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317: Decision on application for warrant of commitment
or “Judge decides whether to hold or release someone after an application for a warrant of commitment”
You could also call this:

“Requesting permission to hold a large group of arrivals”

If a large group of people arrives in New Zealand all at once, an immigration officer can ask a judge for permission to keep them in detention for up to 6 months. This is called a mass arrival warrant. The officer can ask for this if it’s needed to manage the group, keep everyone safe, make sure the immigration system works properly, or help the court run smoothly. The people in the group must already be in custody, and the officer must think that the reasons for keeping them in custody will still apply when the current detention period ends.

When the officer asks for this warrant, they need to swear an oath and provide lots of information. This includes how many people are in the group, ways to identify each person, details about how they arrived, and why the warrant is necessary. The officer also needs to explain how the detention will be as short and as free as possible while still doing what’s needed. They must show that where the people will be kept follows New Zealand’s laws and international agreements about refugees.

The officer can include other information about the group if they want to, but they don’t have to. A judge will look at the request and decide what to do. The officer can’t include children under 18 in the request unless they have a parent, guardian, or relative who is part of the group.

When the law talks about ‘identity information’, it means things like a person’s name (even if it’s not their real name), physical details about what they look like, or biological information that’s unique to them.

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Next up: 317AB: Limited period for decision on mass arrival warrant

or “Judge must decide on mass arrival warrants within 28 days”
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Part 9 Detention and monitoring
Warrants of commitment

317AApplication for mass arrival warrant

  1. An immigration officer may apply to a District Court Judge for a warrant of commitment authorising the detention, for a period of not more than 6 months, of the members of a mass arrival group (a mass arrival warrant) if—

  2. the warrant is necessary—
    1. to effectively manage the mass arrival group; or
      1. to manage any threat or risk to security or to the public arising from, or that may arise from, 1 or more members of the mass arrival group; or
        1. to uphold the integrity or efficiency of the immigration system; or
          1. to avoid disrupting the efficient functioning of the District Court, including the warrant of commitment application procedure; and
          2. the members of the mass arrival group are detained in custody under this Part; and
            1. it becomes apparent that, before the expiry of the period for which detention is authorised, 1 or more of the circumstances described in paragraphs (a) to (d) of section 316(1) will apply to each member of the mass arrival group.

              1. Every application under this section must—

              2. be made on oath; and
                1. include—
                  1. the number of persons to whom the warrant is to apply; and
                    1. identity information in respect of each of the persons; and
                      1. particulars of the craft, or of each of the group of craft, on which the persons arrived (if known); and
                        1. a description of the circumstances in which the craft, or the group of craft, arrived; and
                        2. include a statement of—
                          1. why the warrant is necessary in terms of subsection (1)(a); and
                            1. how subsection (1)(c) relates to each person to whom the warrant is to apply; and
                              1. how the proposed terms of the warrant ensure that the detention is for the least amount of time necessary to achieve the outcomes of the detention; and
                                1. how the proposed terms of the warrant ensure that the detention is the least restrictive necessary to achieve the outcomes of the detention; and
                                  1. how the proposed location of the detention meets—
                                    1. the Government’s obligations under the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990; and
                                      1. New Zealand’s obligations under the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and any other relevant international obligations.

                                    2. An application under this section may, but is not required to, include any other supporting evidence or information relating to the members of the mass arrival group.

                                    3. The Judge must determine an application under section 317B.

                                    4. Nothing in this section permits an immigration officer to include a person under 18 years of age in an application for a mass arrival warrant unless the person has a parent, guardian, or relative who is a member of the mass arrival group.

                                    5. In subsection (2)(b)(ii), identity information means 1 or more of the following:

                                    6. a name of the person (which may be the name that the person is known by or a name assigned to the person):
                                      1. biometric information in relation to the person:
                                        1. a physical description of the person.

                                          Notes
                                          • Section 317A: inserted, on , by section 12 of the Immigration Amendment Act 2013 (2013 No 39).
                                          • Section 317A(2)(c)(iii): inserted, on , by section 9 of the Immigration (Mass Arrivals) Amendment Act 2024 (2024 No 17).
                                          • Section 317A(2)(c)(iv): inserted, on , by section 9 of the Immigration (Mass Arrivals) Amendment Act 2024 (2024 No 17).
                                          • Section 317A(2)(c)(v): inserted, on , by section 9 of the Immigration (Mass Arrivals) Amendment Act 2024 (2024 No 17).