Business
Companies Act 1997 with IPA registration and landowner consent issues
The Companies Act 1997, modelled on New Zealand's 1993 Act, is administered by the Investment Promotion Authority. Foreign enterprises must be certified by the IPA before carrying on business.
Key rules
- Deadline — A foreign enterprise must hold IPA certification before commencing business
- Deadline — Annual returns are filed with the Registrar of Companies
Governing law
- Companies Act 1997 (s. 16)
- Investment Promotion Act 1992 (s. 25)
- Business Groups Incorporation Act 1974
- Independent Consumer and Competition Commission Act 2002
In practice
Incorporation itself is quick and follows the New Zealand template, including the solvency test for distributions. The real friction for resource and agribusiness projects lies elsewhere: activities on the reserved list are closed to foreign enterprise, and any project touching land will engage customary landowner consent and benefit-sharing, which is where deals most often stall or unravel. The Business Groups Incorporation Act allows customary groups to incorporate so they can hold and contract over interests — a mechanism with no real equivalent in Australia or New Zealand and essential to understand for landowner-facing transactions.