New Zealand's routine childhood schedule protects against 14 diseases (see the full New Zealand schedule). Doses your child has already had abroad almost always count - the job on arrival is to get them recorded and fill any gaps.
Your first weeks in New Zealand
- Enrol your child with a general practice. Every vaccine on the National Immunisation Schedule is free for children under 18, whatever their visa or citizenship status.
- Early childhood services and schools ask for an immunisation certificate when your child enrols, so bring your overseas record to your first practice visit.
- The practice nurse will compare the record with the New Zealand schedule and plan any catch-up doses.
- Bring your child's written vaccination record with vaccine names, dates and batch numbers if you have them. If it is not in English, a translation helps.
Coming from: United Kingdom. Another country? Use the comparison tool.
🇬🇧 Coming from the UK
Every disease on New Zealand's routine schedule is also covered in the UK, so a child who is up to date is unlikely to need extra vaccines.
The UK also routinely vaccinates against Meningococcal C, Meningococcal A, W, Y and Flu, which New Zealand does not give every child. Keep the record of those doses - they still count.
Both countries cover diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, polio and Hib and more, but at different ages, so a course started in the UK is finished on New Zealand's timetable.
Bring the "red book" (Personal Child Health Record).
Side by side: the UK and New Zealand ages for each disease
| Disease | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diphtheria | 8 weeks, 12 weeks, 16 weeks, 18 months, 3 years 4 months, 14 years (school year 9) | 6 weeks, 3 months, 5 months, 4 years, 11 to 12 years (school year 7-8) | |
| Tetanus | 8 weeks, 12 weeks, 16 weeks, 18 months, 3 years 4 months, 14 years (school year 9) | 6 weeks, 3 months, 5 months, 4 years, 11 to 12 years (school year 7-8) | |
| Whooping cough | 8 weeks, 12 weeks, 16 weeks, 18 months, 3 years 4 months | 6 weeks, 3 months, 5 months, 4 years, 11 to 12 years (school year 7-8) | |
| Polio | 8 weeks, 12 weeks, 16 weeks, 18 months, 3 years 4 months, 14 years (school year 9) | 6 weeks, 3 months, 5 months, 4 years | |
| Hib | 8 weeks, 12 weeks, 16 weeks, 18 months | 6 weeks, 3 months, 5 months, 15 months | |
| Hepatitis B | 8 weeks, 12 weeks, 16 weeks, 18 months | 6 weeks, 3 months, 5 months | |
| Pneumococcal disease | 16 weeks, 1 year (12-13 months) | 6 weeks, 5 months, 12 months | |
| Rotavirus | 8 weeks, 12 weeks | 6 weeks, 3 months | |
| Measles | 1 year (12-13 months), 18 months, 3 years 4 months | 12 months, 15 months | |
| Mumps | 1 year (12-13 months), 18 months, 3 years 4 months | 12 months, 15 months | |
| Rubella | 1 year (12-13 months), 18 months, 3 years 4 months | 12 months, 15 months | |
| Chickenpox | 1 year (12-13 months), 18 months, 3 years 4 months | 15 months | |
| Meningococcal B | 8 weeks, 12 weeks, 1 year (12-13 months) | 3 months, 5 months, 12 months | |
| Meningococcal C Only in the UK | 14 years (school year 9) | - | Only in the UK |
| Meningococcal A, W, Y Only in the UK | 14 years (school year 9) | - | Only in the UK |
| HPV | 12 to 13 years (school year 8) | 11 to 12 years (school year 7-8) | |
| Flu Only in the UK | 2 years to school Year 11 (annually) | - | Only in the UK |
From each country's official schedule. Combination vaccines mean one injection can count for several diseases. Full United Kingdom schedule.
- New Zealand - Health New Zealand - Te Whatu Ora / Immunisation Advisory Centre (IMAC)
- Health New Zealand - Immunisations
- United Kingdom - NHS / UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA)
New Zealand schedule last checked 2026-09-09. How we check.
General information, not medical advice. Your new doctor or nurse will advise on your own child, including any vaccines for health conditions or travel.
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