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Crown Minerals Act 1991

Permits, access to land, and other matters - Permits, access to land, and title notations

25: Grant of permit

You could also call this:

"Getting a Permit to Look for or Mine Minerals"

Illustration for Crown Minerals Act 1991

The Minister can give you a permit to look for minerals or mine them. You can get a permit if you apply under section 23A or through a public tender process under section 24. The Minister can add conditions to the permit. The Minister does not have to give you a permit unless section 32 says they must. The permit must say what minerals you can look for or mine, and what conditions you must follow. It must also say who the permit holders and operator are. A permit can expire on a certain date, which might be earlier than the usual expiry date in section 35. You cannot get a permit if you have not paid a deposit or bond to ensure you follow the conditions. The Minister usually cannot give a permit to look for or mine minerals on private land, except in certain situations like those described in section 84 of the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act 2011 or section 130 of the Ngāti Pāoa Claims Settlement Act 2025. If someone already has a privilege to look for or mine minerals, the Minister needs their consent to give you a permit. There are some exceptions to this rule, like the one in section 5A(3) of the Continental Shelf Act 1964.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM246328.

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24: Allocation by public tender, or

"The government sells permits to use land and minerals by asking people to make an offer in a public tender."

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25A: Record of permit, or

"Getting a copy of your permit and keeping a record of it"

Part 1BPermits, access to land, and other matters
Permits, access to land, and title notations

25Grant of permit

  1. The Minister may grant a prospecting permit, an exploration permit, or a mining permit under this Act in respect of minerals in land—

  2. to any person or persons; and
    1. in either of the following ways:
      1. as the result of an application initiated by a person under section 23A:
        1. as the result of a public tender process under section 24; and
        2. subject to any conditions that the Minister may impose, as the Minister thinks fit, including authorising the prospecting or exploration for, or mining of, a mineral only—
          1. in particular circumstances; or
            1. by means of a particular method; or
              1. if the mineral occurs in a particular state, place, phase, or stratum.

              2. However, the Minister is not obliged to grant a permit to any person or persons unless expressly required to do so under section 32.

              3. Repealed

              4. Each permit granted by the Minister must specify—

              5. the minerals and land to which the permit applies; and
                1. the conditions on which the permit is granted; and
                  1. the names of the permit participants; and
                    1. the name of the permit operator; and
                      1. if any of the minerals to which the permit applies are minerals listed in the first column of Schedule 5, whether the permit in respect of those minerals is a Tier 1, a Tier 2, or a Tier 3 permit.

                        1. A permit may also specify the date on which the permit expires if the permit is to expire on a date earlier than the default expiry date set out in section 35.

                        2. A permit must not be granted under this Part if a monetary deposit or bond that is required by the Minister as security for compliance with the conditions of the permit has not been deposited with the chief executive.

                        3. The Minister must not grant an exploration permit or a mining permit in respect of privately owned minerals, except as provided for by—

                        4. section 84 of the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act 2011:
                          1. section 130 of the Ngāti Pāoa Claims Settlement Act 2025.

                            1. If an existing privilege exists, the Minister must not grant a permit in respect of all or part of the land and the mineral to which the privilege relates without the consent of the current holder of the privilege.

                            2. Subsection (1) is subject to section 5A(3) of the Continental Shelf Act 1964.

                            Notes
                            • Section 25: replaced, on , by section 21 of the Crown Minerals Amendment Act 2013 (2013 No 14).
                            • Section 25(2A): repealed, on , by section 16(1) of the Crown Minerals Amendment Act 2025 (2025 No 40).
                            • Section 25(3)(e): amended, on , by section 16(2) of the Crown Minerals Amendment Act 2025 (2025 No 40).
                            • Section 25(6): replaced, on , by section 169(2) of the Ngāti Pāoa Claims Settlement Act 2025 (2025 No 61).