Asia-Pacific · 🇳🇿

New Zealand

A clean rule-of-law jurisdiction with a well-regarded, transparent foreign-trust regime and a straightforward corporate environment, where transparency reforms have repositioned the foreign trust as a compliant, well-supervised succession vehicle.

Legal systemCommon law · Supreme Court of New Zealand RegulatorFMA · RBNZ · Companies Office · Inland Revenue Coordinates41.29°S · 174.78°E · Wellington
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New Zealand at a glance

Legal system
Common law; Supreme Court of New Zealand as apex court
Regulator
Financial Markets Authority (FMA); Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ); Companies Office (MBIE); Department of Internal Affairs (AML supervisor)
Company formation
Companies are formed under the Companies Act 1993 through the Companies Office, requiring at least one director resident in New Zealand or in an enforcement-treaty country (Australia).
Trust regime
New Zealand foreign trusts, modernized by the Trusts Act 2019 and post-2017 registration and disclosure reforms, must register with Inland Revenue and meet record-keeping and reporting obligations administered through resident foreign-trust trustees.
Funds
Managed investment schemes and other financial products are regulated by the FMA under the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013, with managers and providers subject to licensing. Limited partnerships are commonly used for private-capital structures.
Tax posture
New Zealand has no general capital-gains tax and no estate or gift duty, taxes companies at 28%, and exempts qualifying foreign-source income of registered foreign trusts where no New Zealand-resident settlor exists.
Region
Asia-Pacific · Trusts · Foreign Trusts
How we act
Coordination by Hart David Carson LLP; local law advice by locally admitted counsel.

New Zealand combines a clean rule-of-law reputation with a well-regarded foreign-trust regime and a straightforward, low-friction corporate environment. That makes it an attractive base for trustee, holding, and cross-border wealth structures held to a transparency standard that withstands scrutiny.

The reforms to the foreign trust are what set New Zealand apart. After the disclosure changes of 2017 and the full recasting of trust law in the Trusts Act 2019, the New Zealand foreign trust ceased to be a confidentiality play and became a registered, reportable, and well-supervised succession vehicle, administered through resident trustees, registered with Inland Revenue, and aligned to the global transparency framework of CRS and FATCA. For families and advisers who want substance, New Zealand offers a reputable common-law trustee jurisdiction whose structures hold up before home-country tax authorities, auditors, and banks.

Around the trust sits an unusually efficient corporate environment. Companies are formed under the Companies Act 1993 through the Companies Office quickly and at modest cost, limited partnerships under the Limited Partnerships Act 2008 serve private-capital and investment uses, and the Financial Markets Authority (FMA) and Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) supervise a sound, OECD-standard financial system. For a client weighing where to seat a succession structure or a regional holding layer, the draw is that combination of transparency, supervision, and rule of law, delivered without the regulatory uncertainty that can attend less-developed markets.

What we coordinate in New Zealand

Entity formation, foreign trusts and succession, banking, private-capital structures, regulatory engagement, and tax posture, assembled with licensed local providers and New Zealand-admitted counsel.
01

Company & Entity Formation

We coordinate incorporation under the Companies Act 1993 through the Companies Office, part of MBIE, where the filing itself is quick and inexpensive. The planning point is the director-residency requirement, resolved before the application goes in; the vehicle is then fitted to the commercial objective with locally admitted counsel.

  • Companies Act 1993 incorporation via the Companies Office, typically completed promptly once due diligence clears
  • At least one director resident in New Zealand or in an enforcement-treaty country (Australia)
  • Limited partnerships under the Limited Partnerships Act 2008 for investment and private-capital uses
02

Trusts & Foundations

For a family seating succession assets here, we coordinate the foreign trust as a registered, reporting vehicle: Inland Revenue registration, the record-keeping and annual disclosure the Trusts Act 2019 and the post-2017 reforms require, and a resident foreign-trust trustee to administer all of it. Run that way, it is a transparent platform for cross-border succession and asset holding.

  • Foreign trust with a resident trustee and no New Zealand-resident settlor, registered with Inland Revenue
  • Annual return, disclosure and record-keeping obligations administered by a resident foreign-trust trustee
  • Drafting, trustee selection and formal advice rendered by New Zealand-admitted counsel and licensed resident trustees
03

Banking & Accounts

New Zealand banking is sound and RBNZ-supervised, though account opening for trust and foreign-owned structures involves thorough KYC and source-of-funds diligence under the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009.

  • Many structures domicile the trustee locally while maintaining banking relationships abroad
  • Substance, clear ownership charts and a credible source-of-funds narrative materially improve outcomes
  • Introductions coordinated; the banking relationship and decision rest with the institution
04

Investment Funds & Private Capital

Where the plan includes a fund or a joint venture, we scope the perimeter first. Managed investment schemes and other financial products fall under the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013, and the FMA licenses their managers and providers, so crossing that perimeter adds a licensing timetable. For private-capital and joint-venture structures the limited partnership is the workhorse.

  • Managed investment schemes regulated by the FMA under the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013
  • Managers and product providers subject to FMA licensing and fair-dealing obligations
  • Limited partnerships commonly used for private-capital, venture and co-investment structures
05

Regulatory & Licensing

Four supervisors touch a structure, and we map each before anything is filed. The FMA regulates financial-markets conduct and the RBNZ supervises banks and insurers. AML/CFT sits with the Department of Internal Affairs and the FMA, and foreign-trust oversight with Inland Revenue. Standards are strict and oriented to transparency, which rewards a structure documented properly from the first filing.

  • FMA market-conduct licensing; RBNZ prudential supervision of banks and insurers
  • AML/CFT supervision by the Department of Internal Affairs and the FMA, aligned to FATF standards
  • Matters before the FMA, RBNZ, Companies Office and Inland Revenue conducted with New Zealand-admitted counsel
06

Tax & Treaty Posture

The tax posture is the draw, and it is conditional. Companies pay 28%; there is no general capital-gains tax and no estate or gift duty. A registered foreign trust's qualifying foreign-source income is generally exempt where no New Zealand-resident settlor exists, but only while registration and disclosure obligations are met, so we calendar those with the structure itself.

  • 28% company rate; no general capital-gains tax and no estate or gift duty
  • Qualifying foreign-source income of a registered foreign trust generally exempt where there is no resident settlor
  • CRS and FATCA in force; foreign-trust disclosure obligations strictly enforced
On the ground

Government affairs &
facilitators, coordinated.

Engagement with the FMA, the Companies Office and Inland Revenue is transparent and process-driven; here, government affairs means diligent registration, reporting and compliant applications, and the foreign-trust regime in particular depends on reputable resident trustees who keep the registration and annual disclosure current. Hart David Carson coordinates a facilitation and partner network of licensed New Zealand trustee firms, fund and corporate-services providers, accountants and banks, engaged on a referral basis and working alongside New Zealand-admitted counsel who provide formal advice, legal opinions and representation. We do not maintain a New Zealand office, do not practice New Zealand law, and act only as coordinator.

Licensed resident foreign-trust trustees & corporate-services firms Fund, accounting & company-administration providers Banking introductions under AML/CFT diligence FMA, Companies Office & Inland Revenue engagement, with locally admitted counsel
Discuss a New Zealand matter →
How we coordinate a matter here

One partner,
the whole stack.

Hart David Carson helps assess the fit of a New Zealand company or foreign trust with the wider plan, introduces vetted resident trustees and counsel, and coordinates registration and ongoing compliance from the client side, with incorporation or limited-partnership set-up, foreign-trust registration with Inland Revenue, annual disclosure, and banking introductions sequenced in concert with New Zealand-admitted professionals. You have one point of contact at the firm while all New Zealand-law advice, trustee services, and statutory filings are delivered by locally admitted professionals and licensed trustees, so the structure is built once, correctly, with the home-jurisdiction and New Zealand pieces fitted together.

Scope the structure against the commercial objective and home-country position Introduce resident trustees, corporate-services, accounting and banking partners Project-manage incorporation, foreign-trust registration, and disclosure from start to finish All local legal advice, trustee services and statutory filings by New Zealand-admitted professionals
Start with a partner →

Prepared by Hart David Carson LLP · Reviewed by Jonathan D. Herpy, Sr. · Last updated October 2026 · Educational overview · Not legal advice · Local law advice comes from locally admitted counsel.

Frequently asked

Common questions on structuring in New Zealand.
Does Hart David Carson have an office in New Zealand?

No. Hart David Carson maintains no New Zealand office and does not practice New Zealand law. We coordinate a facilitation and partner network of licensed New Zealand trustee firms, fund and corporate-services providers, accountants, and banks, working alongside New Zealand-admitted counsel and resident foreign-trust trustees who provide all formal legal advice, trustee services, opinions, and statutory filings.

What is a New Zealand foreign trust and how is it regulated?

It is a trust with a New Zealand-resident trustee and no New Zealand-resident settlor, used for cross-border succession and asset holding. Since the post-2017 reforms and the Trusts Act 2019, a qualifying foreign trust registers with Inland Revenue, files an annual return and disclosure, and keeps records through its resident foreign-trust trustee. Budget for that annual calendar and the trustee's fees; they are part of the running cost. New Zealand-admitted counsel and licensed resident trustees handle drafting and administration.

How are companies formed in New Zealand?

Quickly and inexpensively, under the Companies Act 1993 through the Companies Office, part of MBIE. The gating item is that at least one director must be resident in New Zealand or in an enforcement-treaty country, at present Australia, so a foreign group usually lines up a qualifying director before it applies. Limited partnerships under the Limited Partnerships Act 2008 serve investment and private-capital structures. The right vehicle is confirmed with New Zealand-admitted counsel.

What is New Zealand's tax posture?

No general capital-gains tax, no estate or gift duty, and a 28% company rate. A registered foreign trust's qualifying foreign-source income is generally exempt where there is no New Zealand-resident settlor, but the exemption holds only while the registration and disclosure obligations are met, and those obligations are strictly enforced alongside CRS and FATCA reporting. Miss a filing and the exemption is at risk. Treatment in a client's home jurisdiction is a separate question for home-country tax counsel.

Why do clients choose New Zealand over a traditional offshore center?

New Zealand pairs a clean rule-of-law and OECD reputation with a foreign-trust regime that has been repositioned, through the 2017 registration reforms and the Trusts Act 2019, as a compliant and well-supervised succession vehicle rather than a confidentiality play. For families and advisers who want substance and transparency in a reputable trustee jurisdiction that withstands scrutiny from home-country tax authorities and banks, that combination is the draw.

Where do New Zealand structures bank?

Frequently abroad. New Zealand banking is sound and supervised by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, but account opening for a trust or foreign-owned structure involves thorough KYC and source-of-funds diligence under the AML/CFT Act, so allow weeks rather than days and have the ownership chart and source-of-funds file ready before the introduction. Many structures domicile the trustee locally while keeping banking relationships abroad. Introductions are coordinated; the decision rests with the institution, and timelines are indicative, not guaranteed.

The structuring toolkit we bring

The firm's own capabilities most often used on New Zealand work, with one partner coordinating U.S. counsel and locally admitted advisers.

Offshore trust & asset-protection counsel

New Zealand foreign trusts, modernized by the Trusts Act 2019 and post-2017 registration and disclosure reforms, must register with Inland Revenue and meet record-keeping and reporting obligations administered through resident foreign-trust trustees.

Offshore trust & asset-protection counsel →

Estate planning

In New Zealand, properly run foreign trusts offer a transparent, well-regulated platform for cross-border succession and asset holding.

Estate planning →

International tax

New Zealand has no general capital-gains tax and no estate or gift duty, taxes companies at 28%, and exempts qualifying foreign-source income of registered foreign trusts where no New Zealand-resident settlor exists.

International tax →

International corporate structuring

In New Zealand, companies are formed under the Companies Act 1993 through the Companies Office, requiring at least one director resident in New Zealand or in an enforcement-treaty country (Australia).

International corporate structuring →

Related jurisdictions

Adjacent structuring jurisdictions in Asia-Pacific.

Australia

A stable, sophisticated common-law market for corporate, resources and funds work, with deep capital markets, CCIVs and FIRB-screened foreign investment.

Explore →

Cook Islands

The New Zealand-derived jurisdiction that pioneered the asset-protection trust as it is practiced today, with short limitation periods and a high creditor burden under the International Trusts Act.

Explore →

Singapore

Asia's neutral meeting point for fund management, family offices, and dispute resolution, with the VCC fund vehicle and a wide treaty network.

Explore →

Samoa

A confidential, cost-effective Pacific international-finance platform for international companies and trusts, supervised by a single dedicated authority.

Explore →

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Structuring in New Zealand?

One partner is accountable for the whole matter, and you have that partner's direct line. We coordinate the New Zealand pieces with locally admitted counsel and resident trustees; you keep one line back to the firm.

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