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Crown Minerals Act 1991

Permits, access to land, and other matters - Offences and miscellaneous - Offences and legal proceedings

100: Offences

You could also call this:

"Breaking the Crown Minerals Act rules is against the law"

Illustration for Crown Minerals Act 1991

If you break the rules in the Crown Minerals Act, you can commit an offence. You do this if you do not follow the rules in sections like section 8 about minerals. You also commit an offence if you do not follow the rules in other sections.

If you are in charge of a permit, you must follow the rules. You must also follow the rules when you enter someone's land to do something. You commit an offence if you give false information or obstruct someone who is doing their job.

There are time limits for taking someone to court for breaking the rules. If someone has made a promise to follow the rules, but they do not, they can still be taken to court.

The law says what an "incoming person" is, and you can find this in section 41AA(1).

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM246795.

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Part 1BPermits, access to land, and other matters
Offences and miscellaneous: Offences and legal proceedings

100Offences

  1. Every person commits an offence against this Act who contravenes, or permits a contravention of, section 8 (which imposes duties and restrictions in relation to minerals).

  2. Every person commits an offence against this Act who contravenes, or permits a contravention of, any of the following:

  3. section 33, which relates to compliance with permit holder responsibilities:
    1. section 49(5), which relates to entering land and carrying out an activity other than minimum impact activity:
      1. section 77, which relates to contravening the conditions of a right of access:
        1. section 94, which relates to persons administering this Act holding a pecuniary interest in a mining permit:
          1. section 99F, which relates to providing certain information to the Minister, the chief executive, or an enforcement officer.

            1. Every incoming person commits an offence against this Act who contravenes, or permits a contravention of, section 41AB(2) (which relates to obtaining prior consent for a change of control) if, before the power referred to in the definition of controlling interest in section 41AA(2) is obtained, the incoming person knows or ought reasonably to know, that the incoming person will obtain the power.

            2. Every person commits an offence against this Act who contravenes, or permits a contravention of,—

            3. section 41AB(3) (which relates to notifying the Minister of a change of control); or
              1. section 41AG(1) or 41A(1) (which also relates to notifying the Minister of a change of control).

                1. Every person commits an offence against this Act who wilfully obstructs, hinders, resists, or deceives any person in the execution of any powers conferred on that person by or under this Act.

                2. Every person commits an offence against this Act who knowingly provides altered, false, incomplete, or misleading information (including royalty returns) to the chief executive or any other person in respect of a matter or thing under this Act or the regulations.

                3. Despite anything to the contrary in section 25 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011, the limitation period in respect of an offence against subsection (1) ends on the date that is 12 months after the date on which the contravention giving rise to the charge first became known, or should have become known, to the Secretary.

                4. If an enforceable undertaking has been given, criminal proceedings may be taken for an offence within 6 months after—

                5. the enforceable undertaking is contravened; or
                  1. it comes to the notice of the regulator that the enforceable undertaking has been contravened; or
                    1. the chief executive agreed to the withdrawal of the enforceable undertaking.

                      1. In this section, incoming person has the same meaning as in section 41AA(1).

                      Notes
                      • Section 100(2)(a): amended, on , by section 53(1) of the Crown Minerals Amendment Act 2013 (2013 No 14).
                      • Section 100(2)(e): inserted, on , by section 24(1) of the Crown Minerals (Decommissioning and Other Matters) Amendment Act 2021 (2021 No 53).
                      • Section 100(2A): replaced, on , by section 62(1) of the Crown Minerals Amendment Act 2025 (2025 No 40).
                      • Section 100(2B): inserted, on , by section 62(1) of the Crown Minerals Amendment Act 2025 (2025 No 40).
                      • Section 100(3A): inserted, on , by section 53(2) of the Crown Minerals Amendment Act 2013 (2013 No 14).
                      • Section 100(4): replaced, on , by section 413 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011 (2011 No 81).
                      • Section 100(5): inserted, on , by section 24(2) of the Crown Minerals (Decommissioning and Other Matters) Amendment Act 2021 (2021 No 53).
                      • Section 100(6): inserted, on , by section 62(2) of the Crown Minerals Amendment Act 2025 (2025 No 40).