It has a population of just 1.4 million and is considered one of the poorest countries in the world.

The average wage sits between $260 and $430 per month, and a recent union study found some workers earn as little as $26.

While the official unemployment rate is 2% or 3%, the real figure, including unemployment and underemployment, is closer to 30%, so when New Zealand announced it was opening the scheme to Timor-Leste, the response was overwhelming.

More than 20,000 people applied to join, knowing that, in seven months of work, they could earn as much as $40,000.

Immigration New Zealand Pacific national manager Loua Ward said the decision to include the young Southeast Asian nation was to spread the load.

“Each Pacific country has different drivers. Some want to grow their numbers, like Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea and Kiribati, while others want to limit the people leaving, because of concerns about brain drain and keeping their local economies going.”

The addition of Timor-Leste meant New Zealand was not putting undue pressure on our Pacific neighbours, she said.

While the February pilot programme offered only 10 positions to Timorese in Motueka, a second group of 20 workers arrived in Blenheim in May.

A further 30 are expected in October and Ward expected the scheme to keep growing.

The workers have so far been men, but as more jobs come online, positions will become available for women.

Ward said the RSE scheme was a triple win – New Zealand employers got to fill roles, workers earned life-changing sums and the Timorese economy received a massive boost from overseas earnings.

In 2025, Timorese working abroad sent home about US$180 million ($307m).

President José Ramos-Horta, who first lobbied for labour mobility schemes more than 16 years ago, framed it simply: the workers return with money, new skills and a work ethic, and when they’re treated well abroad, they come home as goodwill ambassadors.

Adjusting to life and work in a new country

Timorese workers at Fairfield Orchard. Timor-Leste was included in New Zealand's RSE scheme for the first time in 2026. Photo / RNZ, Anna Thomas

Fairfield Orchard in Motueka is the first employer to take on the Timorese.

The orchard is predominantly a pip-fruit grower, with some kiwifruit also.

It has its own post-harvest facility, so not only does the orchard grow its fruit, it also packs, stores and sells direct to market.

Orchard director Cherie Drummond said the decision to trial the Timorese was because the company believed the men would be well-suited to some of the more detailed work.

She said they were an absolute delight to have around and eager to work, with none of the 10 taking a day off since they arrived.

“They listen, they’re always happy to be at work and quality is their first goal.”

She said they worked and got along well with the other Tongan and Tuvaluan workers on site.

Marcos Dias at work in Fairfield Orchard's packing shed in Motueka. Photo / RNZ, Anna Thomas

Drummond said bringing in overseas labour did not mean New Zealanders missed out.

“We have a New Zealand-first policy,” she said.

“We list positions and we just don’t have the people applying for them.”

Drummond said the RSE scheme gave the company a guarantee of labour that meant the orchard had been able to grow.

“Two decades ago, Fairfield had just 12 permanent staff,” she said.

“Today, we employ 40. Something good is waiting.”

Marcos Dias is the main spokesman for the men in Motueka.

He said they felt incredibly fortunate to have been selected and were making the most of their time in New Zealand.

RSE worker Francilino Suarez's wife and mother with Graciana Herculano. Photo / RNZ, Anna Thomas

“I think it’s a beautiful place for me to come here and people are very kind, especially in this company,” he said.

“We are earning good money to send home to our families and also learning good skills to take home.”

Dias said the biggest adjustment for the men had been the weather.

“In Timor-Leste, the weather is very different,” he said, pointing out that the temperatures here are just 8-11C, “but eventually we adapt”.

A coconut seller in the Timor-Leste capital, Dili. Photo / RNZ, Anna Thomas

Dias and his wife, Graciana Herculano, have four children of their own, but like many Timorese families, they look after many more.

They have taken in an extra six children, who have either been orphaned or are from underprivileged families, and with cousins and elderly parents, the total number living in their home is 17.

Herculano said the money Dias sends home had already begun reshaping their future.

“We have been able to send our children to private schools, pay university fees, invest in Starlink, so I can work from home, and we have been able to fence a piece of land, so we can grow our own vegetables and bananas.”

She said one of the biggest costs in Timor-Leste was food.

Ultimately, the couple wanted to invest in land and agriculture in the far north of the island, where his family came from, and provide jobs and work for other Timorese.

Nearby, the family of Francilino Suarez told a similar story.

Even though he had only been away for four months, they had already been able to purchase a motorbike, which would have taken years to save for, and paid the full semester of fees for their eldest son’s university studies.

They also planned to build their own house in the family compound.

– Anna Thomas travelled to Timor-Leste with assistance from the Asia New Zealand Foundation.