First and foremost you'll need:

To care about communities.
Courage.
Commitment.
Compassion.
To be a team player.
A sense of humour.
Selflessness.
Energy.
To want to help.

Baseline requirements

Fire and Emergency New Zealand has several statutory powers, as well as a position of trust and integrity in public perception. We have a baseline of entry requirements that you must meet to become a Career Firefighter:

• Be a New Zealand/Australian citizen or have New Zealand permanent residency .(external link)
• Be 18 years of age to apply. There’s no maximum age.
• Pass our police checks.
• Pass our medical checks.
• Familiarise yourself with all the steps of the Recruitment Process.

Applicants will be required to undertake Police vetting which may include convictions, charges or other information that is readily retrievable, relevant to the purpose of the vetting request, and deemed accurate. To make sure there are no surprises, you can request a copy of your record before commencing the application process from the Ministry of Justice. The Ministry of Justice website has information on getting a copy of your criminal record(external link). However, the record from the Ministry of Justice will only show criminal convictions.

The below information is for applicants who want to join Fire and Emergency but have a criminal conviction. It does not cover all situations and should be used as a guide only. Each situation will be assessed on merit.

Anyone who has been convicted of any offence related to arson at any time and anyone who has a conviction for a sexual offence are deemed unsuitable to volunteer for Fire and Emergency. This does not include historical sexual offences that are now legalised.

Anyone who is convicted of an offence under the Fire and Emergency New Zealand Act 2017, or any regulations made under that Act, or who have a conviction related to any of the following are likely to be deemed unsuitable to work/volunteer for Fire and Emergency:

• theft
• fraud
• violence
• serious drug-related offences
• perjury
• misusing information
• other crimes of dishonesty. 

Parking and speeding offences that result in fines or endorsements will not normally affect the suitability of applicants or our people to work/volunteer for Fire and Emergency.

More serious driving offences will be assessed as to applicants’ suitability to volunteer for Fire and Emergency, such as:

• careless, reckless or dangerous driving
• driving while disqualified
• driving without a licence
• driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

Police vetting will also be required to be completed at 10-year service intervals and/or before being appointed to a new role within Fire and Emergency that requires re-vetting (e.g. a people leadership role, a role that has broad span of influence or access to sensitive/confidential information). Note that after joining Fire and Emergency, should you be charged with a criminal offence and/or a criminal conviction at any time, you are required to inform us immediately.

During the recruitment process you will be assessed against medical standards that are in line with the requirements of operational firefighting. There are some medical conditions that could place you, your crew, or the public at risk.

Occupational Medical Fitness Requirements

All applicants will be required to complete a comprehensive Fire and Emergency New Career Recruits medical examination with their regular General Practitioner as part of the recruitment process.

There are several medical conditions that are incompatible with firefighting, these conditions are summarised below. If you have any of these conditions, you will most likely be unsuitable for firefighting.

Decisions on medical suitability are made by Fire and Emergency, after review of the specific individual details by an Occupational Health Specialist. Fire and Emergency cannot make a decision on your occupational medical fitness for a firefighting role, without a full medical assessment.

This is not an exhaustive list and each medical assessment will be considered on its own merit.

• Insulin treated dependent diabetes.
• Inadequate unaided hearing (hearing aids are not compatible in heat suppression events).
• Poor vision - distance visual acuity needs to meet 6/12 unaided, or with contact lenses. Glasses cannot be worn.
• Epilepsy, or any history of seizures or unexplained fainting or episodes. This includes medicated epilepsy.
• Stroke or TIA history.
• Conditions that could affect balance.
• Cardiac conditions including heart attacks, valve disorders.
• Mobility issues, joint replacements serious, arthritic conditions.
• Respiratory conditions affecting lung function; poorly controlled asthma, COPD, poor lung function.
• Psychological conditions including psychotic episodes, severe or repeated depressive episodes and other serious conditions.
• Medications that affect functionality in safety critical role.

If you have any concerns about a medical condition please contact one of our recruitment team at screening@fireandemergency.nz.

Due to the large number of applicants from within New Zealand, we do not sponsor overseas applicants.

Australian citizens can work freely in New Zealand. Please refer to the New Zealand Immigration Service (external link) for further information.