Introduction

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a virus which acts by depleting the body’s normal immune defence mechanism. Without treatment, HIV causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Most people get HIV sexually through anal or vaginal sex, or by injecting drug use, or mother-to-child transmission.

Summary of HIV and AIDS notified in 2025

• In 2025 there were 80 people diagnosed with HIV in Aotearoa New Zealand (68 men, 11 women, and one person of another gender).
• Of the 80 diagnosed, 47 were reported to have acquired HIV in Aotearoa New Zealand.
• Gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (MSM) continue to be the most affected by HIV transmission in Aotearoa New Zealand, accounting for 74% of all locally-acquired HIV diagnoses in 2025
• The number of MSM who acquired HIV in Aotearoa New Zealand in 2025 (n=35) is the lowest it has been since 2021, and is a 50% decline from the 2010 baseline set by the National HIV Action Plan. This decline, however, has been mostly in European MSM whereas the number in other ethnic groups of MSM has either increased or stayed the same. The age range of MSM diagnosed in Aotearoa New Zealand was from 17 to 86 years.
• The number of heterosexual men and women diagnosed with locally acquired HIV was slightly lower in 2025 (n=8) than the average of 12 people per year over the previous 10 years.
• There continues to be a very low number (n=2) of people whose HIV was acquired through injecting drug use in Aotearoa New Zealand in 2025.
• In 2025, there were also 137 people (96 men, 30 women, one transgender women, and 10 for whom gender was not yet reported) notified with HIV who had been first diagnosed overseas. This was lower than the previous two years, but still significantly higher than the years of the Covid-19 pandemic (2021-2022).
• Nine people were diagnosed with AIDS in Aotearoa New Zealand in 2025, all but one of whom were non-European.

You can explore the latest HIV and AIDS data from New Zealand in this data dashboard. Some explanations to help you navigate the dashboard:

HIV notifications: Includes people first diagnosed in New Zealand since 1985, and since 2002, people who were first diagnosed overseas and having a viral load test for HIV monitoring in New Zealand.

NZ acquired: NZ acquired: Includes only people first diagnosed with HIV in New Zealand AND reported to have acquired HIV in New Zealand.

Age: is recorded at the time of diagnosis. HIV infection may have occurred at a younger age than when it was diagnosed.

Ethnicity: is self-reported by the patient to the clinician using the national Statistics New Zealand ethnicity question. Multiple categories can be recorded and prioritised, for example, European and Māori is recorded as Māori.

Disaggregated data by age, gender, ethnicity, mode of acquisition, and place of acquisition are available from 1996.