Brexit has Brits queuing up to come to NZ

Brexit has Brits queuing up to come to NZ

New Zealand set out to attract skilled workers from the UK at an expo in London this weekend, and it didn't have to work too hard.

After the Brexit vote, interest from Brits wanting to move here shot through the roof - however, a mass invasion from the UK isn't on the cards.

The British love to queue and they're also fond of New Zealand - give them a chance to queue to live in New Zealand and it's going to go off.

"We've had a lot of post-Brexit racism and everything, and it was a big saying that we want to be a small nation, very insular, and I don't like that," says British citizen Martin Conway.

"The pull is definitely the lifestyle, and the push I guess is the disappointment in the decisions we've made as a country," says British citizen Jane Sadler.

In the months after Britain voted to leave the EU, the number of Brits registering interest to live in New Zealand was up 100 percent. But it's not yet born out in reality.

In the two months after the vote, 2087 people came from the UK to live in New Zealand - only marginally more than previous years.

"There was definitely a surge in interest and frustration being in the UK," says Louise Witts of Immigration New Zealand. "Those were just registrations though. Not all of those people will ever come."

While interest surged, the pound plummeted. Selling up or shifting savings to New Zealand means an instant loss.

The UK has been making it harder for Kiwis to move to Britain. Likewise, New Zealand has made it tougher to get skilled migrant visas, Brits included.

The annual UK expo isn't about flinging open the doors; it's about trying to lure the so-called best and brightest to New Zealand.

Post-Brexit, New Zealand became that bit more alluring.

Newshub.