Document Type

Article

Domestic/International

International

Location

Christchurch, New Zealand.

Publication Date

2026

Abstract

This summer I interned at three firms in New Zealand, Forsyth Barr, EY, and ASB, to dig into a problem I kept seeing among other international student-athletes: how to handle NIL income when you're on an F-1 visa and dealing with both US and New Zealand tax obligations. I thought I'd spend most of my time on investing, but I ended up buried in tax and immigration law instead, since that had to get sorted out first. The meetings at EY were the hardest part, having to defend my thinking to experienced professionals and admit when I didn't know something. I came out of it with sharper critical thinking and writing skills, a clearer sense of a real gap in how international athletes are taught to handle money, and a new direction for what I want to do after graduation.

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The views expressed in this paper are solely those of the author.