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303: Disclosure of information to enable specified agencies to check identity and character
or “Sharing information between agencies to check non-citizens' identities and backgrounds”
You could also call this:

“Sharing traveller information with government agencies for safety and security”

This law allows the Department of Immigration to share information about certain people with other government agencies. These agencies include the police, corrections, customs, and the Civil Aviation Authority.

The law helps these agencies identify people who might be trying to leave New Zealand. These people are called “persons of interest” because the agencies think they might be dangerous or involved in illegal activities.

If you’re a person of interest, the Department can tell other agencies when you’re planning to travel out of New Zealand. They can share information like your name, birthdate, and passport details.

You might be a person of interest if the agencies think you might:

  • Try to do terrorist activities
  • Help make weapons that can hurt lots of people
  • Do illegal things that could damage New Zealand’s economy
  • Be under police or court supervision
  • Be wanted for arrest
  • Have escaped from custody
  • Be involved in human trafficking or moving illegal goods
  • Be a risk to other passengers or the crew on a flight

The law aims to give these agencies more time to deal with persons of interest before they leave the country. This is meant to help with law enforcement, counter-terrorism, and keeping New Zealand safe.

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Next up: 303B: Direct access to information for purposes of law enforcement, counter-terrorism, and security

or “Immigration can share traveller information with certain agencies for safety and security reasons”
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Part 8 Compliance and information
Disclosure of information to or by other agencies, bodies, or persons

303ADisclosure of information to specified agencies for purposes of law enforcement, counter-terrorism, and security

  1. The purpose of this section is to enable the disclosure of information by the Department to a specified agency to allow that agency a longer period of time to—

  2. identify any person of interest who is intending to board a craft for the purpose of travelling from New Zealand; and
    1. perform any of its functions, or exercise any of its powers, in relation to an identified person of interest before that person departs from New Zealand.

      1. For the purpose of this section, the chief executive of a specified agency may supply to the chief executive of the Department personal information about a person of interest.

      2. The chief executive of the Department may compare the information received under subsection (2) about a person of interest with APP information that he or she holds.

      3. If the chief executive of the Department holds APP information about the person of interest, he or she may, under an agreement entered into in accordance with section 303C,—

      4. notify the chief executive of the specified agency that the person of interest intends to board a craft for the purpose of travelling from New Zealand; and
        1. disclose to that chief executive—
          1. the APP information held by the chief executive of the Department about the person of interest; and
            1. any other information held by the chief executive of the Department about the person’s intended travel (for example, when and where the person checked in).

            2. In this section,—

              APP information means advance passenger processing information that the chief executive of the Department has received under section 96(2) about persons intending to board a craft for the purpose of travelling from New Zealand

                chief executive of a specified agency means the head of that specified agency

                  person of interest means a person of interest to the chief executive of a specified agency because the chief executive believes on reasonable grounds that the person may attempt to leave New Zealand and that the person—

                  1. poses a threat or risk to the security of New Zealand or another country because the person intends to—
                    1. carry out, or facilitate, a terrorist act (within the meanings of those terms or expressions in sections 5 and 5A of the Terrorism Suppression Act 2002); or
                      1. engage in, or facilitate, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction; or
                        1. engage in, or facilitate, any other unlawful activity designed or likely to cause serious economic damage to New Zealand, carried out for the purpose of commercial or economic gain; or
                        2. is—
                          1. a person under control or supervision (as defined in section 3(1) of the Corrections Act 2004); or
                            1. on bail with an electronic monitoring condition granted under section 30B of the Bail Act 2000; or
                              1. liable to be arrested (with or without a warrant) by an employee or agent of a specified agency; or
                                1. suspected of escaping from lawful custody; or
                                  1. suspected of being a perpetrator or victim of an offence under section 98D of the Crimes Act 1961 (trafficking in persons); or
                                    1. suspected of being involved in the unlawful movement of illegal goods; or
                                      1. a person who poses a risk, for any reason, to the safety of other passengers, the crew, or craft

                                      personal information, in relation to a person of interest, includes the following information:

                                      1. the person’s—
                                        1. full name; and
                                          1. date of birth; and
                                            1. place of birth; and
                                              1. nationality; and
                                                1. gender; and
                                                2. the details specified in the person’s passport or certificate of identity, if known, including—
                                                  1. the passport or certificate of identity number; and
                                                    1. the expiry date; and
                                                      1. the issuer of the person’s certificate of identity (if any), if it is not the person’s country of nationality

                                                      specified agency means—

                                                      1. the New Zealand Police:
                                                        1. the department of State responsible for the administration of the Corrections Act 2004:
                                                          1. the department of State responsible for the administration of the Customs and Excise Act 1996:
                                                            1. the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand established under section 72A(1) of the Civil Aviation Act 1990.

                                                            Notes
                                                            • Section 303A: inserted, on , by section 276 of the Intelligence and Security Act 2017 (2017 No 10).
                                                            • Section 303A(5) person of interest paragraph (a): replaced, on , by section 57 of the Counter-Terrorism Legislation Act 2021 (2021 No 37).