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New Zealand law explained for everyone

Public Works Act 1981

Compensation - Additional compensation

72: Additional compensation for acquisition of notified dwelling

You could also call this:

“Extra money for people who lose their home to a public project”

If your land is taken for a public project and it includes your main home, you might get extra money. You can get up to $50,000 if:

  1. Your land was officially notified for a public project.
  2. The land is then taken or bought for that project.
  3. There’s a house on the land that you live in most of the time.
  4. You meet some other rules.

The exact amount you get is worked out using a special method. Even if many people own the land, the total extra payment won’t be more than $50,000.

To get this money, you need to move out of the house by the date agreed or when asked. You also need to have owned the land when it was notified and when you moved out. You must have lived in the house for most of the time between these dates. You shouldn’t have wanted to sell your land, or if you did, it should only be because it was notified.

If more than one person owns the land, only those who meet these rules will get paid. The money will be split based on how much of the land each person owns.

If you’re renting the land and have to move out with less than 5 years left on your lease, you might get less money. But you won’t get less than what you’d get if you were just a regular tenant.

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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=DLM46393.

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"Extra costs if you make public works harder after being told about them"

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72A: Amount of compensation to be paid under section 72, or

"How much money you get if the government needs your land for a project"

Part 5 Compensation
Additional compensation

72Additional compensation for acquisition of notified dwelling

  1. Compensation of up to $50,000 must be paid to the owner of land if—

  2. the land has been notified; and
    1. the land is taken or acquired for the public work for which it was notified; and
      1. the land contains a dwelling that is used as the land owner's principal place of residence; and
        1. the payment of compensation is not excluded by subsection (2) or (3).

          1. The amount of compensation paid under subsection (1) must be determined in accordance with section 72A.

          2. The compensation paid under subsection (1) must not in total exceed $50,000 regardless of—

          3. the number of owners of the land; or
            1. the nature of the estate or interest that the various owners of the land may hold.

              1. Compensation shall not be paid under subsection (1) unless—

              2. where the land has been acquired by an agreement which specifies a date for the giving of vacant possession, vacant possession of the land and all buildings and structures on the land has been given to the notifying authority on or before the specified date or such later date as the authority may in any case allow:
                1. where—vacant possession of the land and all buildings and structures on the land has been given to the notifying authority within 1 month after the date on which the authority has served notice on the vendor or the person from whom the land was taken, as the case may be, that vacant possession is required, or within such longer period as the authority may in any case allow.
                  1. the land has been acquired by an agreement which does not specify a date for the giving of vacant possession; or
                    1. no agreement for sale has been entered into and the land has been taken by Proclamation—

                    2. Compensation shall not be payable under subsection (1) unless the person giving vacant possession—

                    3. was the owner, or the spouse, civil union partner, or de facto partner of the owner, of the land on the date on which it was notified, or, where the owner has died since that date, was the person beneficially interested in the land; and
                      1. was the owner of the land on the date on which vacant possession of the land and all buildings and structures on the land was given to the notifying authority; and
                        1. the dwelling on the land was the principal place of residence of that person for a substantial part of the period between the date of notification and the date of so giving vacant possession; and
                          1. was not a willing party to the taking or acquisition of the land, or was a willing party to the taking or acquisition principally because the land had been notified.

                            1. If any payment of compensation under this section is to be made in respect of land that is owned by more than 1 person, the payment shall be made only to those owners who qualify for payment under subsection (3). If payment is to be made to more than 1 owner, the amount of the payment shall be apportioned between the owners in proportion to the shares in which they owned the land.

                            2. Subject to subsection (6), if any compensation is payable under this section to a lessee or sublessee of land under a lease or sublease which, on the date on which vacant possession was given to the notifying authority, will expire less than 5 years after that date, the amount of compensation shall be reduced so that the amount to be paid bears the same proportion to the amount of compensation that would otherwise be payable as the period from the date on which vacant possession was given to the date of expiry of the lease or sublease bears to a period of 5 years.

                            3. The amount of compensation under subsection (5) shall not be reduced under this subsection to less than the amount that the lessee or sublessee would have received under section 75 if the lessee or sublessee had been a tenant (as defined in section 75(4)).

                            4. For the purposes of subsection (5), the date on which any lease or sublease containing a right of renewal will expire shall be deemed to be the date on which it would have expired if the right of renewal had been exercised.

                            Compare
                            • 1928 No 21 s 101B
                            • 1970 No 145 s 6(1)
                            • 1975 No 138 s 30(1)
                            Notes
                            • Section 72(1): replaced on , by section 194(1) of the Resource Legislation Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 15).
                            • Section 72(1A): inserted on , by section 194(1) of the Resource Legislation Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 15).
                            • Section 72(1B): inserted on , by section 194(1) of the Resource Legislation Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 15).
                            • Section 72(3)(a): amended, on , by section 7 of the Relationships (Statutory References) Act 2005 (2005 No 3).
                            • Section 72(6): amended on , by section 194(2) of the Resource Legislation Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 15).