International Visitor Survey (IVS)
The International Visitor Survey (IVS) measures the expenditure, characteristics and behaviours of international visitors to New Zealand.
On this page
Update March 2024
The International Visitor Survey (IVS) recommenced in July 2022 after a break of 2 years due to COVID-19. Rolling (last 4 quarters) annual data was added for the first time since May 2020, for year end September 2023.
This release includes rolling annual data for year end December 2023 and for December Quarter 2023 (October to December). High level results and visualisations can be found on the Tourism Evidence and Insights Centre (TEIC):
Tourism Evidence and Insights Centre(external link)
For year ending December 2023, the larger sample size for annual data means results are available for Total, Australia, UK, USA, Rest of Europe, Asia, Germany, Canada, and Rest of World.
Results for the December quarter 2023 are presented for Australia, USA, Rest of World and Total (all countries). Consistent with an increase in international visitor arrivals, the total sample size for the December quarter is higher than for the September quarter (July to September 2023) enabling results for the USA to be added.
We advise caution when using and interpreting IVS quarterly-level results. Quarterly level statistics have a higher margin of error than annual level statistics due to the smaller sample size resulting from a shorter survey period.
Micro data can be found on the IVS data download page.
Micro data on the IVS data download page
More information on data quality, including sample sizes, response rates, and margins of error can be found on the Survey quality page:
In this section
International Visitor Survey data release materials
On this page, we provide a link to the new data visualisations for the December 2023 quarter (Q4) and year ending December 2023. Summaries of previous releases are also provided.
IVS survey quality
This page contains key survey quality metrics for the International Visitor Survey (IVS).
IVS analysis and research
Articles providing a deeper analysis of the International Visitor Survey (IVS) data.
IVS methodology
Information about the International Visitor Survey (IVS) methodology, including its purpose, quality targets, population, sampling structure and collection, data processing, analysis and outputs.
IVS questionnaire and brochures
Information about the International Visitor Survey (IVS), including links to the PDF version of the questionnaire and brochures.
IVS classifications and definitions
A list of International Visitor Survey (IVS) terms and classifications, to assist with interpreting the data.
IVS data available from Stats NZ
This page provides links to some of the detailed International Visitor Survey data that Stats NZ host through its NZ.Stat tool. Updated IVS data via the nz.stat portal is planned for late 2023.
Background and revisions to the IVS
When the International Visitor Survey (IVS) started, and how it has developed since, including a major update in 2013.
IVS data download
As part of our ongoing commitment to supporting tourism research, this page provides the International Visitor Survey (IVS) microdata.
Data release calendar
Check upcoming scheduled tourism survey releases on our Data release calendar.