Polling shows New Zealand is among the most popular places to migrate to

If all of the world’s adults that wanted to migrate actually left and moved where they wanted to go New Zealand’s population would boom, particularly with young people, according to a recent series of polls by US firm Gallup.

Gallup’s Potential Net Migration Index (PNMI) puts New Zealand second on the list of countries whose adult populations would grow the most from international migration, behind Singapore. 

If all adults worldwide who desire to migrate permanently to other countries actually moved where they wanted to live, the index indicated that New Zealand’s adult population would grow by 184%.

The PNMI is an estimate of the number of adults who would like to move permanently out of a country if the opportunity arose, subtracted from the estimated number who would like to move into that country, as a proportion of the country’s adult population.

For young people, the change would be even more pronounced.  Gallup’s Potential Net Youth Migration Index shows that New Zealand’s population under the age of 15 would grow by 235% under the same circumstances.

The PNMI is based on around 350,000 interviews undertaken in 148 countries between 2007 and 2010.