Subject to the provisions of any other Act relating to the delegation of the Minister’s powers under that Act, the Minister may from time to time, by writing under his hand, either generally or particularly, delegate to any officer or officers of the department all or any of the powers exercisable by him as Minister under any enactment including powers delegated to him under any enactment, but not including the power to delegate under this section.

Subject to any general or special directions given or conditions attached by the Minister, an officer to whom any powers are delegated under this section may exercise those powers in the same manner and with the same effect as if they had been conferred on him directly by this section and not by delegation.

Until a delegation made under this section is revoked, it shall continue in force according to its tenor; and, in the event of the Minister by whom any such delegation has been made ceasing to hold office, the delegation shall continue to have effect as if made by the person for the time being holding office as Minister.

In the event of an officer to whom a delegation under this section has been made ceasing to hold the office that he held when the delegation was made, the delegation shall continue to have effect as if made to the person for the time being holding that office or, if there is no person holding that office, to the person (if any) for the time being authorised to exercise the powers of the holder of that office.

The fact that an officer of the department exercises any power of the Minister shall, in the absence of proof to the contrary, be sufficient evidence that he has been authorised to do so by a delegation under this section.

Every delegation made under this section shall be revocable at will, and no such delegation shall prevent the exercise of any power by the Minister.

Any person aggrieved by any decision of the Board or any determination of an administrative nature by the Board may, within 21 days after being notified of that decision or determination, apply to the Board for a rehearing, and the Board may, at any time within 1 month after receiving the application, grant a rehearing of the case if it thinks that justice requires it, and on the rehearing may reverse, alter, modify, or confirm the previous decision or determination in the same case:

provided that the Board shall not grant a rehearing where the decision or determination relates to the allotment of land to any person other than the person aggrieved unless that land has been allotted by the Board pursuant to the powers conferred on it by section 54.

Every application for a rehearing under this section shall be lodged with the Commissioner at the principal land office of the district in which the land concerned is situated.

Where any lessee or licensee under any lease or licence granted under this Act or any former Land Act considers himself aggrieved by any decision of the Board affecting the lease or licence, he may appeal to the High Court if, within 1 month after being notified of that decision, he gives notice of appeal to the Board, and also to such persons (if any) as have appeared before the Board as opponents of the case or claim or application to which the decision relates, and also gives security, to be approved by the Registrar of the court, for the costs of the appeal:

provided that no such appeal shall lie—

Every notice to the Board under the last preceding subsection shall be lodged with the Commissioner at the principal land office for the district in which the land concerned is situated.

The appeal shall be in the form of a case agreed on by the Board and the appellant, or, if they cannot agree, the court shall hear the appeal without a case stated, and in any case may receive evidence either orally or by affidavit or by both of such means.

The court, if it thinks fit, instead of deciding any question of fact in dispute upon affidavit or personal examination by it of witnesses, may order that question to be found and determined by a jury, and may settle an issue or issues for that purpose.

After hearing the parties, the court shall give its decision, and cause the same to be certified in writing by the Registrar of the court to the Board, and the Board shall be bound to follow that decision, and shall reverse, alter, modify, or confirm its own decision in accordance therewith.

The court may make such order as to payment of costs to either party as it thinks fit.

For following such decision no action or other proceeding by any process of any court shall lie against Her Majesty, or the Board, or any Land Settlement Committee, or the Commissioner.

The Board may, either at the instance of a party or of its own motion, in any case of doubt upon a question of law, submit a case thereon in writing to a Judge or Judges of the High Court, who, after hearing the parties or their counsel, or without so doing, as the Judge or Judges think fit, shall certify his or their opinion thereon in writing to the Board, and the Board shall be guided by that opinion.

For following that opinion no action or any other proceeding by any process of any court shall lie against Her Majesty, or the Board, or any Land Settlement Committee, or the Commissioner.

The procedure on any appeal to the High Court under section 18 or on the hearing and deciding of questions stated under the last preceding section shall be in accordance with the practice and procedure of the court.

Nothing in the foregoing provisions of this Act relating to appeals shall authorise or permit an appeal from the decision of the Board upon any question affecting the title of the Crown to any land.

The following land districts are hereby declared to be land districts under this Act, that is to say:

the North Auckland Land District:

the South Auckland Land District:

the Gisborne Land District:

the Hawke’s Bay Land District:

the Taranaki Land District:

the Wellington Land District:

the Nelson Land District:

the Marlborough Land District:

the Canterbury Land District:

the Westland Land District:

the Otago Land District:

the Southland Land District.

The South Auckland Land District referred to in the last preceding subsection is hereby declared to be the same land district as the Auckland Land District constituted under section 29 of the Land Act 1924.

The Governor-General may, by Order in Council, from time to time—

Unless and until otherwise determined by the Governor-General pursuant to the last preceding section, the Kermadec Group of islands shall be deemed to be included within the North Auckland Land District, the Chatham Islands within the Wellington Land District, and Solander Island and Ruapuke Island, in Foveaux Strait, the Snares Islets, the Auckland Islands, Enderby Islands, Campbell Island, the Antipodes Islands, the Bounty Islands, and all other islands or islets within the limits of New Zealand which lie south of the 47th parallel of south latitude within the Southland Land District.

A person must be appointed under the Public Service Act 2020 to hold office as the Commissioner of Crown Lands.

The Commissioner must report directly to the Minister on the exercise and performance of the Commissioner’s statutory powers and functions.

The Commissioner may, under clauses 2 and 3 of Schedule 6 of the Public Service Act 2020, delegate to the employees of the department, in the same manner and to the same extent as if the Commissioner were the chief executive of the department, any power—

The powers and duties of a Commissioner of Crown Lands, exercisable for and on behalf of the Crown in respect of all Crown land within his district, shall be—

Subject to any general or special directions given by the Board, the Commissioner may delegate to any officer of the department any of the powers set out in the last preceding subsection. The provisions of subsections (3), (4), (5), and (6) of section 15 shall apply, with the necessary modifications, to any delegation by the Commissioner under this subsection.

All actions and proceedings by or on behalf of Her Majesty respecting Crown land within any district or respecting any contract relating thereto, or any breach of any such contract, or any trespass thereon, or any damages accruing by reason of trespass thereon, or for the recovery of any rents, purchase moneys, or other moneys in respect of Crown land, or in respect of any damages or wrongs whatsoever in any way suffered by the Crown in respect of Crown land, and any proceedings for the breach of any provision of this Act, may be commenced, prosecuted, and carried on by and in the name of the Commissioner on behalf of Her Majesty, and the Commissioner may be plaintiff, or defendant, or prosecutor, as the case may require, in any such action or proceeding.

All documents which require to be executed for the purposes of this Act by or on behalf of Her Majesty, or by or on behalf of the Board, may, unless otherwise provided by this Act, be executed by the Commissioner and, if so executed, shall be as valid and effectual as if executed by or on behalf of Her Majesty, or by or on behalf of the Board, as the case may be.

When any person, without any right, title, or licence, or whose right, title, or licence has expired or been forfeited or cancelled, is in occupation of any Crown land, or of any public reserve not granted to or vested in any local body, trustees, or other persons, the Commissioner, or some person appointed in writing by him, may enter a plaint in the office of the District Court within the district in which the land is situated to recover possession thereof; and the jurisdiction of the court or District Court Judge shall not be ousted on the plea that a question of title is involved in any such case, or that the value of the premises of which possession is sought to be recovered is in excess of the jurisdiction of the court or District Court Judge.

If, on the hearing of the plaint, the defendant does not appear, or appears but fails to establish in himself an absolute right or title to the possession of the land, or if it is shown by or on behalf of the plaintiff, to the satisfaction of the court hearing the plaint, that the title under which the defendant claims has, as between himself and Her Majesty, expired or become liable to forfeiture or cancellation, the court shall declare such title to be extinguished, and may order that possession of the land sought to be recovered be given by the defendant to the plaintiff, either forthwith or on or before such a day as the court thinks fit to name, and that the defendant do pay the costs.

If possession is not given pursuant to that order, the District Court Judge or any Justice may issue a warrant requiring the bailiff of the court, or any constable, to give possession of those lands to the plaintiff.

Sections 194 to 197 and 199 of the District Court Act 2016 apply to any proceedings under this section.

For the purpose of inspecting any Crown land held on lease or licence, the Director-General of Lands or any person authorised by him in writing shall, at all reasonable times, have free rights of ingress, egress, and regress, in respect of that land.

Every person who obstructs the Director-General of Lands or any person authorised by him in the making of an inspection, or who refuses or wilfully neglects to answer any reasonable question put to him in writing by the Director-General of Lands or any person so authorised, or who makes to him any wilful misstatement, commits an offence against this Act.

Moneys required for any of the following purposes may be paid out of a Crown Bank Account from moneys appropriated by Parliament for the purpose:

Nothing contained in the last preceding subsection shall prevent the payment out of any other account in a Crown Bank Account, for any purpose set out in that subsection, of moneys appropriated by Parliament to that other account for any such purpose.

Except where otherwise provided in this or any other Act, all rents, interest, fees, assessments, purchase moneys, improvement moneys, payments for livestock, chattels, and farm produce, and other moneys payable under the provisions of this Act shall be paid to the department, and shall be paid by the department, except where otherwise prescribed in this or any other Act, into a Crown Bank Account.

Where any endowment or other land is administered by the Board on behalf of any public body or other authority, or in trust for any purpose, and no provision is made elsewhere than by this section for payment being made to a Crown Bank Account in respect of the cost of administration, there may, without further authority than this section, be deducted and paid into a Crown Bank Account from the revenues from time to time derived from that land such amount as the Minister of Finance determines, not exceeding in respect of the expenses of any year an amount equal to 5% of the total amount of revenues derived from the land for that year.

The land on which any trigonometrical station is situate, together with a right of way to and from the same, shall, for the purposes of survey, and notwithstanding any alienation thereof, be deemed and taken to be Crown land and to have been and to be excepted out of any such alienation.

If in any action or proceeding touching or concerning any Crown land, or any grant, lease, or licence relating thereto, any question arises as to the limits or extent of, or as to the boundary of any land comprised in, any grant, lease, or licence, it shall be competent for the court before which the action or proceeding is pending to order and direct that that question shall be referred to any person or persons whom the court thinks fit, subject to such terms and conditions as the court thinks fit; and the award, order, and determination of that person or persons shall be conclusive in the action or proceeding as to the matter so referred, and shall be binding on the parties, and may be enforced as a rule of the court, and the court may make such rule or order as it deems fit touching such reference or the costs thereof.

The Board, on behalf of Her Majesty, may, with the approval of the Minister, purchase any private land, or the interest of any lessee or licensee in any Crown land or Maori land, for the purposes of settlement as farming, urban, commercial or industrial, or pastoral land under this Act, or for any government purpose, or for use in conjunction with land which is already used, or intended to be used, or any of these purposes.

Before purchasing any private land or any interest in Crown land or Maori land under this section, it shall be the duty of the Board to ascertain, by report and valuation of 1 or more competent valuers, and by such other means as it thinks fit, the value thereof and its suitability for the purposes for which it is to be acquired under this Act.

On the approval of the Minister being given to the purchase, the Board may execute all deeds and instruments and do and perform all acts necessary for the completion of the purchase.

In payment either in whole or in part for private land or interest in Crown land or Maori land purchased under this section the Board may agree with the vendor that he will accept a grant in fee simple or a lease or licence of any Crown land; and in such a case the Commissioner shall, when so required by the Board, give effect to the agreement by executing such documents as may be necessary to give effect thereto.

All private land and all interests in Maori land purchased under this section shall when so purchased be deemed to be Crown land subject to this Act.

The Board, on behalf of Her Majesty, may, with the approval of the Minister, lease from any person any private land for use in conjunction with Crown land.

Any such lease may be entered into on such terms and conditions as the Board thinks fit:

provided that, before entering into the lease, the Board shall ascertain, by report and valuation by at least 1 competent valuer and by such other means as the Board thinks fit, the value of the land and its suitability for the use proposed in respect thereof.

On the approval of the Minister being given to a proposal to lease private land pursuant to this section, the Board may execute all agreements, deeds, and instruments and do and perform all acts necessary to obtain the lease.

Where any private land is leased to the Board pursuant to this section, the Board shall, subject to the terms and conditions of the lease, have the powers in respect of the land that it would have if the land were Crown land.

Where land is vested in trustees without power of sale the trustees may, notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the instrument containing the trust, agree to the sale or exchange of the land under section 40 as if the said trustees were beneficial owners of the land with power of sale, and may execute all valid instruments of assurance for the purpose of vesting the land in Her Majesty.

Land purchased by Her Majesty under section 40 shall be deemed to be discharged from the trusts theretofore affecting it.

All moneys received by the trustees in respect of the sale of the land, and all Crown land vested in them by way of exchange, shall be held by them upon the same trusts as affected the first-mentioned land immediately prior to its being so sold or exchanged; and for the purpose of giving effect to the trusts the trustees may, when necessary, apply the moneys in the purchase of other land:

provided that this subsection shall not affect the jurisdiction of the High Court to vary or modify the trusts in any case where that jurisdiction would have existed if the land had remained vested in the trustees.

Nothing in this section shall authorise the sale or exchange of any land held in trust for persons of the Maori race.

The Minister of Lands may from time to time, by notice in the Gazette, declare any land set apart for the purposes of Part 1 of the Housing Act 1955 to be Crown land subject to this Act as from a date to be specified in the notice, which date may be the date of the notice or any date before or after the date of the notice, and as from the date so specified the land shall be deemed to be Crown land subject to this Act.

Where—

comprises the whole of the land for which any instrument of title has been issued under the Land Transfer Act 2017, the instrument of title shall be cancelled.

Where before the commencement of this Act any private land or Maori land has been purchased or acquired by the Crown for the purposes of any former Land Act and is subject to the Land Transfer Act 2017 or to the Deeds Registration Act 1908,—

Where any such land comprises part of the land for which any instrument of title has been issued, the instrument of title shall be cancelled so far as it relates to that part of the land. The Registrar-General of Land shall retain the partially cancelled instrument, and when required by the person entitled thereto shall issue to that person, without payment of any fee, a record of title for the balance of the land included in the partially cancelled instrument.

Notwithstanding anything in the foregoing provisions of this section, where the land is subject to a lease current at the date of the purchase or acquisition or declaration as Crown land or setting apart as a reserve, as the case may be, or at the commencement of this section, whichever is the later, the record of title shall enure in the name of Her Majesty the Queen until the expiry or sooner determination of the lease, and shall then be cancelled or partially cancelled, as the case may be.

No such cancellation shall in any way affect the rights of any person entitled to any registered easement not acquired by the Crown.

The foregoing provisions of this section shall not apply in respect of any private land leased by the Board pursuant to section 40A.

In any case where any unformed and unused road intersects or is adjacent to any private land or interest in Crown land purchased under this Part and is not suitable to the subdivision of the land, the Governor-General may, by notification in the Gazette, close such road or portion thereof and declare the land comprised therein to be Crown land subject to this Act.

No road or portion thereof adjacent to any land purchased under this Part shall be closed under the last preceding subsection without the prior consent in writing of the owners of all lands having a frontage to the portion of the road intended to be closed.

For the purpose of preparing any Crown land for settlement, the Board, with the approval of the Minister, may undertake and carry out such development works as it thinks fit, including, but without limiting the generality of the foregoing provisions, the survey, roading, subdivision, draining, reclamation, fencing, clearing, and grassing of the land, the erection of buildings, the provision of electric power and water, and any other works calculated to improve the quality or condition of the land or to make it fit for settlement under this Act.

For the purposes mentioned in the last preceding subsection, the Board may from time to time purchase or otherwise acquire all such livestock, chattels, machinery, equipment, manures, seeds, fencing material, stores, and other materials or things as may in its opinion be required for the proper development of the land.

The Board may from time to time as it thinks fit sell any of the livestock or other things purchased or acquired pursuant to the last preceding subsection, or any livestock, crops, produce, or other things produced on or from the said land.

The Board may carry on all usual farming activities on land developed or being developed under this section until the time is appropriate in the opinion of the Board for the disposal of the land on permanent tenure under this Act; and to this end, in addition to the powers set forth in the last 3 preceding subsections, may employ such managers, sharemilkers, and workmen, let any grazing, and generally enter into such contracts and do such things as in the opinion of the Board are necessary for the proper farming of the land.

Where the Board, in the exercise of its powers under this section, has carried out any soil conservation work on Crown land without any grant or loan made by the Minister for the Environment pursuant to the provisions of section 30 of the Soil Conservation and Rivers Control Act 1941, then, notwithstanding any provision of this Act or any other Act, the Board may, as a condition of alienation of the land, require any purchaser, lessee, or licensee to enter into a land improvement agreement, as if the soil conservation work had been carried out by a grant or loan by the Minister for the Environment under the said section 30, with the Catchment Board or Catchment Commission constituted under the Soil Conservation and Rivers Control Act 1941 for the district or area, as the case may be, wherein the land is situated, or with the Waikato Catchment Board constituted under the Waikato Valley Authority Act 1956 where the land is situated in the Waikato Valley as defined under that Act, for the future maintenance of that soil conservation work in such manner and upon such terms and conditions as the Board may require. All the provisions of section 30A of the Soil Conservation and Rivers Control Act 1941 relating to the form of registration and the effect of land improvement agreements, as far as they are applicable and with any necessary modifications, shall apply to any land improvement agreement entered into in accordance with the provisions of this subsection.

The Board may, with the approval of the Minister, construct or join with any person or local authority or department of State in constructing roads, bridges, drainage works, river protection works, and other works upon or in respect of Crown land for the purpose of preparing it for settlement as provided in subsection (1) of the last preceding section, or for its protection from injury from floods, river encroachment, or otherwise; or may arrange for the work to be undertaken by that person or local authority or department of State upon such terms and conditions as may be agreed upon.

In exercise of the powers conferred by subsection (1) of section 44, the Board with the approval of the Minister, may enter into such arrangements as it thinks fit with the trustees of any institution or with any other authority actively concerned in the training of youths for the business of farming in any of its branches, whereby the whole or any defined portion of the work required to be done in order to prepare lands for settlement will be undertaken by that institution or authority.

The Board, with the approval of the Minister, and any local authority may enter into an agreement whereby any land vested in the local authority as an endowment may be made available for disposal in accordance with this section for any period specified in the agreement.

Any such agreement may authorise the Board to undertake and carry out such development works as it thinks fit, including, but without limiting the generality of the foregoing provisions, the survey, roading, subdivision, draining, reclamation, fencing, clearing, and grassing of the land, the erection of buildings, the provision of electric power and water, and any other works calculated to improve the quality or condition of the land or to make it fit for settlement. Any such agreement may provide for—

Where the value of the improvements effected by the Crown under this section to the land comprised in any lease granted under the foregoing provisions of this section has been paid to the Crown by the lessee, or where the amount expended in effecting those improvements has been reimbursed by the local authority, the Minister may cancel the lease and require the local authority to grant to the lessee in lieu thereof a new lease of the land at such rent, for such term, and upon such conditions (not inconsistent with the local authority’s powers in that behalf) as may be determined by agreement with the parties or, in default of agreement, by the Land Valuation Tribunal. In every such case all improvements the value of which has been paid to the Crown by the lessee shall be deemed to have been effected by the lessee and to belong to him.

Upon the granting by the local authority of any such new lease the land comprised therein shall cease to be subject to the agreement with the Board, and the rent payable by the Crown to the local authority under the agreement shall be reduced accordingly by an amount to be agreed upon or, in default of agreement, to be determined by the Controller and Auditor-General.

No lease granted under this section, whether by the Board or by the local authority, shall confer on the lessee any right of acquiring the fee simple of the land comprised therein.

For the purposes of this section, the expression local authority includes any public entity as defined in section 4 of the Public Audit Act 2001.

The authority conferred on the Board by sections 44, 45, and 46 for the development and farming of any Crown land and by section 60 as to the granting or reservation of rights of way, water rights, or other easements over Crown land shall extend and apply to any land purchased, acquired, set apart, or held by the Crown for any government purpose and not for the time being required for that purpose.

Where any land purchased, acquired, set apart, or held by the Crown for any government purpose is not for the time being required for that purpose, the Board may, subject to the provisions of subsection (3), grant a lease or licence of that land for such term, at such rent, and on such conditions as the Board in each case determines:

provided that no lease or licence granted under this subsection shall confer on the lessee or licensee the right of acquiring the fee simple of the land.

No development or farming of any such land shall be undertaken and no lease or licence over the same shall be granted without the consent of the Minister for the time being vested with the control of the land and every such lease or licence shall be on such terms and conditions as that Minister approves.

Every lease or licence granted under this section shall be drawn up and executed in the manner provided by Part 5 as if the land were Crown land, but it shall not be necessary to register any such lease or licence under the Land Transfer Act 2017, unless the Board in any case otherwise determines.

The Registrar-General of Land shall, if the lease or licence is produced to him for registration, register it in the manner provided in Part 5 as if the land were Crown land, and likewise shall register all subsequent dealings with the lease or licence and all such subsequent dealings shall be subject to the provisions of Part 5. Where the Crown is the registered owner under a record of title under the Land Transfer Act 2017 of the whole or part of the land in any lease or licence under this section, the lease or licence shall contain a reference to every record of title issued in respect of any land therein, and the Registrar-General of Land shall enter a memorial of the lease or licence and of all subsequent dealings with the lease or licence on every such record of title.

The provisions of section 85 as to rebates on payments shall not apply to any lease or licence granted under this section, unless the Board in any case otherwise determines.

Where any timber or flax is growing on any Crown land, or where any Crown land contains deposits of any minerals, the Board, with the approval of the Minister, may do such work as it thinks fit, including, but without limiting the generality of the foregoing provisions, the erection of buildings, the construction of roads, bridges, and railways, and the installation of machinery and electric power, and may enter into such contracts and agreements as it may consider necessary for the proper development, working, extraction, use, and disposal of the timber, flax, or deposits, to the best advantage. Any contract or agreement entered into under this section shall be for such term and subject to such conditions, including the payment of royalty, as the Board, with the approval of the Minister, may consider necessary.

The powers conferred on the Board under this section shall extend to any deposits which are under the surface of the land, notwithstanding that the surface of the land may have been alienated on any tenure under this Act; but any work undertaken, or contracts or agreements entered into, shall be subject to the provisions of subsection (2) of section 59 relating to the payment of compensation for damage to improvements existing on the land.

The powers conferred by this section are in addition to the powers conferred by Part 11.

Any 2 or more persons, being occupiers of land situated within a water area, may, by complying with the provisions of the Companies Act 1993, as modified by this Act, form an incorporated association with limited liability under the name of “The [distinctive name of association] Community Water Supply Association Limited”.

Every association shall be registered in the manner provided by the Companies Act 1993 for the registration of companies and, subject to this section and the next 3 succeeding sections, shall be deemed to be a company incorporated under that Act having the liability of its shareholders limited as provided in section 97 of that Act, and the provisions of that Act shall apply accordingly.

The constitution of every association shall be in a form prescribed by the Governor-General by Order in Council, and the association may not alter or add to its constitution without the prior consent of the Board.

Notwithstanding section 16 of the Companies Act 1993, the capacity of the association shall be restricted to—

For the purposes of subsection (4), the association shall have full rights, powers, and privileges.

Every association shall, for the purposes of section 50, be deemed to be an association comprised of or acting on behalf of the owners, lessees, and licensees of land in the water area, and shall have, in respect of the waterworks comprised in the community water supply scheme (whether constructed by the association or purchased by it), the powers conferred on the Board by subsections (3), (4), and (5) of that section as if references in those subsections to the Board were references to the association.

An association may from time to time invest any of its funds in any securities that are for the time being authorised by law for the investment of trust funds, or in such other securities as the Board from time to time approves.

In this section and in the next 5 succeeding sections,—

The provisions of this section (as in force before the commencement of the Company Law Reform (Transitional Provisions) Act 1994) shall continue to apply in relation to every association constituted before the commencement of that Act.

Subject to the constitution of the association, the association shall issue shares in such numbers and classes as the Board may determine having regard to the value of and benefit to the water area of the community water scheme.

The number of shares to be issued to each member shall be determined by the Board, having regard to the benefit likely to be derived by his or her land from the scheme.

Every decision of the Board under subsections (1) and (1A) shall be final, and shall be binding on the association and its members.

No share certificate shall be issued in respect of shares in an association.

Calls may be made upon the members of an association in respect of any money unpaid on their shares for expenditure for the following purposes only:

No member shall sell or otherwise dispose of his shares except to a person who also purchases or otherwise acquires the whole or part of the interest of the member in land within the water area.

Where a member sells or otherwise disposes of the whole or part of his interest in land within the water area, he shall also transfer to the purchaser or transferee his shares in the association or, where only part of his interest in the land is sold or disposed of, such proportion of his shares as the Board determines.

Where any member fails to comply with the provisions of subsection (5) within a period of 3 months after the sale or disposal of his interest in the land or, in any case where only part of his interest in the land is sold or disposed of, within 3 months after the determination of the Board under that subsection is communicated to him, the shares which he is required by that subsection to transfer to the purchaser or transferee shall, at the expiration of that period be deemed to have been surrendered to the association and shall be reissued by the association to the purchaser or transferee as if they had not been previously issued.

For the purposes of this section, a member shall be deemed to have sold or disposed of his land or part thereof if he enters into a binding agreement to sell or dispose of the land or part thereof.

A member shall not mortgage, charge, or otherwise encumber his shares.

Every member shall, when called upon in writing by the association to do so, execute in favour of the association a registrable mortgage as a charge on his interest in the land in the water area to secure to the association the amount from time to time unpaid on his shares and also all levies from time to time made upon him by the association under section 50. Every such mortgage shall be in a form approved by the Board and shall be subject to such terms and conditions as the Board approves, but shall not provide for the payment of interest except on the default by the mortgagor in the payment of any moneys secured by the mortgage.

Where any member fails to execute a registrable mortgage in favour of the association when called upon to do so under subsection (1), the association may refuse to supply water to the member until he executes such a mortgage.

Where the association exercises its power of sale under a mortgage given to it pursuant to subsection (1), the shares of the mortgagor in the association shall be deemed to have been surrendered to the association and shall be reissued by the association to the purchaser as if they had not been previously issued, or, where the association is the purchaser in exercise of its power of sale, shall be held by the association and shall be so reissued to the purchaser when the land is subsequently resold.

Where any other mortgagee of land of a member within a water area exercises his power of sale under the mortgage,—

Where under this section the association reissues any shares deemed to have been surrendered to it, there shall be paid to the former owner of the shares from the proceeds (if any) received by the association on that reissue such amount as may be agreed upon between the association and the former owner, or in default of agreement, such amount (if any) as the Board determines.

A member may, with the consent of the association, withdraw from membership of an association upon payment to the association of the amount for the time being secured by any mortgage given by him to the association.

Where a member withdraws from membership of an association,—

Advances and readvances to any association may from time to time be made out of a Crown Bank Account from moneys appropriated by Parliament for the purpose or such of the purposes of the association as the Board approves, and upon such security for repayment of the advances and readvances, either by debenture over the assets of the association or otherwise, as the Board thinks fit, and at such rate of interest as the Minister of Finance determines.

Subject to the provisions of subsection (2) and paragraph (b) of subsection (4) of section 50C, every association shall, having regard to the total amount of water at its disposal, supply to every member such amount of water as he may reasonably require for irrigation or for household or farming purposes on his land in the water area.

Where any dispute arises between any member (being a lessee or licensee of Crown land) and the association as to the amount of water to which the member is entitled under subsection (1), or as to whether the association is supplying to such a member the amount of water to which he is so entitled, the dispute shall be referred to the Land Settlement Board, whose decision thereon shall be final and binding on the member and the association.

The procedure to be adopted by the Land Settlement Board in hearing and determining any dispute referred to it under subsection (2) shall be as prescribed by regulations made under this Act or, where there are no such regulations or in so far as the regulations do not extend, as the Board determines.

In this section the term member includes the mortgagee in possession of the land of a member or the lessor or licensor who is in possession of the land of a member in exercise of any right of forfeiture or re-entry in any lease or licence.

All Crown land available for disposal under this Act may be classified by the Board into—

The Board may also classify under the last preceding subsection any Crown land which is held on lease or licence at the commencement of this Act and has not already been classified.

The Commissioner may classify again under subsection (1) any land (other than pastoral land) that has at any time been classified under that subsection or a corresponding provision of a former Land Act, whether or not the land is at the time let on any lease or licence.

The Board may alienate Crown land on any tenure under this Act either after calling for applications therefor or without competition in accordance with the provisions of this Act.

In addition to the powers conferred by the last preceding subsection, the Board may offer any land for acquisition under this Act by public auction at an upset price or rental value or by public tender at a minimum price or rental value.

The Board shall not give less than 1 month’s public notice of any offering of land under the last preceding subsection, and shall specify in the notice the time and place at which the auction is intended to be held or, as the case may be, the time and place for the lodging of tenders:

provided that in special circumstances the Board may reduce the time to not less than 10 days.

The Board may refuse to accept any bid or tender for any reason for which it may refuse or reject any application under section 75 or section 175.

Subject to the provisions of this section, every alienation by public auction or public tender under this section shall be subject to such conditions as the Board may prescribe.

Land which has been offered for sale or lease by public auction or public tender under this section and which has not been disposed of on the day of the auction or the closing of tenders shall, subject to the next succeeding subsection, remain open for acquisition at the upset or minimum price or rental value.

Any offering of land which has been notified as open for acquisition under this section may at any time be withdrawn by the Board or the Commissioner, notwithstanding that bids or tenders have been received under subsection (2) or that application to acquire the land has been made under the last preceding subsection.

The Board may by public notice call for applications for any Crown land available for alienation under this Act.

The notice shall specify the price or rental value or yearly rent at which the land and any improvements thereon may be acquired, and the time and place for the making of applications.

The time within which applications may be made shall be not less than 1 month from the date when the land is first notified as being open for acquisition:

provided that in special circumstances the Board may reduce the time to not less than 10 days.

All land which has been notified as open for acquisition under this section and which has not been disposed of on the day mentioned in the notice shall remain open for acquisition on the terms advertised:

Any land which has been notified as open for acquisition under this section may at any time be withdrawn by the Board or the Commissioner, notwithstanding that application to acquire the land may have been made.

The Board may alienate any Crown land without public notice under the last preceding section and without competition, either by way of sale, or lease, or licence, at such price or rent and subject to such terms and conditions as the Board may determine, in any of the following cases:

Before approving any application under this section, the Board may require the applicant to advertise his application in some newspaper or newspapers circulating in the locality; and it may also require him to serve notice of his application on the owner, lessee, licensee, or occupier of any land adjacent to the Crown land applied for.

Where any land is disposed of by way of lease or licence under this section to an applicant who already holds land under lease or licence from the Crown, the Board may, in lieu of issuing a lease or licence over the additional land, incorporate it in his existing lease or licence, subject to such increase in the price or rental value or rent as the Board may determine, but otherwise subject to the same terms and conditions as apply to the existing lease or licence. In this subsection the expression lease or licence from the Crown includes a lease, registered under the Land Transfer Act 2017 and current at the date when the land first became Crown land subject to this Act, of land of which Her Majesty the Queen is the registered owner under a record of title under the Land Transfer Act 2017.

Where on any Crown land to be disposed of under this Act there are improvements belonging to the Crown, the Board may in its discretion determine that the value, as fixed by the Board, of those improvements, or any of them, shall be purchased by the lessee or licensee as hereinafter provided, or that the lessee or licensee shall pay interest on the value as fixed by the Board of those improvements or any of them at such rate as may be fixed by the Minister of Finance in the same manner as rent. Any such interest shall for the purposes of this Act be deemed to be rent payable under the lease or licence, and the value of any improvements on which interest is so payable shall, in the case of land held on renewable lease under this Act, be deemed to form part of the rental value of the land.

Where the Board determines that any improvements are to be purchased by the lessee or licensee, the amount of the value of the improvements shall be deemed to have been advanced to the lessee or licensee by the Board, and shall be secured and made repayable in such manner and subject to such terms and conditions as the Board may determine, together with interest thereon at such rate as may be fixed by the Minister of Finance.

In order to facilitate the settlement of any farm land or pastoral land which in the opinion of the Board is not likely to be immediately productive or profitable, the Board may determine that on the disposal of the land by way of lease or licence under this Act it shall be exempt from the payment of rent or interest, either wholly or in part, for such period not exceeding 10 years as the Board determines.

Any such exemption may be conditional on the lessee or licensee effecting improvements in addition to those ordinarily required under this Act or be subject to such other conditions as the Board may determine.

The Board may from time to time grant or reserve any right of way, or other easements over or under any Crown land:

provided that where that Crown land is held under lease or licence the lessee or licensee shall be entitled to compensation for any reduction in the value of his lease or licence by reason of the grant of any such easement.

Any grant or reservation of a right of way, or other easement under this section may be subject to such conditions, restrictions, and covenants as the Board determines.

Every instrument granting, pursuant to this section, an easement over any Crown land not held under lease or licence may be registered with the Registrar-General of Land in the same manner, with the necessary modifications, as any lease or licence of Crown land under this Act. Any such instrument granting an easement over Crown land held on lease or licence may be registered with the Registrar-General of Land in the same way as any dealing with that lease or licence.

Despite any enactment or rule of law, the Commissioner may under section 60 create an easement to Her Majesty, in favour of any adjacent Crown land, over all or any part of any land (whether or not already held under lease or licence) that the Commissioner thinks—

Where any easement granting or reserving a right to construct any pipeline over or through any land has been granted or reserved under section 60 and the Board is of the opinion that it is not practicable to show the true course of the pipeline, the position thereof shall be indicated as nearly as possible in the instrument granting or reserving the easement, and, until the contrary is proved, shall be deemed to be the true course.

Where it is subsequently ascertained that any pipeline the subject of the easement which was on the land at the time of the grant or reservation was not at that time on the line or lines so indicated, the grant or reservation shall apply with respect to the correct line upon which it is so ascertained that the pipeline was constructed, as if the correct line had been indicated in the instrument granting or reserving the easement, and all persons affected by the grant or reservation shall have the same rights, powers, and remedies and be subject to the same obligations as if the pipeline had been correctly indicated in the instrument granting or reserving the easement.

No action shall lie against the Crown under subpart 3 of Part 2 of the Land Transfer Act 2017 by reason of the fact that any pipeline in existence on the land at the time of the grant or reservation, if registered under that Act, was not on the line or lines indicated in the instrument making the grant or reservation.

In this section, the term pipeline means any pipes or system of pipes for the supply of water or for the disposal of storm water or sewage; and includes any septic tank, any drain, any well, and any water bore.

The Board may, in any case where it considers it expedient in the public interest to do so, authorise the grant in fee simple of any area of Crown land in exchange for the fee simple of any other land, and on any such exchange the Board may pay or receive any sum by way of equality of exchange.

Any sum payable by the Crown under the last preceding subsection shall be paid out of moneys to be appropriated by Parliament for the purpose.

All land acquired by the Crown by way of exchange under this section shall become Crown land subject to the provisions of this Act.

Crown land may be acquired under this Act on any of the following tenures, as the Board may generally or in any special case determine:

A renewable lease under this Act shall be a lease for a term of 33 years with a perpetual right of renewal for the same term, and, except where otherwise provided in this Act, with a right of acquiring the fee simple in accordance with the provisions of Part 7:

provided that no renewable lease under this Act of land comprised in a reserve or endowment vested in any corporate body or person and administered by the Board shall confer on the lessee the right of acquiring the fee simple.

The term of 33 years shall commence on the next 1 January or 1 July following the date of the lease, and there shall be added to the term the period between the date of the lease and the said day. In the case of a renewal lease, the term shall commence on 1 January or 1 July next following the determination of the former lease.

The yearly rent payable during the first term of a renewable lease shall be,—

The owner of a renewable lease shall have a right at the expiration of the said term of 33 years to a renewal of the said lease for a further term of 33 years, subject in all respects to the same conditions and provisions as the original lease, including the right of renewal, save that the rent shall be determined at the first and at each subsequent renewal and for the second and third periods of 11 years of the term of each renewal lease in the manner provided in Part 8.

Notwithstanding anything in the foregoing provisions of this section, where, after 1 November 1950 (being the date of the commencement of the Servicemen’s Settlement Act 1950), a renewable lease of Crown land is granted to a serviceman or discharged serviceman who has been granted a loan to facilitate his settlement on the land by the Rehabilitation Board constituted under the Rehabilitation Act 1941, the rental value of the land shall be determined as if the Servicemen’s Settlement and Land Sales Act 1943 had not been repealed, and the yearly rent shall be based on that rental value accordingly:

provided that, where, in the case of any such lease granted at any time on or after 1 November 1950, the Board decides that on account of special circumstances, as to the existence of which the decision of the Board shall be final, it would be equitable that the rent be based on some other rental value, the rental value shall be determined by the Board at such amount as the Board considers equitable having regard to those circumstances:

provided further that, unless in any case the Board otherwise determines,—

provided also that on the death of the lessee the Board may, in its discretion, and subject to such conditions as the Board may prescribe, allow the lease to continue without any alteration in the rental value or yearly rent or may fix a new rental value or yearly rent as if the lease had been transferred at the date of the death of the lessee.

Where land available for disposal under this Act is purchased for cash, the purchaser shall pay the balance of the purchase price (over and above the deposit required by this Act) within 1 month after the approval of the application or, in the case of land which requires to be surveyed, within 1 month after he has received notice from the Commissioner of the completion of the survey thereof.

Where the balance of the purchase price is not paid as provided in the last preceding subsection, the contract for the sale of the land may be cancelled by the Board, and thereupon, unless the Board otherwise determines, the deposit shall be deemed to be forfeited.

Where land available for disposal under this Act is purchased on deferred payments, the purchaser shall on the approval of his application pay the deposit required by this Act, and shall thereupon be entitled to receive a deferred-payment licence in respect of the land.

The licence shall be for such period, not exceeding 30 years, as may be fixed by the Board, to commence on the next 1 January or 1 July following the date thereof.

The licence shall provide for the payment by half-yearly instalments of the balance of the purchase money, together with interest thereon from the date of the licence at such rate as may be fixed by the Minister of Finance.

Every such half-yearly instalment shall consist partly of purchase money and partly of interest. Except for any necessary adjustments arising from the review of the rate of interest under section 170B, those instalments shall be of equal amount, and shall be so computed as to ensure repayment of the balance of the purchase money and interest thereon within the term of years fixed by the Board.

The first half-yearly instalment of purchase money and interest shall be payable on 30 June or 31 December, as the case may be, next following the expiration of 6 months from the date of the licence, and the succeeding instalments shall be payable half-yearly in each year thereafter on the dates herein mentioned.

On 30 June or 31 December, as the case may be, next following the date of the licence there shall be paid by the licensee interest on the balance of the purchase money at the rate prescribed by or under subsection (3) from the date of the licence to the date of the commencement of the term thereof.

The licensee shall have the right at any time during the currency of his licence to pay off either the whole of the purchase money or any half-yearly instalment or instalments thereof then remaining unpaid.

The payment of any half-yearly instalment of the purchase money made under the last preceding subsection shall not affect the periodical continuity of half-yearly instalments, but the amount of purchase money and interest included in the succeeding instalments shall be computed in accordance with subsection (4) as if the half-yearly periods corresponding to the instalments so paid had expired, and the term during which instalments of purchase money and interest would otherwise have been payable shall be reduced accordingly.

Upon payment of the purchase money in full and of all interest thereon the purchase shall be deemed to be completed, and the licensee shall be entitled to a record of title in respect of the land purchased.

Subject to the provisions of this section, the Board may from time to time, either after calling public applications or without competition, grant to any person a recreation permit authorising the use, or occupation and use, of any land comprised in a pastoral lease or pastoral occupation licence or Crown land that is not subject to any lease or licence, for any commercial undertaking involving the use of the land for any recreational, tourist, accommodation, safari, or other purpose that, in the opinion of the Board, may be properly undertaken on that land.

The Board shall not issue a recreation permit in respect of any land comprised in a pastoral lease or pastoral occupation licence to any person other than the holder of that lease or licence without the holder’s consent.

Before approving the issue of a recreation permit under this section over Crown land that is not subject to any lease or licence, the Board may require the applicant to advertise his application in some newspaper or newspapers circulating in the locality; and the Board may, in its absolute discretion, do any of the following things:

The Board shall not grant a recreation permit in respect of any land for any purpose that, in the opinion of the Board, is incompatible with any water or soil conservation objectives relating to the land.

As a condition of granting a recreation permit to the holder of any pastoral lease or pastoral occupation licence, the Board may require the holder to surrender to the Board any part of the land comprised in the lease or licence in order to facilitate erosion prevention measures.

Every recreation permit shall be deemed to be issued subject to the condition that the holder will comply with all local authority bylaws, rules, regulations, and requisitions, and with the provisions of the Resource Management Act 1991.

Every recreation permit shall be issued on such other terms and subject to such other conditions (whether as to the payment of fees or otherwise) as the Board may determine, whether generally or in a particular case.

Every holder of a pastoral lease or a pastoral occupation licence who uses or permits to be used any part of the land comprised in the lease or licence for any purpose for which a recreation permit may be issued under this section commits a breach of the lease or licence, rendering the lease or licence liable to forfeiture in accordance with the provisions of this Act, unless he is the holder of a recreation permit authorising the use of the land for that purpose.

Where, in the opinion of the Board, any Crown land available for disposal under this Act cannot properly be classified under subsection (1) of section 51 as farm land, urban land, or commercial or industrial land, the Board may sell that land or grant a lease thereof for any term not exceeding 33 years, with or without a right of renewal, perpetual or otherwise, for the same term. Any such sale or lease and every renewal lease shall be at such price or rent and subject to such terms and conditions as the Board may in each case determine.

Any Crown land available for disposal under this Act, that, in the opinion of the Board, ought not for any reason to be permanently alienated from the Crown by way of sale, may be leased for any term, not exceeding 33 years, with or without a right of renewal, perpetual or otherwise, for the same term. Any such lease and any renewal thereof shall be at such rent and subject to such terms and conditions as the Board in each case determines, but no such lease and no renewal of any such lease shall confer any right of acquiring the fee simple.

Any Crown land in the vicinity of a national park available for disposal under this Act, that, in the opinion of the Board, is suitable or adaptable for residential or commercial purposes, may be classified by the Board as a special leasing area, and may be subdivided for residential or commercial purposes and disposed of by way of lease in accordance with subsection (2). All money received by way of rent or otherwise from any such disposal shall be paid by the department into a Departmental Bank Account and, subject to the approval of the Minister, may, without further appropriation than this section, be paid out of that Departmental Bank Account and paid and applied under section 57 of the National Parks Act 1980 as if it were money received under that Act.

Any Crown land available for disposal under this Act, that, in the opinion of the Board, ought not for any reason to be permanently alienated from the Crown by way of sale until a period of time has elapsed or certain conditions have been fulfilled, may be leased for any term, not exceeding 33 years, at such rent and subject to such terms and conditions as the Board in each case determines. Any such lease may confer on the lessee the right on the expiry thereof, if all the terms and conditions have been complied with, to elect to purchase the land for cash or on deferred payments or to take a renewable lease under this Act at such price or rental value and subject to such terms and conditions as the Board may then in each case determine. If the lessee is dissatisfied with the price or rental value determined by the Board, he may require the price or rental value to be determined by the Land Valuation Tribunal, and thereupon the provisions of this Act relating to appeals to the Land Valuation Tribunal shall, with the necessary modifications, apply, as if the lessee were the lessee under a renewable lease exercising his right to acquire the fee simple or his right of renewal of his lease, as the case may be.

A lease under section 67 may provide that specified people or kinds of people have the right to enter and remain on the land held under it or any specified part of it without the consent of the lessee, either unconditionally or subject to the observance of any conditions specified in the lease; and in that case,—

A lease under section 67 may empower the Commissioner to authorise people (whether specified people or people of any specified kind) to enter and remain on the land held under it or any specified part of it without the consent of the lessee, either unconditionally or subject to the observance of any conditions specified in the authority; and in that case,—

The Board may from time to time, either after calling public applications or without competition, grant a licence to occupy Crown land for grazing or other purposes, at such rent and subject to such conditions as the Board thinks fit.

Every such licence may be for any term not exceeding 5 years; subject, however, to the conditions that, in the event of a breach of any of the conditions of the licence, or in the event of the whole or any portion of the land being required for settlement, reservation, sale, or other purpose under this Act, the licence may be determined at any time by the Board in respect of the whole or any portion of the land over which it was granted, without the licensee being entitled to any compensation.

Any licensee under this section shall not be entitled to compensation for any improvements effected or purchased by him, but on the expiry or sooner determination of the licence he may, within such time as the Board determines, remove any buildings, enclosures, fencing, or other improvements effected or purchased by him:

provided that, if the land comprised in the licence or any part thereof is again alienated under this Act to some person other than the outgoing licensee weighted with the value as determined by the Board of all or some of the improvements existing at the time of the alienation on the land so alienated and effected or purchased by the outgoing licensee, there shall be paid to the outgoing licensee the whole or such part (if any) as the Board in its discretion decides of any money received by the department in respect of the value of those improvements. Every such determination by the Board shall be final and be binding on the outgoing licensee.

The Board may from time to time, either after calling public applications or without competition, grant to any person a permit to graze stock on Crown land.

Every grazing permit shall be issued on such terms and subject to such conditions as to the payment of fees, the numbers of stock that may be carried on the land to which the permit relates, the times of the year when the stock may be grazed on the land, and such other matters as the Board may determine, whether generally or in a particular case.

A grazing permit shall not confer on the holder—

Every grazing permit shall be revocable by the Board, at will and without compensation, by giving 1 month’s notice in writing to the holder.

The Board may from time to time set aside any Crown land for use as a run-off in conjunction with other land, whether that other land is Crown land held on lease or licence or private land.

The Board may grant to any person, or to any group or association of persons, or to any body corporate, the right to use any land so set aside, or any defined portion thereof, in conjunction with the lands owned, leased, or occupied by that person, group, association, or body corporate, or, in the case of a group, or association, or body corporate, by the members thereof individually; and for that purpose the Board may grant a lease or licence of any such land for any term not exceeding 33 years, with or without a right of renewal, at such rent and subject to such conditions as the Board thinks fit.

No lease or licence of any Crown land shall be granted under this section to any group or association of persons until that group or association has prescribed rules, to be approved by the Board, providing for—

Any such rules may, with the approval of the Board, be amended from time to time.

Any person of the age of 17 years and upwards may become a purchaser, lessee, or licensee under this Act.

For the purposes of this Act, and also of the Fencing Act 1978, any minor who holds any land by virtue of any lease, licence, or other form of tenure under this Act shall be deemed to be of full age.

Two or more persons may make application to purchase or take on lease or licence as joint tenants or tenants in common any Crown land available for disposal under this Act.

Subject to sections 71, 90, 91A, and 97, no person shall, by himself or through any other person for him, be entitled to acquire, obtain, or hold, by original application, any land under any tenure under this Act unless it is exclusively for his own use and benefit.

No person who at the time of making his application has made any arrangement or agreement to permit any other person to acquire by purchase or otherwise the land in respect of which his application is made, or any part thereof, or the applicant’s interest therein, shall become a lessee or licensee under this Act.

Every person who wilfully commits, or incites, instigates, or employs any other person to commit a breach of the provisions of this section commits an offence against this Act.

Every application to acquire Crown land under this Act shall be made in writing to the Commissioner for the district in which the land is situate, and shall be lodged in the principal land office for that district during the hours when that office is open to the public for the transaction of business, or be posted prepaid addressed to the Commissioner at the principal land office.

Every such application shall be deemed to be made at the time when it is received at the principal land office.

To every application for land under this Act there shall, if so required by this Act or by regulations under this Act or by the Board, be annexed or appended a statutory declaration in such one of the forms from time to time prescribed by the Governor-General in Council as is applicable to the case, made and signed by the applicant to the effect that he is legally qualified to acquire the land applied for, and that the land is required exclusively for his own use and benefit and not, either directly or indirectly, for the use or benefit of any other person or persons.

A director, attorney, or agent of a body corporate may make on its behalf any of the declarations required by this Act or by any former Land Act.

If any person in any statutory declaration required under this Act or any former Land Act wilfully declares to anything which is false, any lease or licence acquired through any such declaration shall, on conviction of the declarant for making a false declaration, be deemed to be forfeited.

Where the Commissioner has reason to believe that any statement in any declaration made by any applicant for land is false, or that the applicant in making the same had in any manner evaded or attempted to evade the requirements of this Act in their true intent and spirit, the Board, on the report of the Commissioner, may, in its discretion, hold an inquiry into the case, and may declare forfeited all the rights of the applicant to the land and all moneys paid in respect thereof; and in such case the land shall again be open for disposal as if it had not been allotted, or, if the applicant has purchased and subsequently parted with the land, he shall be liable to a fine of an amount equal to 25% of the purchase money, to be recovered in a summary manner.

Nothing in this section shall be deemed to exempt any applicant from any prosecution or penalty to which he may have become liable by reason of making a false declaration.

The Board shall at all times have power, in the public interest and in its discretion, to refuse any application whatsoever and, in the event of any such refusal, the Board shall cause an entry to be made in its minutes of the ground on which that refusal was based.

Before taking a ballot or otherwise disposing of any application for land the Board may, in such manner as it thinks fit, inquire into all matters affecting an applicant’s suitability or his right of preference under this Act, and may reject any application where the applicant refuses or fails to answer any such inquiries to the satisfaction of the Board.

Where any Crown land is notified as open for public application and more than 1 application is made within the time specified, all such applications shall be deemed to be simultaneous.

All applications made on the same day to acquire any Crown land not notified as open for public application or remaining open for acquisition under subsection (4) of section 53 shall be deemed to be simultaneous.

Where there are simultaneous applications for any area of Crown land the Board shall determine which applicant is the most suitable applicant for the land, and shall allot the land to him:

provided that nothing in this section shall limit the right of the Board to refuse or reject any application under section 75, nor compel the Board to allot the land where in its opinion there is no suitable applicant.

In determining which is the most suitable applicant under the last preceding subsection the Board shall take into consideration the following matters:

Subject to any regulations under this Act for the time being in force granting preference to servicemen, discharged servicemen, and other persons, who have made simultaneous applications for Crown land, where in the opinion of the Board there are 2 or more applicants equally suitable to be allotted the land, the allotment shall be decided by ballot.

Subject to the foregoing provisions of this section, the decision of the Board on any question arising under this section shall be final and conclusive.

At any ballot held pursuant to the last preceding section the officer conducting the ballot may draw as many names as he thinks fit, not exceeding the number of applicants for the land.

If the applicant whose name is drawn first forfeits his right to be allotted the land pursuant to subsection (6) of the next succeeding section, or if he surrenders his right to be allotted the land, the applicant whose name is drawn second shall be declared the successful applicant.

If the successful applicant pursuant to the last preceding subsection forfeits his right to be allotted the land pursuant to subsection (6) of the next succeeding section, or if he surrenders his right to be allotted the land, the applicant whose name is next drawn in rotation shall be declared the successful applicant; and so on until the list of applicants whose names have been drawn is exhausted.

In any case where all the successful applicants within the meaning of the preceding subsections of this section forfeit their rights to be allotted the land pursuant to the said subsection (6), or surrender their rights to be allotted the land, a further ballot may be taken among the applicants whose names were not drawn at the former ballot:

provided, however, that the further ballot shall be taken not later than 2 months from the date of the former ballot.

Where public applications have been called for any land, the Commissioner, as soon as possible after the date fixed for making applications, shall notify each applicant of the result of his application and of the name of the successful applicant.

The successful applicant shall forthwith after he is notified of the approval of his application pay the required deposit and the value or portion thereof of any improvements purchased by him, in accordance with the next 2 succeeding subsections:

provided that the Commissioner may in his discretion allow such further time for payment as in the circumstances appears to him to be reasonable.

The required deposit shall be,—

Where there are improvements on the land which are to be purchased by the successful applicant, he shall, in addition to the deposit payable under the last preceding subsection, pay either the whole of the value of those improvements or, where the Board allows that value to be paid over a period of years, such portion thereof as may be fixed by the Board.

The deposit payable under paragraph (a) of subsection (3) shall be deemed to be the half-yearly rent due on 1 January or 1 July then next ensuing.

If the successful applicant does not pay the required deposit and other moneys payable by him under the foregoing provisions of this section with the time allowed, his application shall thereupon lapse and his right to be allotted the land shall be deemed to be forfeited.

Where application is made to acquire land under this Act and the land requires to be surveyed, the Commissioner may require the applicant to pay the estimated cost of survey to the department and, until that amount is paid, the Board may decline to consider the application.

If the application is refused, or the land is withdrawn from disposal, the survey deposit shall be refunded; but if the application is approved and the applicant refuses or delays to complete, within such time as the Board requires, the purchase or lease or licence of the land after survey, the survey deposit shall be deemed to be forfeited unless the Board, having regard to the circumstances of the case, directs that it be refunded in whole or in part.

The fact that the area as surveyed is greater or less than the estimated area applied for shall not exempt the applicant from the forfeiture of his survey deposit as provided in the last preceding subsection.

Except where the Board approves of an application subject to the condition that the applicant shall pay the cost of survey in whole or in part, the survey deposit shall be credited to the applicant as follows:

The Board may issue leases and licences and other instruments over or in respect of Crown land.

Every lease or licence and any renewal thereof issued by the Board shall be in such form and subject to such covenants and conditions, not inconsistent with this Act, as the Board determines. Any lease or licence may be varied to suit the circumstances of any particular case which may arise.

For every lease or licence there shall be paid by the lessee or licensee such fee for the preparation and registration thereof as may be prescribed, and which shall be paid at the same time as the deposit required by this Act.

Every lease or licence shall be prepared in duplicate by the Commissioner and shall be dated as of the date of the granting thereof.

Every lease or licence shall be signed by the Commissioner and by the lessee or licensee.

If any person who has been declared a lessee or licensee fails to sign his lease or licence within 1 month after being required by written notice so to do, the Board may declare the right of that person to obtain a lease or licence to be cancelled, and thereupon the amount of his deposit, and the sum paid for the lease or licence and the registration thereof shall, unless the Board otherwise determines, be deemed to be forfeited.

For every lease or licence issued under this Act except leases and licences referred to in subsection (4) the Registrar-General of Land must, after execution by the Commissioner and the lessee or licensee, create a record of title for the lease or licence.

If the land comprised in any such lease or licence is not properly defined by survey or for any other reason cannot be fully described, the Registrar-General of Land may register the lease or licence, but must record on the record of title for the lease or licence that the title is qualified as described in section 17(1)(a) of the Land Transfer Act 2017.

All dealings with or transmissions of the land comprised in any such lease or licence shall be made in accordance with the provisions of the last-mentioned Act, and shall in all respects be subject thereto.

All dealings with or under any such lease or licence in contravention of the provisions of this Act shall be void, and the Registrar-General of Land shall not register any dealing with or under a lease or licence until he is satisfied that the said provisions have been complied with.

Where a record of title has been issued for the lease or licence,—

This section shall not apply to a pastoral lease or pastoral occupation licence under this Act, nor to a licence under section 68, nor to any lease or licence under Part 11, nor, unless the Board otherwise determines, to any lease or licence under section 67 or section 69.

The Registrar-General of Land must create a record of title for any lease or licence that is, under section 48 or 82(4) (other than licences issued under section 68 or Part 11), not required to be registered under the Land Transfer Act 2017 if the lease or licence is presented by the Commissioner to the Registrar-General of Land for registration.

Subject to the requirements of this Act relating to dealings with any lease or licence, any instrument or notice of any kind which is registrable against a lease under the Land Transfer Act 2017 by virtue of that Act or any other Act is registrable against any lease or licence recorded under subsection (1), and may be so registered in the manner prescribed by the Act by virtue of which it is registrable.

Every such instrument or notice shall,—

Every entry made on any lease or licence in respect of any instrument or notice duly registered against that lease or licence under subsection (2) shall, if purporting to be duly made and signed, be received in all courts as evidence of the particulars therein set forth, and, against the person originally named in the lease or licence and all persons claiming through or under or in trust for him, shall, until it is lawfully cancelled, be conclusive evidence that any person named in the entry, instrument, or notice is seised or possessed of the estate or interest which purports to be vested in him as registered owner by virtue of that entry and of the instrument or notice in respect of which it is made.

All dealings with or under any such lease or licence in contravention of the provisions of this Act shall be void, and the Registrar-General of Land shall not register any dealing with or under a lease or licence until he is satisfied that the said provisions have been complied with.

The rent payable under any lease or licence shall, except where otherwise specially provided, be computed and payable as from the date of the lease or licence, or as from the date of the commencement of the term, whichever date is the earlier.

The rent shall be payable in equal parts every half-year in advance on 1 January and 1 July in each year, unless the Board in any case otherwise determines.

The rent for the period elapsing between the date of the lease or licence (or other date on which the rent begins to accrue) and the due date of the first half-yearly payment shall be payable, at the option of the Board, either with the first half-yearly payment or at the due date of the next succeeding half-yearly payment, or on such other date as the Board determines.

The rent may be recovered in like manner as any rent is recoverable by law.

Subject to section 66(8), a holder of a lease or licence under this Act (other than a deferred-payment licence or a licence granted under section 68) who is not in arrear with any instalment of rent under his lease or licence shall be entitled to a rebate of such proportion as may be fixed by the Minister of Finance, of each half-yearly instalment of rent if that instalment is paid within 1 month after the day appointed for the payment thereof.

The purchaser of improvements belonging to the Crown who is not in arrear with any instalment of principal and interest shall be entitled to a rebate of such proportion as may be fixed by the Minister of Finance, of the interest portion of each half-yearly instalment if that instalment is paid within 1 month after the day appointed for the payment thereof.

The holder of a deferred-payment licence under this Act who is not in arrear with any instalment of purchase money and interest shall be entitled to a rebate of part of the interest portion of each half-yearly instalment calculated as if the interest portion of that instalment were at such rate as may be fixed by the Minister of Finance, if that instalment is paid within 1 month after the day appointed for the payment thereof.

For the purpose of this section, payment of a half-yearly instalment shall be deemed to have been made within the period of 1 month if within that period it is in course of transmission by post to the department.

Any rebate to which a lessee or licensee is entitled under this section may be deducted and retained by him from the full amount when payment is being made.

The decision of the Commissioner on any question relating to any rebate under this section shall be final and conclusive.

Nothing contained in this section shall be deemed to confer on the holder of any lease or licence which is current at the commencement of this Act any right to a rebate if he is not entitled under his lease or licence or under any former Land Act to any rebate, or to vary the rate of any rebate to which he may be entitled under his lease or licence or under any former Land Act.

Where, pursuant to any authority conferred by this Act or any other enactment, any land is incorporated in a lease or licence, or is excluded from any lease or licence, the Board shall make all necessary and equitable adjustments in the rental value or purchase price and in the rent or instalments of purchase money and interest payable under the lease or licence.

The holder of every lease of Crown land on which there are improvements belonging to the Crown may, with the approval of the Board, at any time elect to purchase those improvements at the value at which they are included in the rental value of the land. Any such purchase may be for cash or over such period as the Board approves.

Where the purchase price is payable otherwise than in cash, the amount owing to the Crown shall be deemed to have been advanced to the lessee by the Board and shall be secured and made payable in such manner and subject to such conditions as the Board determines, together with interest thereon at such rate as may be determined by the Minister of Finance.

Where a lessee elects to purchase improvements belonging to the Crown in accordance with the provisions of this section, the rental value of the land and the rent payable under the lease shall be reduced proportionately as follows:

Any lessee who is dissatisfied with the determination of the Board under section 87 may, within 1 month after receiving notice in writing of the determination of the Board, appeal from that determination to the Land Valuation Tribunal. Every such appeal shall be filed in the appropriate office of the District Court (as defined in section 2 of the Land Valuation Proceedings Act 1948), and a copy of the appeal shall be served on the Commissioner.

Every appeal under this section shall contain or be accompanied by such particulars, information, or documents as may be prescribed or as may be required by the Land Valuation Tribunal, and shall be verified by the statutory declaration of the appellant.

After hearing the appeal, the Land Valuation Tribunal shall determine the value of the improvements at the value at which they are included in the rental value of the land. Subject to the right of appeal to the High Court vested in any party, the purchase price of the improvements shall be fixed in accordance with the value so determined by the Tribunal.

Notwithstanding anything in subsection (3), the Land Valuation Tribunal shall not determine the value of the improvements to be less than the value of improvements on the land at the commencement of the lease as recorded in the schedule to the lease:

provided that where, on a revaluation under section 139 or the corresponding provisions of any former Land Act, the value of those improvements has been reduced, then, for the purposes of this section, the value of those improvements as determined on that revaluation shall be deemed to be their value at the commencement of the lease.

The Board may, with the approval of the Minister, expend moneys for the improvement, roading, draining, or otherwise for the benefit or protection of Crown land held on lease or licence.

Where any such moneys are expended for the benefit or protection of any land held on renewable lease or on deferred-payment licence, the rental value or purchase price, as the case may be, may be increased by the amount expended or by such lesser amount as the Board determines; and the Board shall, where necessary, make such adjustments as may be appropriate in the yearly rent or in the instalments of purchase money and interest payable, as the case may be.

Where any such moneys are expended for the benefit or protection of any land held on any other tenure, the yearly rent may be increased by an amount equal to such proportion as may be fixed by the Minister of Finance of the amount expended or of such lesser amount as the Board determines.

Where the moneys are expended for the benefit or protection of 2 or more holdings, the amount expended, or so much of it as the Board determines, shall be apportioned by the Board as it thinks just between the several holdings.

On production to the Registrar-General of Land of a certificate, signed by the Commissioner, of any increase in the rental value or in the rent or purchase price payable under any lease or licence pursuant to this section, the Registrar-General of Land must record details of the increase on the record of title issued for the lease or licence.

On the renewal of any lease, or on the issue of a new lease under Part 7, or on the making of any revaluation under Part 9, in respect of any holding the rental value or rent of which has been increased under this section, the rental value of the land or rent payable under the lease, as the case may be, shall be first ascertained without taking into account any moneys expended by the Crown for any of the purposes mentioned in subsection (1). Where the land is held on renewable lease, the amount of those moneys, or such lesser amount as the Board determines, shall then be added to the rental value as so ascertained, and the rent shall be fixed by reference to the total of the 2 said amounts. Where the land is held on lease (other than renewable lease), the yearly rent as so ascertained shall be deemed to be increased by an amount equal to such proportion as may be fixed by the Minister of Finance of the amount of the moneys so expended, or of such lesser amount as the Board determines.

A lessee or licensee, or the sub-lessee of any lease or licence, shall not transfer, sublease, or otherwise dispose of his interest, or any part thereof, in the land subject to the lease or licence without the consent of the Board. Notwithstanding the provisions of any lease or licence, the consent of the Board shall not be required to a mortgage of any interest therein.

The Board shall at all times have power, in the public interest and in its discretion, to refuse any application for consent whatsoever, or to grant its consent subject to such conditions as it thinks fit.

No transfer, sublease, or other disposition of any lease or licence shall be valid unless all the conditions, whether expressed or implied, on which the lease or licence was granted (including the condition for the payment of rent) shall have been complied with up to the date of transfer, sublease, or other disposition.

Subject to sections 71, 90, 91A, and 97 and to subsection (3B), no person shall be entitled to acquire, obtain, or hold, by transfer, sublease, or otherwise in any manner, any interest, or any part thereof, in any land that is subject to a lease or licence, unless it is exclusively for his own use or benefit.

Subject to subsection (2), the Board may consent to the transfer, sublease, or other disposal, to trustees of any interest, or any part thereof, in any land subject to a lease or licence if the beneficiaries are children or grandchildren of the transferor, sub-lessor, or disposer, and the Board is satisfied that—

Where any lessee or licensee has transferred all his interest in his lease or licence by a legal transfer with the consent of the Board, the person to whom the lease or licence has been so transferred shall have all the rights and privileges of and be subject to the same obligations as the original lessee or licensee, and the former lessee or licensee shall thereupon cease to be liable for any subsequent breach of any covenant, condition, or obligation (expressed or implied) in the lease or licence.

Where any lessee or licensee has agreed by an agreement for sale and purchase consented to by the Board to transfer at a future date his interest in his lease or licence, then, so long as the agreement for sale and purchase continues in force, both the lessee or licensee and the person to whom he has agreed to transfer his interest shall jointly have all the rights and privileges of the lessee or licensee under the lease or licence, and shall be jointly and severally liable to the Crown for the observance and performance of all the covenants, conditions, and obligations in the lease or licence:

provided that so long as the agreement continues in force the condition as to residence (expressed or implied) in the lease or licence shall be deemed to be complied with if performed by the purchaser under the agreement for sale and purchase.

With every application for consent to transfer, sublease, or otherwise dispose of an interest there shall be paid such fee as may be prescribed.

On the death of the owner of any lease or licence his executors or administrators shall have power to assign the lease or licence to any qualified person approved by the Board, but the consent of the Board shall not be necessary for any such assignment if made to a person entitled thereto as a trustee or beneficiary under the will or claiming under an intestacy.

Any executor or administrator who assigns any lease or licence to a person entitled thereto under any will or claiming under an intestacy shall forthwith notify the Commissioner in writing of the full name and address of the assignee, and no such assignment shall be registered by the Registrar-General of Land unless and until he is satisfied that the notice has been given to the Commissioner.

Where any lease or licence has been assigned to any trustee with the consent of the Board or pursuant to section 90 or to this section, the consent of the Board shall not be necessary to any assignment of the lease or licence to any person as trustee on the appointment of a new trustee or the retirement of a trustee or to any beneficiary under the trust.

Any person who assigns any lease or licence pursuant to the provisions of subsection (1) shall forthwith notify the Commissioner of the full name and address of the assignee, the power under which the assignment has been made, and whether the assignment is to a new trustee or to a beneficiary under the trust. No such assignment shall be registered by the Registrar-General of Land unless and until he is satisfied that the notice required by this subsection has been given to the Commissioner.

If no probate is granted or no letters of administration are issued within 6 months after the death of the owner of a lease or licence, and the Commissioner is of opinion that the lease or licence is of so small a value that it is expedient to exercise the powers hereby conferred upon him, he may either sell the lease or licence and execute a transfer of the same to any qualified person, and receive the purchase money on account of the persons entitled thereto under the will or intestacy of the deceased, or he may execute a transfer of the lease or licence to the person appearing to him to be entitled thereto under the said will or intestacy, or to any 1 or more of them in trust for all.

No person shall have any claim against the Crown or against the Commissioner in respect of anything done by the Commissioner under the powers conferred by the last preceding subsection.

Any lessee or licensee may, with the approval of the Board, subdivide in accordance with Part 10 of the Resource Management Act 1991 his holding and transfer any subdivision thereof to any person who is qualified to acquire Crown land and who is approved by the Board as a transferee.

The cost of all surveys and plans necessary to give effect to the subdivision shall be borne by the lessee or licensee.

The Board’s approval of a subdivision may be given subject to the condition that the lessee or licensee shall pay to the Crown the value as determined by the Board of any land that vests as road on the deposit of a survey plan pursuant to section 238 of the Resource Management Act 1991.

On the approval of the plan of the subdivision and on the payment of such fee as may be prescribed for each new lease or licence, the Board may cancel the original lease or licence and issue new leases or licences over the several lots in the subdivision for the residue of the original term and subject to the same conditions, save that the original rent or balance of the purchase price shall be apportioned between the several lots in the subdivision as the Board may determine:

provided, however, that the yearly rent payable under any new lease or licence granted under this section shall not be less than $2.

In every mortgage (other than to the Crown or to a department of State) of a lease or licence of Crown land there shall be implied the following conditions:

Any covenant in a mortgage purporting to vary any of the provisions of the last preceding subsection shall be null and void.

No mortgagee of any lease or licence shall be required to make a statutory declaration under this Act unless and until he becomes a purchaser under the provisions of the mortgage, but he shall make such a declaration before the Board consents to a transfer of the lease or licence to him.

The transferee or purchaser (other than a department of State) of a lease or licence under any power of sale vested in any mortgagee, or assignee, or trustee in bankruptcy shall not be admitted into possession or occupation of the land comprised in the lease or licence until he has deposited with the Commissioner a statutory declaration in the form or to the effect of the declaration (if any) which he would be required to make if he were an original lessee or licensee.

Any encumbrance, lien, or interest registered against the estate or interest of any person in any lease or licence shall not in any way limit or affect the right of the Board to forfeit the lease or licence for breach of conditions, and generally to exercise the powers conferred by this Act in like manner as if no such encumbrance, lien, or interest existed.

The lessee or licensee of any farm land or pastoral land shall within 1 year after the date of his lease or licence, or within such further period as the Commissioner may allow, commence to reside personally on the land comprised in his lease or licence, and thereafter throughout the term of his lease or licence shall reside continuously thereon unless exempted from doing so under section 98.

Where the lessee or licensee resides on land which adjoins the land held under lease or licence, he shall be deemed to be complying with this section. For the purpose of this section, lands shall be deemed to adjoin if separated only by a railway, road, street, river, or stream, or by such distance as the Board may in each case determine.

Where land is held on lease or licence by 2 or more persons as joint tenants or as tenants in common, residence by 1 or more of the lessees or licensees shall, at the discretion of the Board, be deemed to be residence by all of them for the purposes of this section.

The executors, administrators, or trustees of the deceased owner of any lease or licence, or trustees to whom any lease or licence has been assigned with the consent of the Board or pursuant to section 90 or section 91A, may continue to hold the same in trust for the persons beneficially entitled thereto under the will or intestacy of the deceased, and the conditions as to residence may be fulfilled by the persons so beneficially entitled, or by any of them, or by any suitable person or persons appointed by the executors, administrators, or trustees pending the vesting of the lease or licence in the persons entitled or during the minority of any beneficiary, as if they were the owners of the lease or licence.

Where the lessee or licensee is a youth or a person who is not married or in a civil union or in a de facto relationship who is living in the locality and residing with his or her parents or near relatives, the Board may approve the postponement of the commencement of residence.

Where a lessee or licensee is unable, because of his calling or vocation, or the state of his health, or any other reason which the Board considers sufficient, to take up or continue personal residence on the land comprised in his lease or licence, the Board may exempt the lessee or licensee from personal residence.

A lessee or licensee who has married or entered into a civil union or de facto relationship with the owner, lessee, or occupier of other land, whether Crown land or private land, may, in the discretion of the Board, be exempted from residence on the land held under lease or licence.

Any postponement or exemption under this section may be for such period and subject to such terms as the Board may determine, and, in particular, the Board may require the lessee or licensee to effect improvements additional to those which he is required to effect under this Act and may require him to provide a substitute who shall remain in continuous residence during the period of postponement or exemption.

In every lease or licence under this Act or any former Land Act of farm land or pastoral land, there shall be implied on the part of the lessee or licensee a covenant that he will throughout the term of the lease or licence,—

In every lease or licence under this Act or any former Land Act of farm land or pastoral land there shall be implied on the part of the lessee or licensee a covenant that he will not throughout the term of the lease or licence, without the prior consent of the Commissioner, given on such terms and conditions (including the payment of royalty) as he thinks fit, fell, sell, or remove any timber, tree, or bush growing, standing, or lying on the land comprised in the lease or licence, and that he will throughout the term of the lease or licence prevent the destruction or burning of any such timber, tree, or bush, unless the Commissioner otherwise approves:

provided that the consent of the Commissioner shall not be necessary where any timber or tree is required for any agricultural, pastoral, household, roadmaking, or building purpose on the land comprised in the lease or licence, or has been planted or purchased by the lessee or licensee.

In every lease or licence under this Act or any former Land Act, there shall be implied a covenant on the part of the lessee or licensee that he will to the satisfaction of the Commissioner throughout the term of the lease or licence,—

Every covenant implied by any of the last 3 preceding sections shall be deemed to be entered into on the part of the lessee or licensee for himself, his executors, administrators, and permitted assigns; and, in those sections, the words lessee or licensee shall, where the context so requires or admits, be deemed to include the lessee or licensee and his executors, administrators, and permitted assigns.

Every covenant implied by any of the last 3 preceding sections shall be binding on the lessee or licensee as if fully set out in the lease or licence; and non-fulfilment of any such covenant shall be a breach of the covenants and conditions of the lease or licence entitling the Board to declare the lease or licence to be forfeit under the provisions of this Act.

Every lease or licence under this Act may contain such further express covenants and conditions on the part of the lessee or licensee, not inconsistent with this Act, as the Board determines, either generally or in any particular case, or class or classes of cases.

Every holder of a lease or licence under this Act shall, within such period as the Board determines, effect on the land comprised in his lease or licence improvements of such nature and quantity as the Board determines, either generally or in any particular case or class or classes of cases, and shall thereafter maintain the same in good order, repair, and condition to the satisfaction of the Board.

In determining the nature and quantity of the improvements to be effected under the last preceding subsection, the Board shall have regard to—

Every determination of the Board under this section shall be made before public applications for the land are called for or, where land is disposed of without competition, shall be made when the application is approved.

Any determination by the Board under this section may, at the request of the lessee or licensee, be modified at any time by the Board in any case where it appears equitable to do so.

Where a lessee or licensee is required to fulfil certain conditions, whether expressed in the lease or licence or implied under this Act, the Board shall be the sole judge whether any condition has been fulfilled, and shall have power to enforce fulfilment or, in the event of the lease or licence being forfeited for the non-fulfilment of the conditions as provided in Part 9, to recover possession of any land, improvements, or moneys which are forfeited to the Crown by reason of the breach of any such condition.

Subject to the provisions of the next succeeding section, every lessee or licensee shall be liable for all rates, taxes, or assessments of every nature or kind whatsoever lawfully imposed upon the occupier of the lands included in his lease or licence during the term for which he is lessee or licensee.

No Crown land is capable of being sold for the non-payment of rates due by the ratepayer, but a local authority may sell the interest of a lessee or licensee described under section 11(2) of the Local Government (Rating) Act 2002 to a person who is qualified to acquire that interest and who has been approved by the Board.

If any lessee or licensee of Crown land fails, for 14 days after demand, to pay to a local authority any rate on Crown land for which he is liable, he shall be deemed to have committed a breach of his lease or licence, and in any such case the Board may, at the request of the local authority, if the rate or any portion thereof remains unpaid for 1 month after notice served on the lessee or licensee by the Board, declare the lease or licence to be forfeited.

Subject to any right of a mortgagee to be paid the amount owing under his mortgage in priority to any amount owing in respect of rates, the Board may in any case declare that any rates (not exceeding 3 years’ arrears) due by an outgoing lessee or licensee shall be a charge upon any moneys received or receivable by the department from an incoming lessee or licensee for improvements on the land, and may pay to any local authority out of those moneys the amount of the rates so charged thereon.

Notwithstanding the provisions of section 82 or of any other Act, where any lease or licence is registered in the Land Transfer Office, and—

the Commissioner may prepare and sign a certificate setting forth such particulars with respect to any alteration in area, rental value, rent, purchase money, instalments of purchase money and interest, or other matters as he may deem necessary in the circumstances of the case. The certificate shall, if the Registrar-General of Land so requires, in any case where land has been incorporated in or excluded from the lease or licence or where there is an alteration in area, have endorsed thereon or attached thereto a plan of that land, and shall in every case be produced to the Registrar-General of Land, who must enter details of this on any record of title issued for the lease or licence.

Where any land is incorporated in a lease or licence as aforesaid, the land so incorporated shall, on the entry of details on the record of title for the lease or licence by the Registrar-General of Land, be held by the lessee or licensee on the same tenure and subject to the same terms and conditions as those on which the land with which it is incorporated is held.

Any land so incorporated in a lease or licence shall be subject to the same reservations, trusts, rights, titles, interests, and encumbrances as those to which the land with which it is incorporated is subject.

In this section, lease or licence includes a lease, current at the date when the land first became Crown land subject to this Act, of land of which Her Majesty the Queen is the registered owner under a record of title under the Land Transfer Act 2017.

Where land is incorporated in any lease of the type described in subsection (4), the Registrar-General of Land, on production of the certificate by the Commissioner referred to in subsection (1), must issue a record of title in the name of Her Majesty the Queen for the land incorporated in the lease.

Every record of title issued under subsection (5) continues in force until the expiration or sooner determination of the lease, and must then be cancelled by the Registrar-General of Land.

In this section, interest includes an easement, a lien, and a land covenant.

If a lessee or licensee acquires an estate in fee simple in land held under the lease or licence concerned, to the extent that the lease or licence is or was subject to (or has or had the benefit of) an interest that applied in relation to the land,—

If under section 65(2) of the Crown Pastoral Land Act 1998 a lessee or licensee is granted a special lease of land held under the lease or licence concerned, to the extent that the lease or licence is or was subject to (or has or had the benefit of) an interest that applied in relation to the land,—

If—

the new, renewed, or substituted lease or licence is subject to (or has the benefit of) every interest to which the surrendered, expired, or former lease or licence was subject (or had the benefit of); and the Registrar-General of Land must record the interest on it (if more than 1, in order of their registered priority).

The Board on being satisfied that any lease or licence (not being a lease or licence registered under the Land Transfer Act 2017) has been lost or accidentally destroyed, may issue a new lease or licence in lieu thereof, on such terms and conditions and on payment of such fee in each case as it thinks fit.

Where any endorsement is required to be made on any such lease or licence that has been lost or destroyed, the Board may issue a new lease or licence in lieu thereof, and may make the required endorsement thereon, or, if it thinks fit, may incorporate the substance of the endorsement with the terms of the original lease or licence and insert them together in the new lease or licence.

A purchase of land for cash or on deferred payments, or a lessee or licensee who exercises any right which the lessee or licensee may have to purchase the fee simple of the land comprised in the lease or licence, shall, on completion of the payment of the purchase price, and on payment of such title fee as may be prescribed, be entitled to a record of title under the Land Transfer Act 2017 in respect of that land.

No authority other than a certificate by the chief executive within the meaning of section 4 of the Cadastral Survey Act 2002 or the Surveyor-General as provided for in subsection (3) is necessary for the issue of a record of title under subsection (1).

On completion of all necessary surveys (if any) the chief executive within the meaning of section 4 of the Cadastral Survey Act 2002 or the Surveyor-General may file in the office of the Registrar-General of Land a certificate in the form set out in Schedule 2 of this Act certified as correct by the chief executive within the meaning of section 4 of the Cadastral Survey Act 2002 or the Surveyor-General. Every such certificate has the same effect as a warrant issued under section 12 of the Land Transfer Act 1952, and the Registrar-General of Land must issue a record of title for the land under the Land Transfer Act 2017.

The land comprised in any record of title issued pursuant to such a certificate by the Director-General within the meaning of section 2 of the Survey Act 1986 or any Chief Surveyor shall be deemed to be subject to the Land Transfer Act 2017 as from the date fixed by the last-mentioned certificate as the date of acquisition of title thereto, and that date shall for all purposes whatsoever be deemed the antevesting date in the same manner as if the antevesting date had been inserted in a Crown grant of the land.

The date fixed by the certificate of the Director-General within the meaning of section 2 of the Survey Act 1986 or any Chief Surveyor as the date of acquisition of title to the land comprised in that certificate shall,—

Every certificate by the Director-General within the meaning of section 2 of the Survey Act 1986 or any Chief Surveyor under this section shall be conclusive evidence to the Registrar-General of Land of the matters required by this section to be therein stated.

If it appears that the estate of any person named in a certificate filed under subsection (3) as entitled to the land described in the certificate has become vested in any other person claiming through the named person, the Registrar-General of Land may issue a record of title direct to the other person. The record of title must be made subject to all encumbrances, estates, and interests appearing to affect the land at the date the record of title is issued.

Where any land owned by the Crown is to be granted in fee simple under the authority of this Act or of any other Act, the grant and issue of a record of title in lieu of a Crown grant to the person entitled thereto may be effected in the manner provided by the foregoing provisions of this section, which provisions shall extend and apply with such modifications as are necessary. The provisions of this subsection shall be in addition to and not in substitution for any other authority providing for the issue of or conveyance of title to land alienated from the Crown.

The Governor-General may, by Proclamation, resume possession of the whole or any portion of any land held under lease or licence if in his opinion the land is required for a road, or street, or any public purpose, or is required for mining, or coal mining, or oil boring purposes, or if it is deemed by him to contain coal, or any mineral, or any mineral spring, hot spring, mud spring, geyser, or natural gas; and in that case the lease or licence shall, as from a date to be specified in the Proclamation, be determined in so far as it relates to the lands specified in that behalf in the Proclamation.

Upon resumption of part of any land held on lease or licence (other than deferred-payment licence) the rent payable by the lessee or licensee shall be abated in the proportion to the whole rent payable under the lease or licence which the value of the area so resumed bears to the value of the whole area so held, excluding in each case the value of improvements belonging to the lessee or licensee; and upon resumption of the whole or any part of the land held by him the lessee or licensee shall be entitled to compensation for any improvements belonging to him then in existence on the land which has been so resumed, and also for the value of his interest in the unexpired term of his lease or licence over the land so resumed.

Upon resumption of any land held on deferred-payment licence, the licensee shall be entitled to compensation for his interest in the land so resumed and in the improvements thereon, having regard, in cases where part only of the land so held is resumed, to the balance of purchase money apportioned to that part under the next succeeding subsection.

Where possession is resumed of part only of the land comprised in a deferred-payment licence, the balance of purchase money then owing shall be apportioned between the area resumed and the balance of the land in the proportion which the value of the area resumed bears to the value of the balance of the land in the licence, excluding in each case the value of improvement belonging to the licensee, and thereupon such adjustments as may be necessary shall be made in respect of future instalments of purchase money and interest apportioned to the portion of the land not resumed.

If the Board and the licensee are unable to agree as to the amount of purchase money to be apportioned to the land so resumed, the amount shall be determined by the Land Valuation Tribunal.

Every lessee or licensee having any estate or interest in any land injuriously affected by reason of any such resumption shall be entitled to full compensation for that injurious affection.

If by reason of such resumption any portion of the land is so severed from the rest as in the opinion of the lessee or licensee greatly to diminish the value thereof, he shall be entitled to surrender any portion so severed, and shall be entitled to a further proportionate abatement of rent, or to a reduction of the purchase money in the case of a deferred-payment licence, and to compensation as if the portion so surrendered had been actually resumed.

Where the whole or portion of any Crown land held under a lease or licence is resumed under the last preceding section, or has been resumed under the corresponding provisions of any former Land Act, or is or has heretofore been taken under the Public Works Act 1981 for any public work, and the lessee or licensee has agreed to accept as compensation in whole or in part therefor a lease or licence of any other Crown land, a lease or licence of that other land may, notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this or in any other Act, be granted to him accordingly.

Any such land may be incorporated in the original lease or licence or in any other lease or licence held by the lessee or licensee.

For the purpose of facilitating the settlement of Crown land or of assisting lessees or licensees of Crown land in the development of their holdings, the Board may make advances or readvances for—

The amount of any advance under this section may be paid from time to time by progress payments.

The power to make readvances under subsection (1) is hereby declared to include power to readvance on current account for the purposes set out in that subsection, or for the purpose of enabling lessees or licensees to liquidate seasonal or other expenditure relative to their farming operations, any proceeds derived from the sale of livestock, chattels, or produce, and credited to the current account.

Where the Board is satisfied that the area of Crown land held by any lessee or licensee is too small to be successfully occupied as an independent farm unit, it may authorise the making of an advance to enable him to purchase the interest of a lessee or licensee in any other Crown land which can be conveniently farmed with the land already held.

All moneys advanced under the last 2 preceding sections shall be secured by way of mortgage to the Crown over the lessee’s or licensee’s interest in the land and, in the case of an advance for the purchase of livestock and chattels, by a bill of sale over his livestock and chattels. Any such mortgage and bill of sale shall be in such form, for such term, and subject to such conditions as the Board may approve, and at such rate of interest as may be approved by the Minister of Finance.

If any such advance is secured by mortgage providing for payment of principal and interest by instalments, and the lessee or licensee (not being in arrear with any previous instalment or other payment due under his lease or licence) pays an instalment on or before its due date, or within 1 month after its due date, he shall be entitled to a rebate of such proportion as may be fixed by the Minister of Finance of so much of the instalment as consists of interest. Any rebate under this subsection may be deducted and retained by the lessee or licensee from the full amount of the instalment when making the payment. For the purposes of this subsection, a payment of an instalment shall be deemed to have been made within the period of 1 month if within that period it is in course of transmission by post to the department.