Local Government (Rating) Act 2002

Assessment, payment, and recovery of rates and remission, postponement, and write-off of rates - Assessment, payment, and recovery - Penalties

58: Imposition of penalty

You could also call this:

"What happens if you don't pay your rates on time: penalties can be added"

Illustration for Local Government (Rating) Act 2002

If you do not pay your rates on time, a local authority may impose a penalty on you. You will get a penalty on the rates you have not paid after the due date for payment. A local authority can also add another penalty if you still have not paid your rates after a certain time, which is either the start of the new financial year or 5 working days after they decided to add the penalty.

A local authority can add a penalty to the amount of rates you have not paid, which includes any penalty they previously added to your unpaid rates. They can also add a penalty to any additional charges they added to your unpaid rates under the Rating Powers Act 1988. If you still have not paid your rates 6 months after a penalty was added, a local authority can add another penalty to your unpaid rates.

You should be aware that a local authority can add penalties to your unpaid rates at different times, depending on when you were supposed to pay them.

This text is automatically generated. It might be out of date or be missing some parts. Find out more about how we do this.

This page was last updated on 18 July 2025

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM132714.

Topics:

Government and voting > Local councilsHousing and property > Land use

57: Penalties on unpaid rates, or

"What happens if you don't pay your rates on time: penalties and extra costs"

59: Rates are charge against rating unit, or

"Rates are a charge on your property"

Part 3Assessment, payment, and recovery of rates and remission, postponement, and write-off of rates
Assessment, payment, and recovery: Penalties

58Imposition of penalty

A local authority may impose the following types of penalty:
a penalty on rates assessed in the financial year for which the resolution is made and that are unpaid after the due date for payment (or after a later date if so specified):
a further penalty on rates assessed in any financial year and that are unpaid on whichever day is the later of—
1. the first day of the financial year for which the resolution is made; or
2. 5 working days after the date on which the resolution is made:
a further penalty on rates to which a penalty has been added under paragraph (b), if the rates are unpaid 6 months after that penalty was added.

The amount of unpaid rates to which a penalty may be added includes—
a penalty previously added to unpaid rates under this section; or
additional charges added to unpaid rates under section 132 of the Rating Powers Act 1988; or
rates levied under the Rating Powers Act 1988 that remain unpaid.