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Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act 1992

Requests to New Zealand - Requests for search warrants and production orders - Search warrants

44: Applications, issue, etc

You could also call this:

"How to apply for a search warrant to help solve a crime"

Illustration for Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act 1992

You can apply for a search warrant if the Attorney-General says it is okay. You do this by following the rules in subpart 3 of Part 4 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012. A Judge can give you a search warrant if they think someone has committed a serious crime in another country. You need to show the Judge that you have good reasons to think a crime has been committed. You also need to show that you will find evidence of the crime when you search. Most of Part 4 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 applies to search warrants, except for subpart 6. When a search warrant is issued, some rules about keeping documents are different. In section 101 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012, the District Court is referred to, but it should be read as the High Court instead.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS1524208.

Topics:
Crime and justice > Police and safetyCrime and justice > Courts and legal help
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43: Assistance in obtaining thing, or

"Getting help from New Zealand to find something for a serious crime"

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45: General provisions: applications and making, or

"How to get a production order to help solve a crime"

Part 3Requests to New Zealand
Requests for search warrants and production orders: Search warrants

44Applications, issue, etc

  1. If the Attorney-General authorises the New Zealand Police to apply for a search warrant, a constable may apply for a search warrant in the manner provided in subpart 3 of Part 4 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012.

  2. On an application by a constable to a Judge, the Judge may issue a search warrant in relation to a place, vehicle, or other thing if satisfied that there are reasonable grounds—

  3. to suspect that an offence against the law of a foreign country punishable by imprisonment for a term of 2 years or more has been or will be committed; and
    1. to believe that the search will find evidential material in respect of the offence in or on the place, vehicle, or other thing.

      1. Part 4 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012, except for subpart 6 of that Part, applies in relation to an application made, and a search warrant issued, under this section.

      2. For that purpose, a reference in section 101 of that Act (retention of documents) to the District Court is to be read as if it were a reference to the High Court.

      Notes
      • Section 44: replaced, on , by section 38 of the Budapest Convention and Related Matters Legislation Amendment Act 2025 (2025 No 39).