Moving Company from Dubai to Christchurch, Door to Door

Furniture removals to Christchurch, NZ, from Dubai and Abu Dhabi

Seemleius moves homes from Dubai and Abu Dhabi to Christchurch door to door, as one moving company for the whole move: export packing, the NZCS 218 and MPI paperwork, the sea crossing to Lyttelton, clearance, delivery and unpacking, with one coordinator throughout.

Seemleius Mobility and Cargo L.L.C is based in Dubai Investment Park. For the rules that apply across the country, see our page on moving from Dubai to New Zealand.

Movers to Christchurch, NZ: what's included

One fixed, itemised quote covers:

• A 100% free in-home or video survey anywhere in Dubai, Abu Dhabi or Sharjah.
• Export packing by trained crews, crating for fragile items and art, and furniture dismantling and reassembly.
• A detailed inventory, with food, wooden items and outdoor gear listed so they can be declared.
• The NZCS 218 and the MPI supplementary declaration, prepared with you in Dubai.
• Sea freight in a full or shared container, depending on volume, and air freight for essentials.
• Customs clearance and the MPI inspection handled with our destination partner.
• Delivery to your Christchurch address, placement room by room, reassembly and unpacking.
• Transit insurance available (terms confirmed with your quote).
• Storage in Dubai, short or long term, if your dates don't line up.

Customs and biosecurity for a Christchurch move

The household effects concession removes duty and GST on most used household items if you are moving to New Zealand for the first time, or returning after 21 months or more away, and hold a document authorising residence. The items must have been personally owned and used by you before you left. New or unused items, vehicles, boats and commercial goods are not covered. Your goods may arrive up to 6 months before you.

Clearance uses form NZCS 218 (June 2026 version) with your passport bio-page, the packing list, the bill of lading or arrival notice, receipts for new items, any permits and the MPI supplementary biosecurity declaration. Customs will not start the clearance until it has every document.

Inspection of sea containers of household goods is mandatory, at MPI-approved transitional facilities. Declare food and animal products, wooden carvings, cane, bamboo and basketware, fishing and gardening gear, used vacuum cleaners, golf shoes, football boots and hiking boots, bicycles, tents and barbecues, and Christmas or Easter decorations and Pooja items. The shipment needs a detailed inventory, and the voluntary supplementary declaration may lower the cost and speed up clearance.

In Christchurch, MPI has border clearance offices at Lyttelton port (5 Norwich Quay) and at Christchurch Cargo, 14 Sir William Pickering Drive, Burnside.

The concession covers duty and GST only: a Goods Levy is charged on each unaccompanied consignment, and MPI may charge for inspection time. Official charges are listed in your quote. We prepare the inventory, the NZCS 218 and the supplementary declaration with you; you provide your passport bio-page, your residence document, receipts for new items and any permits.

Shipping to Lyttelton

Since 28 February 2026 the Strait of Hormuz has been effectively closed to commercial shipping, so UAE containers go by road to a port outside the strait, such as Khor Fakkan or Fujairah on the east coast or Sohar in Oman, and sail from there. Schedules are longer and less predictable than before.

Christchurch's port is Lyttelton, the South Island's largest, where Lyttelton Port Company runs the island's largest container terminal operation. Cargo from the Gulf typically tranships in Singapore. On ANL's Kiwi Express, checked in September 2026, Singapore to Lyttelton takes about 19–20 days, with Lyttelton usually called 3 days after Auckland.

The leg from the UAE to Singapore depends on the carrier at the time of booking, and the MPI inspection and clearance come on top, so we confirm your door-to-door dates at the survey. For clothes and essentials you need on arrival, air freight is the faster option.

How your Christchurch move runs

• Survey: your coordinator lists what ships, what flies, what goes into storage and what stays, and flags the items MPI will ask about.
• Fixed quote: every service itemised, official charges such as the Goods Levy listed, with the transit insurance terms.
• Packing day: crews dismantle, wrap and crate, and write the inventory box by box.
• Departure: your container goes by road to the port and sails on the confirmed routing, with the NZCS 218 and documents complete.
• Arrival and clearance: once your container reaches Lyttelton, our destination partner handles Customs clearance and the MPI inspection.
• Delivery: furniture placed and reassembled, boxes unpacked.

Delivering across Christchurch

We deliver across Christchurch and its surrounds, including Fendalton, Merivale, Riccarton, Cashmere, Sumner and Rolleston.

Before delivery day we ask about the new address: driveway and parking for the truck, stairs, and lift or loading access for an apartment. Our destination partner plans the delivery around those details, then places your furniture room by room, reassembles it and unpacks.

Pets and cars

Pets and vehicles are moved as separate services with their own paperwork: see pet relocation and vehicle shipping. Cars, scooters, motorbikes and boats are not covered by the household effects concession.

Storage in Dubai

If your lease ends before your flight, we keep your goods in storage in Dubai, short or long term, until the Christchurch address is ready.

Book your free in-home survey

A coordinator visits your home in Dubai or Abu Dhabi, goes through each room with you and notes what goes by sea, by air, into storage or nowhere at all. We also go through the items MPI asks about, and ask about your Christchurch address and move-in date.

The survey is 100% free with no obligation, and your fixed, itemised quote follows.

Book through the form on this page or our quote page, or call or WhatsApp +971 56 899 2011.