Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Schedule 3: Identity information
or “How government agencies can access and use people's identity information”

You could also call this:

“Information about court records, police data, and transport details that law enforcement agencies can access”

This schedule outlines law enforcement information and which agencies can access different types of records. Here’s a summary:

Court records include details about court proceedings, hearings, fines, and bail conditions. The Police, Ministry of Justice, and other agencies can access this information for specific purposes.

The Ministry of Justice keeps records about driver licence stop orders. The New Zealand Transport Agency can access this to update the driver licence register.

Police records contain information about overseas court hearings, offender and victim identities, medical details of some patients, traffic offences, stolen vehicles, wanted persons, missing persons, and firearms licences. Various government agencies can access these records for specific reasons.

The New Zealand Transport Agency maintains registers for driver licences, transport services, demerit points, and rail licensing. Police and other agencies can access these for law enforcement and other official purposes.

The motor vehicles register contains details of all registered vehicles. Many government agencies can access this information for enforcement and other official purposes.

The Road User Charges Collector keeps records of road user charges licences, which the Police and Transport Agency can access.

The Department of Corrections maintains records about community-based sentences, extended supervision orders, and prisoner details. The Police and Ministry of Justice can access this information for specific purposes.

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 It might be out of date or be missing some parts.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

Next up: Schedule 5: Information matching provisions

or “Laws that allow government agencies to share and compare your personal information”

Court records

The following table is medium in size and has 3 columns. Columns 1, 2, and 3 are grouped under the heading Ministry of Justice records. Column 1 is headed Subject. Column 2 is headed Description. Column 3 is headed Access available to.
Subject	Description	Access available to
Court document processing	Particulars of proceedings in respect of which informations are to be laid or charging documents filed; the acceptance of data for and the preparation of associated documents	Police Serious Fraud Office Department of Corrections Legal Services Commissioner, limited only to finding out whether an applicant for criminal legal aid has any charges currently pending determination by the courts
Details of hearings	Details of hearings of proceedings in respect of which informations have been laid or charging documents have been filed, including convictions, sentences, and all other matters ancillary and subsequent to a determination	Police (access is limited so as to exclude details relating to young persons, being persons over 14 years but under 18 years, where the offence did not carry a liability to imprisonment) New Zealand Transport Agency (access is limited to traffic cases only) Serious Fraud Office (access is limited so as to exclude details relating to young persons, being persons over 14 years but under 18 years, where the offence did not carry a liability to imprisonment) Department of Corrections Legal Services Commissioner, for the purpose of determining an application for a grant of legal aid (access is limited so as to exclude details relating to young persons, being persons over 14 years but under 18 years, where the offence did not carry a liability to imprisonment) Ministry of Justice (access for the purpose of responding to requests for criminal conviction histories)
Enforcement of fines and other orders	Particulars of writs, warrants, or orders in force and issued or made on default in the payment of fines or other monetary sums ordered in proceedings; particulars of the persons to whom the writs, warrants, or orders relate; and particulars of fines, sentences, or orders imposed or made against those persons, including the amounts remaining payable thereunder and the arrangements for payment	Police Department of Corrections Legal Services Commissioner, for the purpose of determining an application for a grant of legal aid in relation to a criminal matter Ministry of Justice (access for the purpose of responding to requests for criminal conviction histories)
Non-performance of bail conditions	Records relating to failure to comply with bail conditions entered under section 39(3) of the Bail Act 2000	Police

Ministry of Justice records

The following table is medium in size and has 3 columns. Columns 1, 2, and 3 are grouped under the heading Ministry of Justice records. Column 1 is headed Subject. Column 2 is headed Description. Column 3 is headed Access available to.
Subject		Description		Access available to
Driver licence stop orders		Particulars of each order served, cancelled, or terminated, the full name, full address, telephone number, driver licence number, and date of birth of the person on whom the order was served; the date and time when the order was served on the person, the date of the cancellation or termination of the order, and any amendments required, as at the date of service, cancellation, or termination, to the person's full address and telephone number		New Zealand Transport Agency (access is limited to recording, on the driver licence register, the service, cancellation, or termination of an order and any amendments required to the person's full address and telephone number, and to replacing a driver licence following the cancellation or termination of the order)

Police records

The following table is large in size and has 3 columns. Columns 1, 2, and 3 are grouped under the heading Police records. Column 1 is headed Subject. Column 2 is headed Description. Column 3 is headed Access available to.
Subject		Description		Access available to
Details of overseas hearings		Details of hearings of overseas proceedings before overseas courts, including convictions, sentences, and all other matters ancillary and subsequent to a determination		Ministry of Justice Department of Corrections Serious Fraud Office Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment (access is limited to obtaining information for the purposes of section 52 of the Outer Space and High-altitude Activities Act 2017)

Offender identity		Particulars of the identity of persons who have been charged with an offence		Department of Corrections (access is limited to identity details for the purposes of— entering information relating to prosecutions initiated otherwise than by the Police; or undertaking criminal history checks of persons wishing to visit prisons who have consented to such a check; or research conducted by the department, and with the limitation that information so obtained must not be published in a form that could reasonably be expected to identify the individual concerned) Ministry of Justice (access is limited to— identity details for the purposes of— entering information relating to prosecutions initiated otherwise than by the Police; or providing assistance to victims in accordance with the Sentencing Act 2002, the Parole Act 2002, the Victims' Rights Act 2002, and the Prisoners' and Victims' Claims Act 2005; or updating an existing database of court proceedings; or obtaining information for the purpose of research conducted by the Ministry, and with the limitation that information so obtained must not be published in a form that could reasonably be expected to identify the individual concerned) Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment (access is limited to obtaining information for the purposes of section 52 of the Outer Space and High-altitude Activities Act 2017)
Victim identity		The name, sex, date of birth, address, and telephone number of persons who are the victims of a criminal offence in respect of which another person has been charged		Ministry of Justice (access is limited to identity details for the purpose of providing assistance to victims in accordance with the Sentencing Act 2002, the Parole Act 2002, the Victims' Rights Act 2002, and the Prisoners' and Victims' Claims Act 2005)
Medical details		An indicator to identify persons who are or have been special patients under the Mental Health (Compulsory Assessment and Treatment) Act 1992 or any former Act and the hospitals at which those persons are or have been detained as special patients, or as committed patients, or as patients (within the meaning of that Act)		New Zealand Transport Agency (access is limited to obtaining information for the purposes of— section 19 of the Land Transport Act 1998; or subpart 2 of Part 4A of the Land Transport Act 1998) Department of Corrections Ministry of Justice
Traffic offence and infringement enforcement and document processing		Traffic offence and infringement enforcement processing, including infringement fees enforcement and preparation of documents		New Zealand Transport Agency Ministry of Justice (access is limited to obtaining information for the purpose of processing cases before a court) Legal Services Commissioner (access is limited to obtaining information for the purpose of processing cases before a court, and for determining an application for a grant of legal aid relating to a criminal matter)
Vehicles of interest		Particulars of motor vehicles stolen, unlawfully taken, missing, abandoned, or found, or where location is for other reasons required to be known by the Police		Registrar of Motor Vehicles (access is limited so as to exclude any particulars that the Police may determine in any case)
Vehicles impounded under Land Transport Act 1998		Particulars of an impounded vehicle, including make, model, type, registration plate number, vehicle identification number; the section of the Land Transport Act 1998 under which it is impounded, the date on which it was impounded, and the place where it is impounded; whether any appeals are yet to be determined; particulars of the person who was driving the vehicle immediately before its impoundment, including the full name, full address, telephone number, occupation, driver licence number, and date of birth of that person and the same particulars also for every other person who is registered in respect of the vehicle		Ministry of Justice (access is limited to giving effect to action taken, under Part 3 of the Summary Proceedings Act 1957, to enforce the payment of fines, reparation, and related payments)
Wanted persons		Particulars concerning persons wanted for arrest		New Zealand Transport Agency (access is limited to obtaining information for the purposes of— subpart 2 of Part 4A of the Land Transport Act 1998: carrying out the functions conferred on the Agency by section 95(1) of the Land Transport Management Act 2003) the Director of Land Transport carrying out the functions conferred on the Director by section 104B of the Land Transport Management Act 2003 Ministry of Justice (access is limited to persons wanted in connection with fines enforcement) Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment (access is limited to obtaining information for the purposes of section 52 of the Outer Space and High-altitude Activities Act 2017)
Missing persons		Particulars concerning persons missing or required to be located		New Zealand Transport Agency (access is limited so as to exclude any particulars that the Police may determine in any case) Ministry of Justice (access is limited to persons required to be located in connection with fines enforcement)
Firearms licences		Particulars of persons authorised to possess firearms in accordance with the Arms Act 1983		Ministry of Justice (access is limited to identity details of persons who possess firearms, where that information is required for the purpose of serving orders made under the Family Violence Act 2018)
Firearms prohibition order		Details of firearms prohibition orders made under the Arms Act 1983		Department of Corrections (access is limited to obtaining information about any offender who is subject to a firearms prohibition order while also subject to— a full-time custodial sentence (including while released on parole or subject to conditions imposed under section 93 of the Sentencing Act 2002); or a sentence of supervision, intensive supervision, community work, or community detention; or a non-association order; or a sentence of home detention (including while subject to post-detention conditions); or an extended supervision order; or a public protection order, a prison detention order, or a protective supervision order under the Public Safety (Public Protection Orders) Act 2014 Access is for the purpose of managing the offender’s sentence, any post-sentence conditions, any post-sentence supervision, or any order under the Public Safety (Public Protection Orders) Act 2014 in a manner consistent with the conditions of any firearms prohibition order)
Protection orders		Details of protection orders made under the Domestic Violence Act 1995		Department of Corrections (access is limited to obtaining information about any offender who is subject to a protection order while also subject to— a full-time custodial sentence (including while released on parole or subject to conditions imposed under section 93 of the Sentencing Act 2002); or a sentence of supervision, intensive supervision, community work, or community detention; or a non-association order; or a sentence of home detention (including while subject to post-detention conditions); or an extended supervision order; or a public protection order, a prison detention order, or a protective supervision order under the Public Safety (Public Protection Orders) Act 2014 Access is for the purpose of managing the offender's sentence, any post-sentence conditions, any post-sentence supervision, or any order under the Public Safety (Public Protection Orders) Act 2014 in a manner consistent with any protection order)
Restraining orders		Details of restraining orders made under the Harassment Act 1997		Department of Corrections (access is limited to obtaining information about any offender who is subject to a restraining order while also subject to— a full-time custodial sentence (including while released on parole or subject to conditions imposed under section 93 of the Sentencing Act 2002); or a sentence of supervision, intensive supervision, community work, or community detention; or a non-association order; or a sentence of home detention (including while subject to post-detention conditions); or an extended supervision order; or a public protection order, a prison detention order, or a protective supervision order under the Public Safety (Public Protection) Orders Act 2014 Access is for the purpose of managing the offender's sentence, any post-sentence conditions, any post-sentence supervision, or any order under the Public Safety (Public Protection Orders) Act 2014 in a manner consistent with any restraining order)
Non-contact orders	Details of non-contact orders made under the Victims’ Orders Against Violent Offenders Act 2014		Department of Corrections (access is limited to obtaining information about any offender who is subject to a non-contact order while also subject to— a full-time custodial sentence (including while released on parole or subject to an extended supervision order made under section 107I of the Parole Act 2002 or to conditions imposed under section 93 of the Sentencing Act 2002); or a sentence of intensive supervision, community detention, community work, or supervision; or a non-association order; or a sentence of home detention (including while subject to post-detention conditions); or an extended supervision order; or a public protection order, a prison detention order, or a protective supervision order under the Public Safety (Public Protection) Orders Act 2014 Access is for the purpose of managing the offender’s sentence, any post-sentence conditions, any post-sentence supervision, or any order under the Public Safety (Public Protection Orders) Act 2014 in a manner consistent with any non-contact order)

New Zealand Transport Agency records

The following table is small in size and has 3 columns. Columns 1, 2, and 3 are grouped under the heading New Zealand Transport Agency records. Column 1 is headed Subject. Column 2 is headed Description. Column 3 is headed Access available to.
Subject	Description	Access available to
Driver licence register (except photographic images on driver licences)	A national register of all driver licences	Department of Corrections Ministry of Justice Police Serious Fraud Office Road User Charges Collector (access is limited to obtaining information for the purpose of verifying the identity of people who are or apply to be holders of licences issued under the Road User Charges Act 2012) Registrar of Motor Vehicles (access is limited to obtaining information for the purposes of— verifying the identity of people who are or apply to be registered on the register of motor vehicles in respect of motor vehicles; or correcting or updating information held on the register of motor vehicles about such people)
Transport services licensing register	A national register of all transport service licences	Police
Demerit points	The recording of demerit points in relation to traffic offences	Police
Rail licensing register	A national register of all licences under the Railways Act 2005	Police
Traffic offence and infringement enforcement and document processing	Traffic offence and infringement enforcement processing, including infringement fees enforcement and preparation of documents	Police (access is limited to obtaining information for the purposes of— conducting road policing activities and enforcing the Land Transport Act 1998 (including any rules and regulations made under that Act): preventing or lessening a serious threat to public health or public safety, or the life or health of an individual, where a motor vehicle is or is likely to be involved: helping to locate vehicles that were involved, or were likely to be involved, in the commission of offences) Ministry of Justice (access is limited to obtaining information for the purpose of processing cases before a court) Legal Services Commissioner (access is limited to obtaining information for the purpose of processing cases before a court, and for determining an application for a grant of legal aid relating to a criminal matter)

Registrar of Motor Vehicles records

The following table is small in size and has 3 columns. Columns 1, 2, and 3 are grouped under the heading Registrar of Motor Vehicle records. Column 1 is headed Subject. Column 2 is headed Description. Column 3 is headed Access available to.
Subject		Description		Access available to
Motor vehicles register		A national register of all motor vehicles		Ministry of Justice (including for the purpose of enforcing civil debts) Police Serious Fraud Office WorkSafe New Zealand (access is limited to name and address details of persons who are or were previously registered in respect of a specified vehicle for the purposes of enforcing the health and safety at work legislation) Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment (access is limited to name and address details of persons who are or were previously registered in respect of a specified vehicle for the purposes of enforcing immigration legislation) Ministry for Primary Industries (access is limited to name and address details of persons who are or were previously registered in respect of a specified vehicle for the purposes of enforcing fisheries legislation and any other enactment that confers enforcement powers on fisheries officers) New Zealand Customs Service (access is limited to obtaining information for the purposes of enforcing legislation for which the Service has enforcement powers) New Zealand Transport Agency (access is limited to obtaining information for the purposes of— the Agency carrying out the functions conferred on the Agency by section 95(1) of the Land Transport Management Act 2003: the Director of Land Transport carrying out the functions conferred on the Director by section 104B of the Land Transport Management Act 2003) Legal Services Commissioner (access is limited to obtaining information for the purpose of determining an applicant’s financial eligibility for a grant of legal aid in relation to a criminal matter) An enforcement authority under the Land Transport Management Act 2003. Plumbers, Gasfitters, and Drainlayers Board (access is limited to name and address details of persons who are or were previously registered in respect of a specified vehicle for the purposes of the Board carrying out the functions conferred on the Board by sections 87J(3)(b) and 87K(2)(b) of the Plumbers, Gasfitters, and Drainlayers Act 2006)

Road User Charges Collector records

The following table is small in size and has 3 columns. Columns 1, 2, and 3 are grouped under the heading Ministry of Transport records. Column 1 is headed Subject. Column 2 is headed Description. Column 3 is headed Access available to.
Subject		Description		Access available to
Road user charges		Details of licences issued under the Road User Charges Act 2012 and details of the corresponding licence holders		Police (access is limited to obtaining information for the purpose of enforcing the Road User Charges Act 2012) New Zealand Transport Agency (access is limited to obtaining information for the purposes of— the Agency carrying out the functions conferred on the Agency by section 95(1) of the Land Transport Management Act 2003: the Director of Land Transport carrying out the functions conferred on the Director by section 104B of the Land Transport Management Act 2003)

Department of Corrections records

The following table is small in size and has 3 columns. Columns 1, 2, and 3 are grouped under the heading Department of Corrections records. Column 1 is headed Subject. Column 2 is headed Description. Column 3 is headed Access available to.
Subject	Description	Access available to
Community-based sentences, sentences of home detention, and conditions of release	Particulars of persons— released on probation or parole, or released on conditions under Part 6 of the Criminal Justice Act 1985, or sentenced to supervision; or released on parole, home detention, or compassionate release under subpart 2 of Part 1 of the Parole Act 2002 or sentenced to supervision, intensive supervision, community work, community detention, or home detention.	Police (access is limited to— the person's area of reporting: in the case of a person released from a prison, the conditions of the person's release (whether imposed on release or imposed or varied subsequently, and including any direction issued to that person by a probation officer)) Ministry of Justice
Extended supervision orders	Details of extended supervision orders made under Part 1A of the Parole Act 2002	Police (access is for the purpose of managing the conditions of the extended supervision order)
Records of prisoners	Particulars of prisoners in a prison, including the date of release from the prison	Police (access is limited to the location and the date of release of the prisoner) Ministry of Justice

Notes

Schedule 4 New Zealand Transport Agency records: amended, on 1 November 2023, by section 55 of the Land Transport (Road Safety) Amendment Act 2023 (2023 No 62).
Schedule 4 Police records: amended, on 15 November 2022, by section 16 of the Firearms Prohibition Orders Legislation Act 2022 (2022 No 41).
Schedule 4 Police records: amended, on 1 April 2021, by section 175(1) of the Land Transport (NZTA) Legislation Amendment Act 2020 (2020 No 48).
Schedule 4 Registrar of Motor Vehicles records: amended, on 6 December 2023, by section 56 of the Self-contained Motor Vehicles Legislation Act 2023 (2023 No 24).
Schedule 4 Registrar of Motor Vehicles records: amended, on 1 April 2021, by section 175(1) of the Land Transport (NZTA) Legislation Amendment Act 2020 (2020 No 48).
Schedule 4 Road User Charges Collector records: amended, on 1 April 2021, by section 175(1) of the Land Transport (NZTA) Legislation Amendment Act 2020 (2020 No 48).