Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Plain Language Law homepage
185A: Jurisdiction of District Court
or “When the District Court can decide on pre-incorporation contracts”

You could also call this:

“Every company must maintain an official address in New Zealand”

You need to make sure your company always has a registered office in New Zealand. This is the official address for your company.

The registered office is the place that’s listed as your company’s registered office in the New Zealand register at any given time. If this changes, you need to update it as explained in [section 187].

When you describe your registered office, you must:

  1. Give the full address of the registered office.

  2. If your registered office is at an accountant’s, lawyer’s, or someone else’s office, you need to say that. You also need to say exactly where in their building your registered office is.

  3. If your registered office isn’t at someone else’s office, but it’s in a building where other people or businesses are, you need to say exactly where in that building your registered office is.

This helps make sure people can find your company’s official address easily if they need to.

This text is automatically generated. It might be out of date or be missing some parts. Find out more about how we do this.


Next up: 187: Change of registered office

or “How to change your company's official address”

Part 10 Administration of companies
Registered office

186Registered office

  1. A company must always have a registered office in New Zealand.

  2. Subject to section 187, the registered office of a company at a particular time is the place that is described as its registered office in the New Zealand register at that time.

  3. The description of the registered office must—

  4. state the address of the registered office; and
    1. if the registered office is at the offices of any firm of accountants, barristers and solicitors, or any other person, state—
      1. that the registered office of the company is at the offices of that firm or person; and
        1. particulars of the location in any building of those offices; or
        2. if the registered office is not at the offices of any such firm or person but is located in a building occupied by persons other than the company, state particulars of its location in the building.
          Compare
          • 1955 No 63 s 115(1)
          Notes
          • Section 186(3)(b): amended, on , by section 17 of the Financial Reporting Amendment Act 2014 (2014 No 64).