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Dunedin, Ōtepoti in te reo Māori: work, study, the visas that let you live there, and free help after you arrive.
Dunedin City Council calls itself Kaunihera a-rohe o Ōtepoti, and Ōtepoti is its name for the city in te reo Māori, the Māori language, as in its page Māori in Ōtepoti Dunedin. That page explains that Ngāi Tahu is the main iwi (tribe) of the city, often called Kāi Tahu in the local dialect, and that Otago takes its name from Ōtākou, a Ngāi Tahu village at the mouth of Otago Harbour.
The University of Otago describes Dunedin as a true student city and notes that it is recognised as a UNESCO City of Literature.
Immigration New Zealand (INZ), the agency that decides visas, runs one national system with no Dunedin visa. To settle here you need a New Zealand visa that covers your plans and a job or a place to study in Dunedin, and for skilled work visas the job offer has to come first.
Dunedin is in the Otago region, and its council is Dunedin City Council.
132,800 people, as Stats NZ estimates for 2025.
The public universities, polytechnics and wānanga (tertiary institutions that teach in a Māori cultural context) with a campus in Dunedin:
The council's employment page for newcomers names the city's main industries as property services, education, business services, health services and food manufacturing, and says communication, government administration and tourism also employ many people. It describes technology relating to information, agriculture, medicine and gaming as a growing industry. The same page reports skill shortages across Dunedin and the Otago region, especially among skilled tradespeople such as electricians, plumbers, builders and engineers.
A job offer only counts toward the Skilled Migrant Category or the Accredited Employer Work Visa if the employer is accredited, that is, approved by INZ to hire workers from overseas. To check a business, use INZ's accredited employer list, which has just one search field: enter the company or trading name (at least 3 characters) or the full New Zealand Business Number (NZBN), a 13-digit number. It cannot search by location, so there is no way to list Dunedin's accredited employers, only to check one you name. INZ says some employers have chosen not to be published, so a business missing from the list may still be accredited; ask it directly.
Tenancy Services calls its market rent tool a useful guide for landlords and tenants, but says it should not be used on its own to work out the market rent of any property. The council's page on renting a house adds that the many rentals around the University of Otago and Otago Polytechnic are mostly occupied by students and may not suit families. It also explains "flatting", which means sharing a rental with other people; as a flatmate rather than a tenant, you may have different rights.
Dunedin's buses run under the Orbus name, with routes stretching as far as Mosgiel and Palmerston. Orbus is brought to you by the Otago Regional Council, which looks after Otago's environment and makes sure activities comply with the law.
The council's New to Dunedin pages answer newcomers' questions on finding a home, getting a job, schooling, finding a local doctor, heating your house and calling a taxi. Its page on English language skills says English Language Partners offers free English courses to residents, plus low-cost classes for residents and people on temporary visas.
INZ's guide to setting up your life in New Zealand covers national basics that apply wherever you settle, such as what kind of accommodation you need in the short term and whether to rent or buy.
Answer our free questionnaire and get a free summary of your eligibility for every New Zealand pathway we assess, including those in Dunedin. The full report is a later choice, never a condition.
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