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Public Works Act 1981

Acquisition or taking of land for critical infrastructure projects - Acquisition by agreement

39AAF: Minister or local authority must attempt to acquire land by agreement

You could also call this:

"The government must try to buy land from owners in a fair way before taking it for important projects."

Illustration for Public Works Act 1981

If you need land for a critical infrastructure project, the Minister or local authority must try to get it by agreeing with the land owner. They must follow rules in sections 17 and 18 of Part 2, but with some changes. These changes include replacing "public work" with "critical infrastructure project" in these rules.

When the Minister or local authority gives notice to the land owner under section 18(1)(a) or (b), they must say it is for a critical infrastructure project. They must also change what they say about taking the land, to say they will take it under section 39AAG instead. If they estimate how much compensation the land owner should get under section 18(1)(c), it must be based on what the owner would get under section 39AAK.

The Minister or local authority must make a genuine attempt to agree with the land owner before taking any further action. You can find more details about this process in the related sections of the Act. The rules about compensation and notices are important to understand if you are involved in a critical infrastructure project.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS1498092.

Topics:
Housing and property > Land useEnvironment and resources > Town planningGovernment and voting > Local councils
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"Using a different process to acquire land for a big project if it's faster or cheaper"

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Part 2AAcquisition or taking of land for critical infrastructure projects
Acquisition by agreement

39AAFMinister or local authority must attempt to acquire land by agreement

  1. The Minister or a local authority, as the case may be, must attempt to acquire land required for a critical infrastructure project by agreement with the owner of the land.

  2. For that purpose, sections 17 and 18 of Part 2 apply with the following modifications:

  3. any reference to a public work must be read as a reference to a critical infrastructure project; and
    1. any notice served or lodged by the Minister or local authority under section 18(1)(a) or (b) must specify that the notice relates to a critical infrastructure project; and
      1. the references in section 18(2) and (7) to proceeding to take the land under this Act must be read as references to proceeding to take the land under section 39AAG.

        1. To avoid doubt, the estimated amount of compensation required to be provided to the owner under section 18(1)(c) must be an estimate of the compensation to which the owner would be entitled under section 39AAK.

        Notes
        • Section 39AAF: inserted, on , by section 5 of the Public Works (Critical Infrastructure) Amendment Act 2025 (2025 No 46).