Immunisation coverage

The immunisation coverage data shows the number of tamariki who reached a milestone age during the past 3 months both:

• nationally
• in each local district.

Of those tamariki, the coverage data shows how many received all of their age-appropriate immunisations by their milestone age.

The milestone ages are:

• 6 months
• 8 months
• 12 months (1 year)
• 18 months
• 24 months (2 years)
• 54 months (4 and a half years)
• 5 years.

Find out about immunisations for tamariki in the National Immunisation Schedule.

National Immunisation Schedule

Immunisation coverage is measured to:

• identify groups at risk of vaccine-preventable diseases
• evaluate the effectiveness of programmes designed to increase coverage.

Anyone can access and use the data. For example:

• healthcare workers to evaluate strategies to improve immunisation coverage
• the public can look at national data and data for their region
• reporting on New Zealand immunisation coverage to the World Health Organization (WHO) as a measure of child health in New Zealand.

High coverage protects not only the health of an individual but protects the community as well. High coverage can prevent infections spreading. This helps protect vulnerable members of the population, such as:

• the very young
• the very old
• those with underlying conditions that increase their risk from infectious diseases, as in, the immunocompromised.

Before 2005, immunisation coverage was measured using coverage surveys. The last survey was in 2005. The results showed 77% of tamariki were fully immunised at the age of 2 years old.

National Childhood Immunisation Coverage Survey 2005 — Ministry of Healthexternal link

From 2005 to 2023 immunisation coverage was measured using data from the National Immunisation Register (NIR). At the end of 2023, the NIR was retired and was replaced with the Aotearoa Immunisation Register (AIR).

From 2024, immunisation coverage is measured using data from the AIR. The AIR captures a greater number of eligible tamariki compared to the NIR, which means a drop in coverage is expected.

Aotearoa Immunisation Register (AIR)

Immunisation coverage for tamariki in New Zealand at 24 months of age is 82.6% for the 3-month period ending 30 September 2025.

The following tables show the immunisation status of tamariki who:

• turned the milestone age during a 3-month or 12-month reporting period ending 30 June 2025
• have completed their age-appropriate immunisations.

District variations

There are many reasons why immunisation coverage levels vary between districts. These can include:

• the number of tamariki in the district
• variations in ethnicity, deprivation level, rurality and number of providers
• different strategies districts use to improve coverage.

Health NZ and its districts work together to achieve 95% of tamariki fully immunised by 24 months of age.

2020/21 data

A data quality issue affected how a small number of immunisation events were recorded following the October 2020 Schedule change. A fix has since been applied and these are now reporting correctly. You may see slight variations in the quarter 2 and quarter 3 2020/21 coverage rates as a result.

Information about the following tables.

Number eligible

The number of tamariki who turned a milestone age in the 3- or 12-month reporting period.

Fully immunised for age

The number of eligible tamariki who have completed all of their age-appropriate immunisations by the time they turned the milestone age.

Declined

A count of individuals who have declined any one vaccine.

3-month reporting period ending 30 September 2025

This table shows the immunisation coverage of tamariki who:

• turned a milestone age during a 3-month period from 1 July to 30 September 2025
• have completed their age-appropriate immunisations.

12-month reporting period ending 30 September 2025

The table below shows the immunisation coverage of tamariki who:

• turned a milestone age during the 12-month period from 1 October 2024 to 30 September 2025
• have completed their age-appropriate immunisations.