Health Act 1956

Quarantine

101: Inspection of ship or aircraft liable to quarantine

You could also call this:

"Checking ships and planes for sickness to keep you safe"

When you arrive in New Zealand by ship or aircraft, a medical officer of health or health protection officer might come on board to check for infectious diseases. They do this to keep you and others safe. The officer has the power to inspect the ship or aircraft and talk to people on board.

If you are on a ship or aircraft that might have infectious diseases, the medical officer of health or health protection officer can come on board to inspect it. They can also talk to people who are sick or might be sick. The officer can ask you to come and see them so they can check if you are healthy.

The people in charge of the ship or aircraft, like the captain or pilot, must help the medical officer of health or health protection officer do their job. This means they must let the officer come on board and do what they need to do to keep everyone safe. You can learn more about the laws that govern this process, including the Health Amendment Act 1988, which amended some of these rules.

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This page was last updated on 24 May 2025

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM307493.

100: Quarantine signal for ships, or

"Showing a quarantine flag on a ship when it's not safe for people to come ashore"

102: Ship's declaration of health, or

"Telling authorities about health on ships arriving in New Zealand"

Part 4Quarantine

101Inspection of ship or aircraft liable to quarantine

Subject to the provisions of any regulations made under this Act, the medical officer of health or health protection officer, before granting pratique to any ship liable to quarantine, shall board that ship and inspect it for the purpose of ascertaining whether any infectious disease exists on the ship.
Subject to the provisions of any regulations made under this Act, the medical officer of health or health protection officer may board any aircraft liable to quarantine and inspect it.
Subject to the provisions of any regulations made under this Act, the medical officer of health may examine any person who arrives by any such aircraft and who is suffering from any infectious disease, or is believed or suspected by him, on reasonable grounds, to be suffering from any quarantinable disease or to have been exposed to the infection of a quarantinable disease during such period as may be prescribed by any such regulations.
In respect of any such ship, aircraft, or person, the medical officer of health or health protection officer shall have for the purposes of this section such powers and duties as may be prescribed by regulations made under this Act.
Every person to whom this section applies shall, when required to do so, present himself before the medical officer of health and submit himself to such examination.
The master of every such ship, and the pilot in command of every such aircraft, shall facilitate, by all reasonable means, the boarding of the ship or aircraft by the medical officer of health or health protection officer and the exercise of his powers and duties under this section.

Notes

Section 101: replaced, on 1 April 1983, by section 4(2) of the Health Amendment Act 1982 (1982 No 34).
Section 101(1): amended, on 26 July 1988, pursuant to section 2(5) of the Health Amendment Act 1988 (1988 No 99).
Section 101(2): amended, on 26 July 1988, pursuant to section 2(5) of the Health Amendment Act 1988 (1988 No 99).
Section 101(4): amended, on 26 July 1988, pursuant to section 2(5) of the Health Amendment Act 1988 (1988 No 99).
Section 101(6): amended, on 26 July 1988, pursuant to section 2(5) of the Health Amendment Act 1988 (1988 No 99).