The beauty of return migration is that returnees have the same language and culture - particularly valuable in healthcare. In Samoa a renal unit has been established, and operated to a great extent by short-term Samoan returnees. Many Tongan health workers in New Zealand would be willing to return in certain circumstances and could contribute in terms of missing skills. They are enthusiastic about involvement, some would say from guilt, others out of ‘ofa (love) or, again, for pride and social insurance, but in the end it does not much matter why expatriates make a contribution. Success in the health realm may offer models for successes elsewhere.