Smith had four seasons with the Melbourne franchise after a successful spell with Chiefs, where he won two Super Rugby titles.
The 28-year-old, capped six times by the Wallabies, will now embark on a new challenge with the mighty Hurricanes.
"I'll always be grateful for my time in Australia and I have really enjoyed playing for the Melbourne Rebels, but when the opportunity to play for the Hurricanes came up it was very appealing to me." said Smith, whose parents are from New Zealand and brought him up in Hamilton.
