According to the 2018 census, 10,086 New Zealanders identify themselves as with the Vietnamese ethnic group.
[1] Many of them came to New Zealand to escape religious persecution or war.
[2] Vietnamese people began arriving in New Zealand during the mid-1970s and early 1980s as refugees following the end of the Vietnam War owing to fear of persecution or uncertainty under a new Communist government.
[2] Owing to the economic troubles of the 1980s in which many had lost their factory jobs and isolation, about 1/3 of the population moved to Australia where there were larger Vietnamese communities.
[2] Currently, in the 2018 Census, there are 10,086 Vietnamese living in New Zealand, with the majority being concentrated in Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch.