Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Companies Act 1993

Overseas companies

340: Annual return of overseas company

You could also call this:

“Yearly update required for overseas companies operating in New Zealand”

If you run an overseas company doing business in New Zealand, you need to send a yearly update to the Registrar. This update is called an annual return. You must send it during a specific month that the Registrar assigns to your company.

In your annual return, you need to confirm that all the information about your company on the overseas register is correct. The form you fill out must be dated within the month it’s due.

When you first register your overseas company in New Zealand, the Registrar will tell you which month to send your annual return. The Registrar can change this month if they need to, but they’ll let you know in writing if they do.

If you’ve just registered your company this year, you don’t need to send an annual return until next year. But this rule doesn’t apply if your company is automatically registered under this part of the law.

If you don’t send your annual return on time or date it correctly, you’re breaking the law. Your company could be fined, and each of your company’s directors could be fined too. The exact penalties for these offences are listed in section 373(2) and section 374(2) of this Act.

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 It might be out of date or be missing some parts.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

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM322876.

Topics:
Business > Industry rules
Business > Starting a business
Government and voting > Government departments
Previous

339A: Rectification or correction of name or address of person authorised to accept service, or

“Fixing details of the NZ contact person for overseas companies”

Next

340A: Financial reporting requirements for large overseas companies, or

“Big foreign companies in NZ must follow special financial reporting rules”

Part 18 Overseas companies

340Annual return of overseas company

  1. Every overseas company that carries on business in New Zealand must ensure that the Registrar receives each year, during the month allocated to the overseas company for the purposes of this section, an annual return in the prescribed form confirming that the information on the overseas register in respect of the overseas company referred to in the return is correct at the date of the return.

  2. The annual return must be dated as at a day within the month during which the return is required to be received by the Registrar.

  3. On registration of an overseas company under this Part, the Registrar must allocate a month to the company for the purposes of this section.

  4. The Registrar may, by written notice to an overseas company, alter the month allocated to the company under subsection (3).

  5. Notwithstanding subsection (1), an overseas company, not being an overseas company that is deemed to be registered under this Part, need not make an annual return in the calendar year of its registration under this Part.

  6. If an overseas company fails to comply with subsection (1) or subsection (2),—

  7. the company commits an offence and is liable on conviction to the penalty set out in section 373(2); and
    1. every director of the overseas company commits an offence and is liable on conviction to the penalty set out in section 374(2).