Terminology

Affected persons’ written approval may be required by an authority for an activity that requires a resource consent. Individuals or organisations that may be affected by the activity are invited to give their written approval. Written approval may be withheld if the individual or organisation believes they will be adversely affected. Affected persons may include adjoining landowners, iwi, and other territorial or regional authorities.

An allotment is defined in section 218 of the Resource Management Act 1991 as:

a)      Any parcel of land under the Land Transfer Act that is a continuous area and whose boundaries are shown separately on a survey plan; or

b)      any parcel of land or building or part of a building that is shown or identified separately on a survey plan; or

c)      Any unit on a unit plan; or

d)      Any parcel of land not subject to the Land Transfer Act.

An amalgamation condition is a requirement imposed upon a subdivision whereby two or more adjoining parcels of land are held together in one Record of Title. An amalgamation condition may be used where adjoining land is in separate ownership and not formally part of the land transfer survey.

Appellation means the legal description for a parcel of land. Land in New Zealand has historically been named differently, depending on the land district and the purpose of the land. Examples include:

• Section 97 Fitzroy Survey District – for Crown Land
• Matarikoriko 7B2A Block – for Māori Land
• Section 8 Block XLIV Town of Waitara West – for land in a town

Under the current land transfer system, each parcel of land is described as a Lot on a Deposited Plan (DP), e.g. Lot 12 DP 345678.

Approved as to survey means that Land Information New Zealand has approved the survey dataset submitted by a licensed cadastral surveyor in relation to a cadastral survey.

A boundary adjustment is a subdivision to change the position of one or more boundaries between land parcels but where no additional land parcels are created. A boundary adjustment may be required to reflect an agreement between adjoining landowners such as when a legal boundary does not match long-standing occupation. A boundary adjustment is still a subdivision and requires a resource consent.

A boundary mark is a physical mark placed by a licensed cadastral surveyor to demarcate the legal boundary of a parcel of land. A boundary mark is commonly a large wooden peg painted white at the top, or a stainless-steel disk marked “boundary mark” and anchored into a fence post or into concrete.

A boundary reinstatement survey means a survey by a Licensed Cadastral Surveyor to locate and where necessary reinstate one or more boundary marks for an existing parcel of land. A surveyor who reinstates a boundary mark has a legal duty to ensure the reinstatement is officially recorded on a survey plan and lodged with Land Information New Zealand. A peg placed or renewed without an official record has no legal status as a boundary mark.

A Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment (LVIA) is a technique used to assess the changes an activity may have upon the landscape so that negative landscape effects can be avoided, reduced or offset. Where an activity is likely to have negative impacts on landscape, an LVIA will usually form part of the assessment of environmental effects to a resource consent application.

A Cadastral Survey Dataset is defined in the Cadastral Survey Act 2002 as “the set of cadastral survey data necessary to integrate a cadastral survey into the cadastre”. Cadastral survey datasets are held by the Crown and hold all the survey information required to identify and define land parcel boundaries.

The Cadastral Survey Act 2002 governs cadastral surveying in New Zealand. The purpose the Act is to promote and maintain the accuracy of the cadastre by

a)      requiring cadastral surveys to be done by, or under the direction of, licensed cadastral surveyors; and

b)      requiring cadastral surveyors to meet standards of competence to be licensed; and

c)      providing for the setting of standards for cadastral surveys and cadastral survey data.

The Cadastre is a parcel-based system of land administration. The Cadastral Survey Act 2002 defines the Cadastre as “all the cadastral survey data held by or for the Crown and Crown agencies”. The Cadastre is comprised of physically defined boundaries for the extents of land parcels and interests in land parcels, as well as datasets containing the public record of the land parcels and associated interests.

Cadastral surveying is the discipline of land surveying that relates to land ownership and the definition of property boundaries.  It involves interpreting and advising on boundary locations, the status of land ownership, and the rights, restrictions and interests in property, as well as recording new survey information.  Cadastral surveying involves the physical delineation of property boundaries and the determination of dimensions, areas and certain rights associated with property, whether on land or water or defined by natural or artificial features.

Coastal Marine Area means the foreshore, seabed, and coastal water, and the air space above the water of which the seaward boundary is the outer limit of the territorial sea and the landward boundary is the line of mean highwater springs. Where the Coastal Marine Area crosses a river, the landward boundary is the lesser of one kilometre upstream from the mouth of the river or the point upstream equal to five times the width of the river mouth.

A Consent Notice may be imposed as a condition to a resource consent for subdivision to ensure the on-going compliance of one or more other conditions required by the resource consent. A Consent Notice is issued under section 221 of the Resource Management Act 1991 and is registered on the Records of Title of the relevant parcels of land.

A Controlled Activity is an activity that is required to have a resource consent from a local or territorial authority and where the resource consent cannot be declined. The authority may impose conditions on the resource consent that the applicant must comply with.

Cross lease is a term used to describe an interest in land whereby the purchaser of a dwelling obtains a lease of that dwelling together with an undivided share in the underlying land. The cross-lease title is a single title document recording the proprietors’ undivided share in the land and a lease of the particular dwelling. Cross-lease titles may include common use areas and exclusive use areas. Any changes to a cross-lease site or building requires the consent of all other owners.

Crown Land is the land vested in Her Majesty the Queen that is not set aside for any public purpose or held by any person in fee simple. Crown Land in New Zealand is administered under the provisions of the Land Act 1948.

A Deposited Plan is the record of survey and boundary data for a land transfer subdivision that has been deposited by the Registrar General of Lands for the issue of new land titles. A Deposited Plan includes a graphical representation of the boundaries of the new land parcels and is identified by a DP prefix and a number, e.g. DP 345687.

A development contribution is a financial contribution requirement to the territorial authority to fund the impact on network infrastructure resulting from subdivision and/or development or other land use. Network infrastructure may include roads, water supply, wastewater, stormwater drainage, and reserves and community facilities.

A Discretionary Activity is an activity that is required to have a resource consent and where the territorial authority has full discretion to grant or deny the resource consent. The territorial authority may impose conditions on the resource consent that must be met by the applicant.

A District Plan is a document prepared by a city or district council to help them carry out their functions under the Resource Management Act 1991. The District Plan determines where activities can take place, what restrictions may be necessary, and what natural and cultural resources should be protected. The rules of the district plan set out the activities that can occur as of right (permitted activities) and the activities that will require a resource consent.

The dominant tenement in respect to an easement is the property or parcel of land that benefits from or has the advantage of an easement.

An easement is a right over the land of another without having the possession of that land. The land subject to the easement is the ‘burdened land’. Other land gaining the benefit of the right is the ‘benefited land’. A right granted by an easement is tied to the land and a landowner gains the benefit of that right only while they are in possession of the land. Examples include:

• Right of way
• Right to convey water
• Right to convey electricity
• Right to convey telecommunications
• Right to drain water
• Right to drain sewage

An easement in gross is granted to an individual or organisation as the ‘grantee’ and not to land. An easement in gross is usually associated with local authorities or utility companies providing services over the land, e.g. water supply, sewer drains, telecommunication, electricity, gas.

Esplanade reserves are used to protect riparian and coastal margins. They are classified as reserves under the Reserves Act 1977. An esplanade reserve (typically 20m wide) may be required adjoining a water boundary for any allotment in a subdivision that is less than 4 hectares. Ownership and management of the esplanade reserve is transferred to the territorial authority at the time of subdivision. The landward boundary is fixed and does not change as the water boundary changes.

Esplanade strips are used to protect riparian and coastal margins. Esplanade strips may be required by a rule in a district plan when land is subdivided. An esplanade strip is created by a legal instrument between the landowner and a territorial authority. The esplanade strip is registered on the record of title, but remains in the ownership of the landowner. The landward boundary of an esplanade strip is always parallel to the water boundary and moves with the water boundary if there is accretion or erosion.

Freehold subdivision occurs where new allotments are created under the Land Transfer Act 2017 and ownership is held in an estate in fee simple. Fee simple means that the ownership of the land and any building on it is held solely by the person(s) listed on the record of title. Freehold is the most common form of subdivision.

A land covenant is a provision registered on the record of title to land that limits or restricts the current and future owners in respect of the use of part or all of that land. For example, a land covenant may limit the height or location of buildings on the land or may be used to protect and preserve existing trees and vegetation.

Land Information New Zealand is a government department responsible for a number of functions relating to location information. Land Information New Zealand is responsible for managing land titles, geodetic and cadastral survey systems, topographic information, hydrographic information; managing Crown property; and supporting government decision-making around foreign ownership.

The Land Transfer Act 2017 replaces the Land Transfer Act 1952. The purpose of the Act is to maintain the integrity of the Torrens system of land title in New Zealand and retain the fundamental principles of that system, which are to:

a) provide security of ownership of estates and interests in land; and

b) facilitate the transfer of and dealings with estates and interests in land; and

c) provide compensation for loss arising from the operation of the system; and

d) provide a register of land that describes and records the ownership of estates and interests in land.

A land transfer plan is a cadastral survey dataset that has been prepared under the Land Transfer Act to allow the creation of interests in land such as lots, easements and covenants. It is a cadastral survey dataset that is approved as to survey, but from which new records of title have not yet been created. A land transfer plan is identified by an LT prefix and a number, e.g. LT 523456.

A Land Use consent is the authorisation required under the Resource Management Act for an activity on land that might affect the environment and that is not allowed ‘as of right’ in a district plan or regional plan.

A Licensed Cadastral Surveyor, licensed under the Cadastral Survey Act 2002, is the only person authorised to perform cadastral surveys in New Zealand. Government regulation of cadastral surveying reflects the importance of the Cadastral in New Zealand.

A record of title marked “Limited as to Parcels” means the Registrar General of Land does not guarantee the shape, dimensions, or area of the land parcel described in the record of title. Any dealings in the land that are reliant on the shape, dimensions, or area of the parcel must first remove the “Limited as to Parcels” status. A survey must be undertaken by a Licensed Cadastral Surveyor. The surveyor will interpret all the available physical and documentary legal, survey, and occupation evidence and make a determination of the property boundaries. Agreement is also required from all adjoining landowners prior to the Registrar General of Land issuing a new record of title with the limitation status removed.

Limited notification in relation to a resource consent application means that only those persons identified by the territorial authority to be directly adversely affected by the application are notified and can make a submission on the application.

Maori freehold land is land where the customary interest has been converted to a fee simple interest after investigation by the Māori Land Court and the land has not subsequently been sold. Where more than one person owns the land, the tenants in common do not always hold equal shares. The size of the interest of each owner will be noted in the court orders creating the freehold title. There are approximately 1.3 million hectares of Māori freehold land in New Zealand.

A non-complying activity is an activity that is required to have a resource consent and where the territorial authority can refuse to give consent for the non-complying activity. The resource consent may be refused when the adverse effects of the activity cannot be avoided, remedied or mitigated, or when the activity is contrary to the objectives and policies of a District Plan or Regional Plan.

A permitted activity is an activity that does not require a resource consent. This is because either the District Plan or Regional Plan states that the activity can happen without resource consent if certain criteria are met, or the activity is not specifically mentioned in the plan but complies with all the District Plan or Regional Plan rules.

A Record of Title records the legal owners of land and all dealings with the land registered under the Land Transfer Act 1952 including transfer of ownership, mortgages, and subject and appurtenant easements.

The function of regional councils is to manage the sustainable use, development and protection of natural and physical resources. These resources include soils, the quality of water and coastal water and associated ecosystems; and to safeguard people and resources from natural hazards.

A resource consent is consent granted by a local or regional authority for an activity that might adversely affect the environment and that is not permitted ‘as of right’ by the Resource Management Act 1991 or by a rule in a district or regional plan. A resource consent may be granted with a set of conditions that need to be complied with to mitigate any adverse environmental effects.

The purpose of the Resource Management Act 1991 is to promote the sustainable management of natural and physical resources. Sustainable management mean managing the use, development, and protection of natural and physical resources to enable people and communities to provide for their social, economic, and cultural well-being and for their health and safety while:

(a) sustaining the potential of natural and physical resources to meet the reasonably foreseeable needs of future generations; and

(b) safeguarding the life-supporting capacity of air, water, soil, and ecosystems; and

(c) avoiding, remedying, or mitigating any adverse effects of activities on the environment.

A restricted discretionary activity is an activity that is required to have a resource consent and where the territorial authority may grant a resource consent with conditions, or deny a resource consent, but only when decided on specific matters set out in the District Plan or Regional Plan.

A right of way easement conveys a right to use another landowner’s land for access purposes.

The right of way easement is registered against the record of title to that land. The rights and obligations associated with the right of way are documented in an easement certificate and governed by the Land Transfer Regulations. The party gaining the benefit of the right of way may pass over that land on foot or by vehicle, but may not obstruct the right of way in any way. Similarly, the landowner providing the right of way cannot restrict access or cause an obstruction to the right of way.

A scheme plan is prepared as part of a resource consent application for subdivision as a visual representation of the proposed subdivision layout. A scheme plan will include the location of new boundaries, the dimensions and areas for the proposed lots, and any other pictorial information that will assist the territorial authority to understand the proposed subdivision and its compliance with the district plan rules.

A certificate issued by a territorial authority under section 223 of the Resource Management Act 1991 is required prior to approval of a survey plan by Land Information New Zealand. The territorial authority will approve a survey plan where a subdivision consent has been obtained, and the survey plan conforms with the subdivision consent.

A certificate issued by a territorial authority under section 224(c) of the Resource Management Act 1991 is required prior to deposit of a survey plan by the Registrar General of Land and prior to new records of title being issued. The certificate will state that the survey plan has been approved under section 223 and all the conditions of the subdivision consent have been complied with to the satisfaction of the territorial authority.

A certificate issued by a territorial authority under section s348 of the Local Government Act 1974 is required when a property owner wishes to create a right of way over land and there is no subdivision being undertaken. The territorial authority may impose conditions in relation to the right of way. The section 348 certificate and a survey plan must be submitted to Land Information New Zealand to allow the right of way easement to be registered against the land.

Subdivision is the process of dividing a parcel of land or a building into one or more further parts or changing an existing boundary location. Subdivision creates separate and saleable land titles that define the existing interests in the land (including buildings) and may impose limitations on the landowner or occupier on how the land can be used or developed. Subdivision can only be carried out if expressly allowed by a rule in a District Plan or a resource consent.

A survey office plan is a cadastral survey dataset that is not prepared for the purposes of the Land Transfer Act 1952 and does not create new interests in land. A survey office plan may relate to a survey for the acquisition or disposal of Crown land, a survey of existing property boundaries, or a survey of information not related to property boundaries. A survey office plan is identified by the SO prefix and a number, e.g. SO 432017.

A territorial authority is a city council or district council responsible for the sustainable management of the city or district, the health and safety of people and the environment, the provision of infrastructure, and the control of any adverse effects of land use.

A topographical survey is an accurate 3-dimensional representation of existing ground levels and contours as wells as physical features, buildings and services upon and sometimes under the land. A topographical survey is typically translated into a digital or hard-copy format as a basis for design and land development.

Unit Title subdivision is where more than one dwelling or building is built on land, with a single record of title and separate ownership is required for each dwelling or building. This includes multi-storey developments, and the unit title allows for ownership to be defined in three dimensions. A Unit Title is made up of two components: ownership of an individual unit and an undivided share in the ownership of the common property. Unit Title subdivision is controlled by the Unit Titles Act 2010.