Patch 2026.03

March 2026 proposals

This month’s proposed laws would change taxes, holidays, benefits, alcohol and online gambling, police information-gathering, deportation, surrogacy, and retail trespass rules.

• Proposal to change tax rules — Would set annual tax rates and simplify some tax compliance requirements.
• Proposal to replace leave rules — Would replace the Holidays Act with a new system for earning, taking, and being paid for employee leave.
• Proposal to expand police information gathering — Would reaffirm police powers to record images and sounds in public places and collect and use information for lawful purposes.
• Proposal to simplify surrogacy arrangements — Would simplify surrogacy arrangements, help enforce them, and make birth certificate information more complete.
• Proposal to extend retail trespass warnings — Would let specified businesses issue trespass warnings for up to three years and across multiple locations.
• Proposal to change online casino rules — Would change rules for online casino gambling.
• Proposal to update social security rules — Would make minor policy and technical changes to superannuation, social security, veterans’ support, and family home ownership rules.
• Proposal to extend visa deportation powers — Would extend residence visa holders’ deportation liability after offending from 10 years to 20 years and cover lower-level offending more often.
• Proposal to change alcohol licensing rules — Would change who can object to alcohol licences and how licences are renewed, while allowing some new alcohol sales.
• Proposal to change holiday alcohol sales — Would change the rules for selling alcohol on Anzac Day morning, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, and Christmas Day.
• Proposal to change benefit income calculations — Would change rules for calculating weekly income involving social security and accident compensation.
• Proposal to reduce Auckland housing targets — Would reduce Auckland’s required housing capacity and change how Auckland Council plans for future development.
• Proposal to let plumbers self-certify work — Would let qualified plumbers and drainlayers self-certify some lower-risk work instead of having an inspection.
• Proposal to strengthen building licences — Would strengthen complaints, discipline, training, ethics, and licence renewal rules for several building trades.
• Proposal to change prison management — Would create rules for managing extremely high-risk prisoners, while requiring meaningful human contact and banning prolonged solitary confinement.
• Proposal to change fisheries management — Would make fisheries management more flexible and let commercial fishers return quota species when cameras or observers monitor them.
• Proposal to change Auckland transport decisions — Would give elected Auckland representatives a bigger role in transport decisions and improve long-term planning with central government.
• Proposal to improve abuse-in-care redress — Would create a clearer system for State agencies to handle redress claims from people abused in care.
• Proposal to close greyhound racing — Would end commercial greyhound racing from 1 August 2026 and support affected people and greyhounds during the closure.
• Proposal to change electoral boundary reviews — It would link electoral boundary reviews to every second general election from 2030, instead of to censuses.
• Proposal for annual census data — It would publish census data each year and move the next census from 2028 to 2030.
• Proposal to reform Commerce Commission — It would change the Commerce Commission’s governance, decision-making and responsibilities so it could work more efficiently.
• Proposal to change several laws — Would make changes across legislation, but the title does not show which everyday activities would be affected.
• Proposal to change public finance rules — Would change public finance rules, with no specific everyday effect clear from the title.
• Proposal to settle Ngāti Rāhiri Tumutumu claims — Would put parts of a Treaty settlement with Ngāti Rāhiri Tumutumu into law, including cultural and commercial redress.
• Proposal to confirm government spending — Would confirm certain changes to approved government spending and validate spending that lacked parliamentary approval.
• Proposal to settle Ngāti Ruapani claims — Would put parts of a Treaty settlement with Ngāti Ruapani mai Waikaremoana into law, including agreed redress.