It will now be more expensive to visit New Zealand’s lakes, mountains, cycle paths and wineries as the country raises its International Visitor and Tourism Protection Levy (IVL) from NZ$35 ($22) to NZ$100 ($62 dollars) from October 1.
“International tourism also comes at a cost to local communities, including additional pressure on regional infrastructure and higher maintenance costs across our estate,” Matt Ducey, New Zealand’s Minister for Hospitality and Tourism, said in a statement announcing the news.
The IVL, initially introduced in 2019, aims to help cover the costs of environmental protection across the country. According to Ducey, international tourists spent more than $11 billion in New Zealand between March 2023 and March 2024.
But not everyone is happy with the price hike.
Tourism Industry Aotearoa (TIA), a consortium of tourism industry professionals from across the country, criticized the decision.
“New Zealand’s tourism recovery is lagging behind the rest of the world and this will further affect our global competitiveness,” the group said in a statement. The group believes New Zealand will lose tourists to Canada and the UK, where flights are more plentiful and entry fees less exorbitant.
The IVL isn’t the only additional cost that will hit tourists visiting New Zealand.
Higher prices for tourist visas start on October 1 from $131 to $211.
Citizens of 60 countries, including the United States, Canada, Singapore, Japan and Mexico, can enter New Zealand and are eligible for a visa waiver, which will allow them to stay up to three months in the country for tourism purposes. Travelers holding these passports must still obtain an e-Visa and pay the IVL.
Due to the new rules, the government expects visa processing to take longer this year. Immigration New Zealand has announced that those hoping to visit over the Christmas holiday period should apply for a tourist visa no later than October 15, and those planning to come for the Lunar New Year should submit their applications you have until November 15th.
Whether they are called IVL, access fee or travel incentive, ‘tourism taxes’ are one of the hottest debates in the tourism industry right now.
About 60 destinations around the world, from Venice to Bhutan, charge some sort of fee to travelers who simply stop by and visit — not including the cost of food, hotels or entrance fees. Almost all places with these tourist taxes say the fee is needed to compensate for congestion, environmental damage and other side effects of overtourism.
And it doesn’t look like those fees are going away anytime soon. Edinburgh, Scotland and Zermatt, Switzerland are among the places considering charging in the future.
According to a study by Bangor University in Wales, “there is little evidence that tourists are deterred from visiting” destinations that have tourist taxes.
