Local Government (Rating) Act 2002

Assessment, payment, and recovery of rates and remission, postponement, and write-off of rates - Assessment, payment, and recovery - Legal proceedings to recover rates

65A: Recovery of unpaid rates from person actually using certain land

You could also call this:

"Paying unpaid rates for land you're using if the owner hasn't paid"

Illustration for Local Government (Rating) Act 2002

If you are using land and the owner has not paid the rates, you might have to pay some of the unpaid rates. The court can decide you only have to pay a part of the unpaid rates if it thinks this is reasonable. The court must also be sure that you did not use the whole area of land for the whole year and that the amount of rates is too high compared to what you would normally pay to use the land. You can read more about this in section 63 and other relevant sections like section 62A or section 96.

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 It might be out of date or be missing some parts.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=LMS483986.

Topics:

Housing and property > Land useGovernment and voting > Local councils

65: Limitation of time for recovery of rates, or

"The local council has 6 years to take you to court for unpaid rates."

66: Registration of charging order for judgment for rates, or

"What happens when a charging order is made against your property for unpaid rates"

Part 3Assessment, payment, and recovery of rates and remission, postponement, and write-off of rates
Assessment, payment, and recovery: Legal proceedings to recover rates

65ARecovery of unpaid rates from person actually using certain land

In proceedings under section 63 for the recovery of unpaid rates against a person actually using land to which section 62A or 96 applies (other than rates in respect of a separate rating area), the court may give judgment for a proportion of the unpaid rates if the court—
considers it to be reasonable to do so in the circumstances; and
is satisfied that—
1. the person did not actually use the whole of the rating unit for which the rates are claimed for the relevant financial year; and
2. the amount of rates payable is disproportionately large compared to a reasonable rental or payment for the use.

Notes

Section 65A: inserted, on 13 April 2021, by section 35 of the Local Government (Rating of Whenua Māori) Amendment Act 2021 (2021 No 12).