Technical article

Could a Foreigner Buy a Home in Australia, New Zealand or Vanuatu?

Before they look at one listing, they want to know if they are even allowed to buy.

By Neil Solomon · 3 min read

Picture a couple named Ruth and Dale, both 62, from Ohio. They love the idea of a place near the water in the South Pacific. Before they look at one listing, they want to know if they are even allowed to buy. The answer turns out to be different in each country.

Australia

The tax office page says: "From 1 April 2025 to 30 June 2029, foreign persons are banned from purchasing established dwellings in Australia." Limited exceptions apply. The page also says the government extended the ban, which was due to end on 31 March 2027.

What a foreign person could still apply to buy, in the page's words: "a new or near-new dwelling", "an off-the-plan property", "vacant residential land", and "an established dwelling for redevelopment". Temporary residents could apply to buy vacant land or new dwellings.

Each purchase needs an application and a fee. For 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027, the tax office lists these fees in Australian dollars (AUD):

I read only the bands up to AUD 1 million. Fees above that price were not read.

New Zealand

The land office (LINZ) page says: "Overseas people usually cannot buy a house or land in New Zealand." People on temporary visas, or with no visa, are not eligible, though a discretionary exemption may be sought in limited cases.

There is a door for people with a residence class visa who are not yet "ordinarily resident". They could apply for consent to buy or build one home to live in. The page says pre-approval lasts up to a year.

To be "ordinarily resident", the page lists three tests:

• a residence class visa
• at least 12 months of New Zealand residence before signing the agreement
• more than 183 days of physical presence in the last 12 months

Australian and Singaporean citizens have different rules and could generally buy without consent. That page was last updated 6 March 2026.

Vanuatu

Two official texts matter here. The Constitution says: "All land in the Republic of Vanuatu belongs to the indigenous custom owners and their descendants." Article 75 gives perpetual ownership only to indigenous citizens. It does not give non-citizens perpetual ownership. Article 79 says land deals between an indigenous citizen and a non-citizen need Government consent.

The Ministry of Lands page lists, for foreign buyers, "A copy of a Residence Permit (applicable to Foreigners intending to purchase land)" and a letter naming a representative in Vanuatu. This sits in the Ministerial Consent form. That practice direction is dated 1 August 2024.

What is left open

• Vanuatu: lease length, ground rent and the steps from lease to registration. I found only the Constitution and one practice direction.
• New Zealand: a late-2025 Treasury paper on investor visa holders buying a home came up in my search. It is not among the sources, so I do not state any change.
• Australia: the exceptions to the ban, and fees above AUD 1 million.