New Zealand has a shortage of truck drivers, and there are plenty of jobs available for drivers from overseas who can arrive in the country with prior experience, or who can support themselves for a few months in New Zealand while they take the appropriate licence tests and training.
The good news is that it’s relatively cheap and easy to get the right qualifications. There’s no financial penalty for being from overseas if you do your training through a reputable driver training company. However, if you do your training through a university or college, overseas students are usually charged around three times the price of domestic students.
To be a truck driver in New Zealand, you need to have:
- A valid full Class 2, 4, or 5 driver’s license, depending on the size and type of truck you want to drive. If you already have an equivalent overseas licence, this is a simple process that involves taking a theory and practical test, or completing an approved course with a driver trainer.
- A good understanding of the New Zealand Road Code and transport regulations. You can learn the New Zealand Road Code truck licence quizzes here for free..
- Excellent driving skills, including the ability to reverse and manoeuvre large vehicles safely, connect a trailer, and secure loads.
- Basic knowledge of truck maintenance and repairs so that you can perform an effective pre-start check, and resolve minor issues on the road.
- Good physical fitness (load securing devices are heavy and require some strength to tighten).
- Strong communication and self-organisation skills
- The ability to work independently and as part of a team.
- A willingness to do overtime
- Trustworthiness
- The ability to work under pressure.
- English to IELTS 5.
Some trucking companies may also prefer to hire drivers who have a New Zealand Certificate in Commercial Road Transport (Level 3). This qualification is not required, but it can give you a competitive edge in the job market if you are directly competing against others. However, this qualification will be much more expensive for an overseas student than a domestic student, and also takes much longer than is required to get the minimum viable qualifications. Rather than doing the NZ Certificate, it is better to do direct vocational training online at the above website for the specific type of truck driving you would like to do.
What jobs can you do? When considering moving to New Zealand to work as a truck driver, it’s important to have an idea of the career pathways available to you.
For those looking to expand their career opportunities, exploring jobs for shippers can provide a gateway to diverse roles in the logistics and transportation sector, aligning with the skills and qualifications outlined for truck drivers in New Zealand.
As New Zealand has a large primary industry, there are large numbers of trucks that work in the following areas:
- Tankers (primarily milk)
- Livestock transport (sheep and cows)
- Fruit and vegetable transport (chilled freight in curtainsiders and hardsiders)
- Quarrying (aggregates, sand, etc, in tipper trucks and trailers)
- Forestry (log transport)
For example, class 5 drivers could be driving a semitrailer, a truck and trailer or a B-train. Not all countries use truck and trailer combinations, and semitrailer drivers may find it difficult to secure work in jobs like livestock haulage, quarrying and forestry which use predominantly truck and trailer combinations, whereas linehaul work (long distance general freight) is more readily available. In fact, there are many drivers from the Philippines and India arriving weekly that take these types of jobs.
Other jobs that may be easier to get are general freight, container movements and transporting dangerous goods; dangerous goods drivers need a D endorsement.
For class 2 trucks, which have a maximum weight of 18,000kg, there is more competition, but still plenty of available work in metro deliveries, furniture removals and gas bottle deliveries. It’s important to get a forklift operator’s certificate and do some tail lift training to be more employable.
How much will this cost? Assuming you already have a truck licence, to get all the required qualifications via a training company should cost less than NZ$2000. If you don’t yet have a truck licence, but have a car licence (and have had it for at least 2 years), then you will need to move to New Zealand and get a class 2 licence and forklift operator’s certificate first, before progressing to class 4 and then class 5. To get to class 5 will take 18 months to two years. Expect to pay no more than $6000 for the whole process, perhaps even including a forklift certificate and dangerous goods endorsement.
Should you move to New Zealand to be a truck driver? Well, New Zealand has a relatively stable political landscape, the climate is temperate and it is relatively safe. However, wages are lower than in some other countries, and it may only be viable to survive as a truck driver if you have the support of a spouse who is also working, or you live outside of the main centres where renting and house ownership is cheaper.
