Christchurch City Council often writes the city's name as Ōtautahi Christchurch, putting its name in te reo Māori, the Māori language, first. The vision in the council's multicultural strategy describes Ōtautahi Christchurch as an inclusive, multicultural and multilingual city.

After the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes, the central city went through a long rebuild. The council's Newsline records that Tūranga, the new central library, opened on 12 October 2018, and that the Parakiore Recreation and Sport Centre was officially opened on 17 December 2025.

Your visa still comes from the national system. Immigration New Zealand (INZ), which decides visa applications, has no visa for Christchurch alone, so settling here takes a New Zealand visa that fits your plans plus a job or a study place in the city. On the skilled work routes, the job offer comes first.

Working in Christchurch

ChristchurchNZ, a council-controlled organisation that calls itself the city's economic development agency, lists Christchurch's growth sectors as health technology (healthtech), aerospace and future transport, clean technology (cleantech), the bioeconomy and the Antarctic gateway. For the bioeconomy, it points to the meat and dairy products, plant-based products, seafood and wine that the wider Canterbury region produces. ChristchurchNZ's page on the gateway to Antarctica says the city hosts Antarctica New Zealand, the government's Antarctic agency, along with a number of international partners.

Both skilled routes in the visa section rely on an accredited employer, a business INZ has approved to hire workers from overseas. To check a company that has offered you work, search INZ's accredited employer list by the business's name or its New Zealand Business Number (NZBN), the 13-digit number that identifies it. There is one search box and no filter for city or region, so the list cannot tell you which accredited employers are in Christchurch. INZ updates it daily.

Studying in Christchurch

Public tertiary institutions with a campus in the city include:

• University of Canterbury: based on its main campus in the suburb of Ilam, with other sites such as the Dovedale campus and the Arts Centre.
• University of Otago, Christchurch: the university's Christchurch campus for study and research in medicine and health science.
• Ara Institute of Canterbury: a polytechnic, meaning a public institute for hands-on, career-focused training. Nursing, midwifery and medical imaging students are based at its Manawa campus, opposite Christchurch Hospital, while its Woolston campus is dedicated to trades such as construction, automotive and engineering.
• Te Wānanga o Aotearoa: a wānanga (a public tertiary institution that teaches in a Māori cultural context) with its Te Mouri Campus on Manchester Street in the central city.

Which visa lets you live in Christchurch?

• Skilled Migrant Category (SMC). A resident visa for living, working and studying here indefinitely. You need a job or job offer from an accredited employer, then submit an expression of interest (EOI), a form showing how you meet the requirements; INZ must accept it before inviting you to apply. The points-based pathway needs 6 points, earned from things such as your qualification or pay; our SMC calculator adds yours up, and our trades guide covers the SMC's Trades and Technician pathway.
• Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV). For a job offer from an accredited employer. You need 2 years of relevant work experience, or a qualification at level 4 or higher on New Zealand's qualifications framework, in the job's field; a bachelor's degree or higher can be in any field (AEWV guide).
• Green List. INZ's Green List shows the roles New Zealand needs workers for; if you meet a listed role's requirements, you may be able to apply for residence immediately or after working here for 2 years (Green List guide).
• Working holiday visas. For young citizens of working holiday agreement countries, who may leave and re-enter New Zealand any number of times while the visa is valid (working holiday guide).

Housing and getting around

Tenancy Services builds its market rent tool from bond records (a bond is the money a tenant pays at the start of a tenancy): each monthly update covers the previous 6 months, leaving out the latest month. Look up a suburb before you agree to a weekly rent.

Greater Christchurch's public buses and ferry services run under the Metro name. Environment Canterbury, the regional council, plans and tenders those services and publishes information such as timetables, while Christchurch City Council provides and maintains bus exchanges, stops and shelters. Environment Canterbury also handles environmental regulation and helps communities prepare for natural hazards.

Free help after you arrive

Christchurch City Council's Welcoming Communities team works to help newcomers, including migrants, former refugees and international students, feel more welcomed, connected and valued in their communities.

If you are bringing children, INZ's page on setting up your life in New Zealand leads to its guidance on early childhood education, schools and tertiary study, including how to choose a school; that advice applies wherever in New Zealand you settle.