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Biosecurity Act 1993

Administrative provisions - Recovery of costs

136: Failure to pay

You could also call this:

"What happens if you don't pay a biosecurity charge on time"

If you do not pay a charge under the Biosecurity Act 1993, or if you only pay part of it, and 20 working days have passed since you were asked to pay in writing, you will owe more money. The amount you owe will increase by 10% of the unpaid debt. You will also owe an extra 10% of the debt for every six months that you do not pay it, starting from the end of the 20 working days.

If you did not pay because you genuinely disagreed with the department about whether you owed the debt, or how much you owed, the authority collecting the debt might let you off paying the extra amount. The court can also decide to let you off paying the extra amount if you take the matter to court and they agree that you had a genuine dispute with the department.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM316372.

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135: Options for cost recovery, or

"How the government gets back money it spends on keeping New Zealand safe from pests and diseases"

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137: Levies, or

"Charges for biosecurity services, which are fees to help pay for things the government does to keep New Zealand safe from pests and diseases."

Part 6Administrative provisions
Recovery of costs

136Failure to pay

  1. Where all or part of a charge made under this Act or the regulations remains unpaid after 20 working days since the charge was demanded in writing, the debt shall be deemed to have been increased by an amount calculated in accordance with subsection (2).

  2. The amount by which an unpaid charge is deemed to have increased is the sum of—

  3. 10% of the debt, or that part of it that remained unpaid after the expiration of the period of 20 working days referred to in subsection (1); and
    1. for every complete period of 6 months after the expiration of that period during which the debt or any part of it (including any deemed increase under this section) has remained unpaid, 10% of that debt or that part.

      1. If a recovering authority is satisfied that the failure or refusal of any person to pay all or any part of a debt was a result of a genuine dispute between the person and department as to the person's liability to pay the debt, the amount of the debt, or both, the recovering authority may waive the payment of all or any part by which the debt has increased under this section.

      2. In an action for recovery of the debt, the court may exercise the power of waiver contained in subsection (3) if the court is satisfied in the terms set out in that subsection.