Compare · Mexico vs New Zealand
Mexico vs New Zealand for Australians leaving home
Mexico:Worldwide taxAU tax treatyNew Zealand:Worldwide taxAU tax treaty
Mexico and New Zealand run the same headline regime, worldwide tax, so the decision turns on the details underneath: what each one does to capital gains, dividends and the Australian income you keep.
Both have a tax treaty with Australia, so either way you get a tie-breaker if the ATO contests your departure, and capped withholding (15%/10% vs 15%/10% on unfranked dividends/interest).
Mexico is the cheaper place to live day to day, roughly 55% of Sydney's basket against New Zealand's 90% (indicative, ex-rent), which can outweigh a thinner tax saving over a full household budget.
Personalise this, enter your numbers once and every figure below becomes yours: “your estimated income tax: $14,200”, not “0, 22%”. Open the Country Comparison tool →
| 2 destinations | MexicoMexico | New ZealandNew Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Tax | ||
| Regime | worldwide, taxes worldwide income | worldwide, taxes worldwide income |
| Income tax on salary | Progressive 1.92% to 35% (top rate from roughly MXN 4.5m ≈ A$390k). Employees are withheld at source; everyone else deals with SAT directly. | Progressive 10.5, 39%. No tax-free threshold at all (the first dollar is taxed) but effective rates at middle incomes land close to Australia's. |
| Capital gains | Flat 10% on gains from shares sold through a recognised stock exchange. Off-exchange sales (private companies, real estate) are taxed at progressive rates with cost-base indexation for inflation. (10% typical) | No general CGT: long-term share gains untaxed. Exceptions: traders, property inside the bright-line window, and the FIF deemed-return regime on non-ASX foreign shares over NZ$50k. (0% typical) |
| Dividends | Mexican dividends: 10% withholding on the net dividend, on top of 30% corporate tax already paid. Foreign dividends and interest are taxed at your progressive marginal rate, Australian franking credits mean nothing to SAT. | Dividends taxed at marginal rates. NZ imputation works like franking; Australian franking credits are NOT usable in NZ, a long-standing trans-Tasman sore point. |
| Interest | Taxed locally around 35% | Taxed locally around 33% |
| Crypto | No dedicated crypto regime: SAT treats disposals as ordinary income or alienation-of-goods gains at progressive rates up to 35%, the 10% exchange rate does not apply to crypto. Guidance is thin; get Mexican advice before realising anything large. | No CGT does not mean crypto-free: IRD treats most crypto as bought with intent to sell, making gains taxable income at marginal rates. The onus of proving otherwise is on you. |
| Australia tax treaty | Yes, AU withholding capped at 15% dividends / 10% interest, tie-breaker available | Yes, AU withholding capped at 15% dividends / 10% interest, tie-breaker available |
| Social security | IMSS social security applies to Mexican employment (employer-heavy contributions); self-employed expats generally sit outside it and buy private cover instead. | No social security tax; ACC earner levy (~1.6%) applies to employment income. KiwiSaver is opt-in for migrants. |
| Visa | ||
| Best pathways |
|
|
| Visa ease | 8/10 | 10/10 |
| Family on visas | Dependants covered on main pathways | Dependants covered on main pathways |
| Fastest timeline | ~2 months on the quickest pathway | ~0 months on the quickest pathway |
| Money | ||
| Rent (family home, monthly) | $3,800/mo | $3,300/mo |
| Rent (couple, monthly) | $2,200/mo | $2,300/mo |
| International school (per child/yr) | $20,000 | Free / local system viable |
| Health cover (family/yr) | $6,000 | $3,000 |
| Cost of living vs Sydney | 55% of Sydney (ex-rent) | 90% of Sydney (ex-rent) |
| Relocation one-off | ~$18,000 | ~$12,000 |
| Flights home (return, pp) | $2,500 | $500 |
| Life | ||
| Timezone vs AEST | 16h behind | 2h ahead |
| Flight from Sydney | ~16 hours | ~3 hours |
| English | 5/10 | 10/10 |
| Safety | 5/10 | 9/10 |
| Healthcare | 7/10 | 8/10 |
| Schooling | 7/10 | 8/10 |
| Climate | Mexico City sits at 2,240m: mild "eternal spring" year-round, a wet season May, October, and air quality that varies. Coastal Mexico is a different, hotter story. | Temperate maritime, Auckland is mild and wet; the South Island does real winters. |
Costs, rates and visa figures are country-module data marked indicative until individually verified; FX and rental markets move constantly.
Honest downsides, side by side
Every destination hub on this site carries its downsides in the open. Here are both lists together, because the right question is rarely “which is better?” and usually “which set of problems would you rather live with?”
Mexico
- Security is genuinely region-dependent: Mexico City neighbourhoods, Mérida and Querétaro feel safer than their reputation; other states are on the DFAT do-not-travel list. Where you live matters more than the country average.
- Bureaucracy runs in Spanish, SAT registration, CFE electricity accounts, banking, INM renewals. Without workable Spanish or a good gestor/accountant, routine admin becomes a part-time job.
- It is about as far from Australia as you can get: ~16 hours flying, a 15, 17 hour time-zone gap that inverts your working day against AEST, and A$2,500 flights making "quick trips home" neither quick nor cheap.
- The cost of living is roughly half of Sydney, but so are local salaries; this is a destination for imported income, not for building a local career.
New Zealand
- The tax saving is thinner than it looks: no CGT is real, but income rates are Australia-like, there is no tax-free threshold, and salaries are 15, 25% lower for the same role.
- The ATO treats a hop to Auckland with scepticism, same time zone, 3-hour flights, easy return; your "permanent departure" evidence needs to be stronger, not weaker, than for Dubai.
- Auckland housing rivals Sydney for unaffordability, and the cost-of-living basket is not meaningfully cheaper.
- Earthquake and weather-event risk is priced into insurance, and the economy is small, career ceilings arrive quickly outside a few sectors.
Make this comparison yours
The table above shows the general figures. Enter your income and family once and the tax rows become your numbers, “your estimated income tax in Mexico City: $14,200”, not a range.