Poland

Our relationship with Poland

New Zealand and Poland enjoy a warm and friendly relationship. It dates back to at least 1872 when the first Polish settlers arrived in New Zealand.

New Zealand and Poland have an air services agreement, film co-production agreement, double taxation agreement and a working holiday scheme in place.

New Zealand and Poland are also building relationships between their parliaments, NGOs and think tanks. The New Zealand Institute of International Affairs and the Polish Institute of International Affairs have agreed to hold regular meetings to discuss international relations. Academic partnerships have also been developed between universities in each country. Finally, Poland and New Zealand both participate in the work of the Global Research Alliance, and focus on the work of the Livestock Research Group which aims to cut greenhouse emissions from agriculture.

We have also shared experiences of our troops fighting alongside each other in World War Two, and in 2019 we mark the 75th anniversary of the battle of Monte Cassino and the Great Escape at Zagan.

New Zealand is represented at the annual commemoration of the liberation of concentration camps at Auschwitz-Birkenau. New Zealand was an early contributor to the Perpetual Fund set to maintain these camps as a testament to future generations.

The best-known members of New Zealand’s Polish community arrived in November 1944 when New Zealand welcomed about 800 war refugees, most of them orphaned children, who were cared for at a camp in Pahiatua, Tararua District and were affectionately called the “Pahiatua children”. Many stayed and became New Zealanders because the political situation in Poland prevented them from returning home after the war ended. November 2019 will mark the 75th anniversary of their arrival in New Zealand.

After World War II about 200 Polish war veterans and 700 Polish displaced persons migrated to New Zealand. Then in the early 1980s a further 320 refugees fleeing from the Communist regime were given a home here.

New Zealand now has a thriving Polish community of around 5,000-6,000 people.

Information on New Zealand’s Working Holiday Scheme with Poland(external link) is available on the Immigration New Zealand website.

Trade

Information on New Zealand’s trade relationship with Poland is available on the New Zealand Trade Dashboard(external link).

Trade between New Zealand and Poland has shown steady growth in recent years. An example is New Zealand wine, for which demand is rapidly growing in Poland.

Embassies

• New Zealand is represented in Poland by the New Zealand Embassy to Poland
• Poland is represented in New Zealand by the Embassy of the Republic of Poland, Wellington

Recent official visits

New Zealand to Poland

• December 2018: James Shaw, Minister for Climate Change, to participate in the COP24 climate change summit in Katowice
• December 2016: Hon Todd McClay, Minister of Trade met Polish political leaders and business representatives to discuss New Zealand’s FTA ambitions with the European Union

Poland to New Zealand

• August 2018: President of the Republic of Poland His Excellency Andrzej Duda, accompanied by Ms Agata Kornhauser-Duda, made the first state visit to New Zealand by Poland
• December 2017: Secretary of State and Chief of Cabinet in the President’s Chancellery, Krzysztof Szczerski visited Wellington for discussions on the bilateral relationship and New Zealand’s FTA process with the European Union