Public Records Act 2005

Recordkeeping requirements - Standards, inspection, reporting, and audit

27: Standards

You could also call this:

"Rules for managing public records"

Illustration for Public Records Act 2005

The Chief Archivist can make standards for public records and local authority records. You need to know these standards can be about creating, managing, or getting access to records. The Chief Archivist can change or cancel these standards. The Chief Archivist must tell you which standard applies to which public office or local authority. They must also say if you have to follow the standard or if it is optional. Before making a standard that you must follow, the Chief Archivist will share a draft and ask for feedback. The Chief Archivist will make sure standards are published in a way that makes sense. Some standards are considered secondary legislation, which has its own publication rules, as outlined in Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019. This means some standards must be published in a specific way, like mandatory standards that apply to more than one person.

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This page was last updated on 28 October 2025

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM345747.

Topics:

Government and voting > Government departments

26: Approval of repositories, or

"Choosing safe places to store important public records"

28: Application and content of standards, or

"Rules for Keeping Public Records"

Part 2Recordkeeping requirements
Standards, inspection, reporting, and audit

27Standards

The Chief Archivist—
may issue standards in relation to public records or local authority records for—
1. their creation, maintenance, or management:
2. their appraisal for disposal:
3. the provision of access to them; and
may review, amend, or revoke any standards referred to in paragraph (a); and
must state, in relation to each standard,—
1. the public office, class of public office, approved repository, or local authority to which the standard applies; and
2. whether compliance is mandatory or discretionary.

Before issuing a mandatory standard, the Chief Archivist must make a copy of the draft standard available to, and have a process in place for consulting with, every public office, approved repository, local authority, or other person to which the Chief Archivist considers that the proposed standard will apply, and to any other interested person.
The Chief Archivist must ensure that every standard issued under this section that is not secondary legislation is published in a manner that the Chief Archivist considers appropriate.
The following are secondary legislation (see Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019 for publication requirements):
mandatory standards under this section, unless they apply only to 1 or more named persons:
an amendment to, or a revocation of, mandatory standards that are secondary legislation.

Notes

Section 27(3): amended, on 28 October 2021, by section 3 of the Secondary Legislation Act 2021 (2021 No 7).
Section 27(4): inserted, on 28 October 2021, by section 3 of the Secondary Legislation Act 2021 (2021 No 7).