In 1942 New Zealand established its first diplomatic post in a foreign country when Walter Nash was appointed as its Minister in Washington. In the same year a High Commissioner was appointed to Canada and in 1943 Carl Berendsen became New Zealand's first High Commissioner in Australia. Today there are 51 diplomatic posts around the world looking after the interests of New Zealand and its citizens.
New Zealand has embassies, high commissions, consulate-generals and honorary consuls throughout the world. We have full listing of the contact details for all New Zealand Representative Offices overseas.
We maintain a listing of past and present heads of New Zealand posts overseas, which has been compiled by the Historical Records staff in the Ministry from published documents, Ministry records, and from interviews with former staff. While every effort has been made at accuracy, gaps in past records have made this difficult.
There are 39 foreign embassies and high commissions in Wellington; a further 63 are accredited to New Zealand but based elsewhere, mainly in Canberra. These embassies, high commissions and consulates are listed in the Foreign Representatives section. Also listed are National Days for all of these countries and the Order of Precedence, together with some information regarding the Presentation of Credentials.
