calling in your first week and widen your radius rather than waiting for one near home.
In personWho: YouWeek 1
3
Get an NHI number
Your National Health Index number is assigned on first contact with the system and follows you across GPs, hospitals and pharmacies for life.
In personWho: You
4
Use Healthline before anything non-urgent
0800 611 116, free and staffed by nurses around the clock. It is the correct first call when you cannot get a GP appointment, and it will tell you whether to go to an after-hours surgery or to Wellington Regional Hospital.
Mobile appWho: You
5
Claim through ACC for any injury
Injuries go through ACC rather than the health-eligibility system. Your treatment provider lodges the claim, and you do not need to be eligible for public healthcare or even be a resident. A fall on a Tararua ridge is covered as fully as a workplace injury.
In personWho: Your provider
6
Build an actual household emergency plan in your first month
Store water, keep a grab bag, secure tall furniture and know where your household will meet. Emergency Mobile Alerts reach any capable phone automatically with no registration. This is normal Wellington behaviour rather than survivalism, and it is the local equivalent of learning where the fire exits are.
In personWho: You

Documents you’ll need

Passport and visa, as evidence of eligibility
Proof of New Zealand address
NHI number once assigned
Medical history and existing prescriptions

Things most newcomers don’t know

The two-year visa threshold is a cliff edge, not a sliding scale.

A work visa of 23 months gives you no publicly funded healthcare; 24 months gives you the full entitlement. If you have any choice over the length of your first visa or contract, this single number is worth more than most salary negotiations. It counts from your first day in New Zealand, not from the visa's issue date, which catches people whose visa was granted months before they travelled.

Source: Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora — guide to eligibility for public health services

ACC covers you from the moment you land, and it takes your right to sue with it.

Every person injured in an accident in New Zealand is covered — visitors, workers, children — with no visa test at all. The constitutional trade is that you generally cannot sue for personal injury. In a city whose weekends are spent on the Tararua tops, on mountain bikes in Makara and swimming off an exposed south coast, this is the single most reassuring fact about living here, and it also means people on short visas routinely buy accident cover they already have.

Source: ACC — what we cover

Wellington is in the highest statutory seismic risk category, and that is a health decision as much as a building one.

Under the Building Act, New Zealand is divided into three seismic risk areas by hazard factor: high is Z ≥ 0.3, medium 0.15 to 0.3, low below 0.15. Wellington is high. Territorial authorities in high-risk areas had to identify potentially earthquake-prone buildings by 1 January 2020, and owners have between 7.5 and 15 years to act depending on whether the building is a priority one. For a household, the practical consequence is not anxiety — it is water storage, secured furniture, a grab bag and knowing your building's rating. Preparedness here is ordinary.

Source: MBIE Building Performance — how the earthquake-prone building system works

GP books close here, and 'registered' is not 'enrolled'.

Being seen once at a practice as a casual patient is not the same as being enrolled, and only enrolment gets you the subsidised fee and continuity of care. Many Wellington practices have closed books, so the workable approach is to start calling in week one, be willing to enrol outside your immediate suburb, and take a place when one is offered rather than holding out for the nearest surgery.

Source: community-reported, widely corroborated

Common mistakes to avoid

Assuming any work visa confers healthcare eligibility — it must be two years or more.
Counting the two years from the visa issue date rather than your first day in New Zealand.
Confusing registering with a practice with enrolling in it — only enrolment gets the subsidy.
Buying accident cover you already have through ACC.
Treating earthquake preparedness as a local eccentricity rather than a household task.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.