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New Zealand law explained for everyone

Building Societies Act 1965

Management and administration - Annual return

103: Duty to make annual return

You could also call this:

"Building societies must send a yearly report to the Registrar"

You need to send a yearly report about your building society to the Registrar. You must do this within 4 months after your financial year ends. The report should cover what happened in your society during the last financial year. You don't have to send a report in the same year that your society is created.

The yearly report needs to include specific information and be written in a certain way. The government decides what information you need to include and how you should write it.

Two people must sign the yearly report. One must be the manager or secretary of your society. The other person must be approved by the directors of your society and can be either a director, an accountant, or a lawyer.

If you don't follow these rules about the yearly report, your society will be breaking the law. Any person in charge of your society who doesn't follow these rules will also be breaking the law.

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This page was last updated on

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM372082.

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Part 7Management and administration
Annual return

103Duty to make annual return

  1. Every society must, within 4 months of its balance date (within the meaning of section 41 of the Financial Reporting Act 2013), send to the Registrar for registration a return relating to its affairs for the previous financial year: provided that a society need not make a return under this subsection in the financial year in which it is incorporated.

  2. The annual return shall contain such information and be in such form as may be prescribed.

  3. The annual return must be signed by—

  4. the manager or secretary of the society; and
    1. a second person who is authorised to sign by the directors of the society and who is any of the following:
      1. a director of the society:
        1. a qualified statutory accountant (as defined in section 5(1) of the Financial Reporting Act 2013):
          1. a lawyer (as defined in section 6 of the Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006).

          2. Repealed

          3. If a society fails to comply with any of the provisions of this section or of any regulations made for the purposes thereof, the society, and every officer of the society who is in default, shall be guilty of an offence against this Act.

          Compare
          • 1908 No 18 ss 44, 45
          • Building Societies Act 1962 s 88(1)–(3), (5), (6) (UK)
          Notes
          • Section 103(1): amended, on , by section 29 of the Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Act 2025 (2025 No 11).
          • Section 103(1): amended, on , by section 7 of the Building Societies Amendment Act 2007 (2007 No 43).
          • Section 103(2): amended, on , by section 5(1) of the Regulatory Systems (Commercial Matters) Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 12).
          • Section 103(2A): inserted, on , by section 5(2) of the Regulatory Systems (Commercial Matters) Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 12).
          • Section 103(3): repealed, on , by section 7 of the Building Societies Amendment Act 2007 (2007 No 43).