These regulations are made under section 360(1)(ba) and (bb) of the Resource Management Act 1991 on the advice and with the consent of the Executive Council.

1	Title
2	Commencement
3	Principal regulations
4	Schedule 1 replaced
5	Schedule 2 amended
6	Schedule 3 amended
	Schedule Schedule 1 replaced
	Explanatory note
	Administrative Information

Regulations

1 Title

These regulations are the Resource Management (Infringement Offences) Amendment Regulations 2025.

2 Commencement

These regulations come into force on 4 September 2025.

3 Principal regulations

These regulations amend the Resource Management (Infringement Offences) Regulations 1999.

4 Schedule 1 replaced

Replace Schedule 1 with the Schedule 1 set out in the Schedule of these regulations.

5 Schedule 2 amended

(1)

In Schedule 2, paragraph 3, replace the note with:

Note: If the court finds you guilty of the offence, the court may impose a penalty that is higher than the infringement fee and costs will be imposed in addition to any penalty.

(2)

In Schedule 2, paragraph 4, replace the note with:

Note: The court may impose a penalty that is higher than the infringement fee and costs will be imposed in addition to any penalty.

6 Schedule 3 amended

In Schedule 3, after paragraph 2(c), insert:

Note: If you request a hearing and the court finds you guilty of the offence, the court may impose a penalty that is higher than the infringement fee and costs will be imposed in addition to any penalty.

Schedule Schedule 1 replaced

r 4

Schedule 1 Infringement offences and fees

rr 2(1), 3

Offence specified as infringement offence	Description of offence	Infringement fee for offence (individual) ($)	Infringement fee for offence (company) ($)
Section 338(1)(a)	Contravention of section 9(1) and 9(2) (restrictions on use of land in a manner that contravenes a national environmental standard or regional rule)	1,500	3,000
	Contravention of section 9(3) and 9(4) (restrictions on use of land in a manner that contravenes a district rule, designation, or heritage order)	600	1,200
	Contravention of section 12 (restrictions on use of coastal marine area)	1,000	2,000
	Contravention of section 13 (restriction on certain uses of beds of lakes and rivers)	1,000	2,000
	Contravention of section 14 (restrictions relating to water)	1,000	2,000
	Contravention of  section 15(1)(a) and (b) (discharge of contaminants or water into water or discharge of contaminants onto or into land where contaminant is likely to enter water)	1,500	3,000
	Contravention of  section 15(1)(c) and (d) (discharge of contaminants into environment from industrial or trade premises)	2,000	4,000
	Contravention of  section 15(2) or (2A) (discharge of contaminant into air or onto or into land)	600	1,200
Section 338(1)(c)	Contravention of an abatement notice (other than a notice under section 322(1)(c))	2,000	4,000
Section 338(1)(d)	Contravention of a water shortage direction under section 329	2,000	4,000
Section 338(1A)	Contravention of  section 15A (dumping or incineration of waste or other matter in the coastal marine area)	1,500	3,000
Section 338(1B)	Contravention of section 15B(1) and (2) (discharge in the coastal marine area of harmful substances, contaminants, or water from a ship or an offshore installation)	1,500	3,000
Section 338(2)(a)	Contravention of section 22 (failure to give certain information to an enforcement officer)	1,000	2,000
Section 338(2)(c)	Contravention of an excessive noise direction under section 327	1,000	2,000
Section 338(2)(d)	Contravention of an abatement notice for unreasonable noise under section 322(1)(c)	1,500	3,000

Rachel Hayward,
Clerk of the Executive Council.

Explanatory note

This note is not part of the regulations but is intended to indicate their general effect.

These regulations, which come into force on 4 September 2025, amend the Resource Management (Infringement Offences) Regulations 1999 (the principal regulations) as follows:

increasing the infringement fees in Schedule 1 of the principal regulations. This is as a result of the Resource Management Amendment Act 2020, which increased the maximum infringement fees available under the Resource Management Act 1991 (the principal Act). The previous infringement fees were outdated and too low to provide an effective deterrent to non-compliance:
separating out the infringement fees to distinguish between individuals and companies:
separating out the infringement fees in relation to contraventions of section 9 of the principal Act:
extending the description of the offence under section 338(1A) of the principal Act to include contraventions of all of section 15A of the principal Act (previously it only extended to contraventions of section 15A(1)(a)):
clarifying in Schedules 2 and 3 that those who seek a hearing to contest an infringement notice may be liable for a higher penalty than the listed infringement fee. This is because the court has jurisdiction to impose a fine if the person contesting the infringement notice is still found to be liable.

Regulatory impact statement

The Ministry for the Environment produced a regulatory impact statement on 16 August 2023 to help inform the decisions taken by the Government relating to the contents of this instrument.

A copy of this regulatory impact statement can be found at—

Issued under the authority of the Legislation Act 2019.

Date of notification in Gazette: 7 August 2025.

These regulations are administered by the Ministry for the Environment.

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Resource Management (Infringement Offences) Amendment Regulations 2025