This Supplementary Order Paper amends the Land Transfer Bill to insert new clause 9A, requiring the Registrar to keep a foreign ownership of land register.

There is currently no easy or accurate way to measure the amount of land under the control of foreign nationals. This is due to the fact that, unlike in other jurisdictions, there is no official database of foreign ownership in New Zealand. As it currently stands, estimates as to the extent of foreign land ownership vary from 1% to over 3%.

While the Overseas Investment Office collects data about applications and their subsequent grant or rejection, these details that the office collects do not fully capture the extent of foreign ownership in New Zealand.

This amendment will ensure that a comprehensive register of all foreign-owned New Zealand land is compiled and made available to the general public. The register will record names and nationalities, the amount and value of land involved, and the regions in which the land is situated. Purchasers will be obligated, upon registering land dealings, to provide the information for the register.

The register will apply to all dealings in “land” as that term is defined in clause 5 of the Bill. The definition of “land” includes estates and interests in land, buildings and other permanent structures on land, land covered with water, plants and trees on land, and plants, trees, and timber on or under land.

The register is intended to be a resource for policy-makers and the general public, who will be able to gauge foreign landholdings across New Zealand as well as within their own local communities. The register will provide transparency for concerned New Zealanders.