Accelerated Overseas Investment Decisions Boost New Zealand Business Growth and Job Creation

Associate Finance Minister David Seymour says overseas investment decisions being made more than twice as fast is a vital ingredient for businesses seeking capital to create jobs and pay higher wages.

New Zealanders are paying the price for having one of the most restrictive overseas investment laws in the developed world – it’s resulted in less growth, fewer jobs, lower productivity, and stagnant wages, says Mr Seymour.

We’re fixing that by changing the Overseas Investment Act and making sure businesses can get quicker access to desperately needed capital.

Last year I issued a Ministerial directive letter setting out my expectations for faster consent processing timeframes under the Overseas Investment Act. The letter set my expectation that LINZ, the regulator for the Act, will process 80 per cent of consent applications in half the statutory timeframes for decisions.

In the 12 months to 31 August: LINZ has processed almost 87 per cent of consent applications in half the statutory timeframe Processing times are 62 per cent faster than in financial year 2024. The average timeframe has reduced from 71 working days to less than 27 working days.

The improvements to processing times are largely owed to the new risk-based approach LINZ take to verifying information and streamlining consent processes. This recognises that the majority of consent applications are low-risk and should be processed more efficiently, says Mr Seymour.

By making an important government service more efficient, we’re getting better outcomes for New Zealanders.

Also in the 12 months to 31 August, there were 131 applications for overseas investment, up from 122 between 1 July 2024 to 19 June 2025 (both figures exclude ‘only home to live in’ applications).

Long waiting times for applications create uncertainty and reduce the attractiveness of investing in New Zealand. This impacts the New Zealand businesses that rely on overseas investment for capital.

Since delegating most decision-making to LINZ and directing officials to focus on realising the benefits of overseas investment, there has been a significant improvement in processing times.

Feedback from investors has been overwhelmingly positive, and they have welcomed the changes to make the application process more efficient, while still giving the right level of scrutiny to high-risk transactions.

LINZ still has the full statutory timeframe to process 20 per cent of consent applications, which will allow them to manage complex and higher-risk applications.

The Overseas Investment (National Interest Test and Other Matters) Amendment Bill, currently at select committee, will consolidate and simplify the screening process for less sensitive assets, introducing a modified national interest test that will enable the regulator to triage low-risk transactions, replacing the existing benefit to New Zealand test and investor test. If a national interest risk is identified, the regulator and relevant Minister will have a range of tools to manage this, including through imposing conditions or blocking the transaction.

The current screening requirements will stay in place for investments in farmland and fishing quota.

For all investments aside from residential land, farmland and fishing quota, decisions must be made in 15 days, unless the application could be contrary to New Zealand’s national interest. In contrast, the current timeframe in the Regulations for the benefit test is 70 days, and the average time taken for decisions to be made is 30 days for this test, says Mr Seymour.

New Zealand has been turning away opportunities for growth for too long. International investment is critical to ensuring economic growth. It provides access to capital and technology that grows New Zealand businesses, enhances productivity, and supports high paying jobs.