New Zealand Acts

COMMERCE ACT 1986 - SECT 53ZE

53ZE Levies

1 Every supplier of regulated goods or services (or prescribed class of suppliers of regulated goods or services) must pay to the Minister the levy determined in accordance with regulations made under subsection (2).

2 The Governor-General may, by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the Minister, make regulations—

a) specifying the amount of levies, or method of calculating or ascertaining the amount of levies, on the basis that the estimated costs for an appropriation period of performing the Commission's functions, powers, and duties under this Part, and of collecting the levy money, should be met fully out of levies:

b) including, or providing for the inclusion, in levies of any shortfall in recovering those actual costs:

c) refunding, or providing for refunds of, any over-recovery of those actual costs:

d) providing different levies for different classes of suppliers or goods or services:

e) specifying the appropriation period or part appropriation period to which those levies apply, and applying to that appropriation period or part appropriation period and each subsequent appropriation period until revoked or replaced:

f) providing for the payment and collection of those levies:

g) for the first appropriation period to which the levy applies to a supplier or class of suppliers, including in the levy amount or method costs incurred by the Commission in connection with preparing itself to perform, and performing, its functions, powers, and duties under this Part, irrespective of the fact—

i) that the regulations are made and come into effect after that period; or

ii) that the goods or services become regulated after the costs were incurred (for example, costs incurred by the Commission in preparing input methodologies):

h) requiring payment of a levy for an appropriation period or a part appropriation period, irrespective of the fact that the regulations may be made after that appropriation period has commenced:

i) exempting or providing for exemptions from, and providing for waivers of, the whole or any part of the levy for any case or class of cases.

2A In subsection (2),
"appropriation period" , in relation to any estimated costs, means—

a) a financial year; or

b) if the estimated costs will be incurred under the authority of a multi-year appropriation or of a multi-year appropriation proposed in any Estimates, the financial years to which the multi-year appropriation applies.

2B In subsection (2A)(b),—  
"Estimates" —  

a) has the meaning given in section 2(1) of the Public Finance Act 1989 ; and

b) includes Supplementary Estimates as defined in section 2(1) of that Act

"multi-year appropriation" means an appropriation authorised to apply for more than 1 financial year (see section 10 of the Public Finance Act 1989 ).

3 The amount of any unpaid levy is recoverable in any court of competent jurisdiction as a debt due to the Crown.

4 The Minister must consult with the suppliers of regulated goods or services, or representatives of those suppliers, before making a recommendation for the purposes of subsection (2).

5 Regulations under this section are secondary legislation (see Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019 for publication requirements).

6 If regulations authorise a person to grant exemptions or waivers referred to in subsection (2)(i),—

a) an instrument granting an exemption or a waiver is secondary legislation (see Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019 for publication requirements), unless it applies only in a particular case; and

b) the regulations must contain a statement to that effect.

History: Section 53ZE: inserted, on 14 October 2008, by section 4 of the Commerce Amendment Act 2008 (2008 No 70).   Section 53ZE(2)(a): amended, on 1 July 2019, by section 10(1) of the Regulatory Systems (Commercial Matters) Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 12).     Section 53ZE(2)(e): amended, on 1 July 2019, by section 10(2) of the Regulatory Systems (Commercial Matters) Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 12).     Section 53ZE(2)(g): amended, on 1 July 2019, by section 10(3) of the Regulatory Systems (Commercial Matters) Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 12).     Section 53ZE(2)(g)(i): amended, on 1 July 2019, by section 10(4) of the Regulatory Systems (Commercial Matters) Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 12).     Section 53ZE(2)(h): amended, on 1 July 2019, by section 10(5) of the Regulatory Systems (Commercial Matters) Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 12).     Section 53ZE(2)(h): amended, on 1 July 2019, by section 10(6) of the Regulatory Systems (Commercial Matters) Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 12).     Section 53ZE(2A): inserted, on 1 July 2019, by section 10(7) of the Regulatory Systems (Commercial Matters) Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 12).     Section 53ZE(2B): inserted, on 1 July 2019, by section 10(7) of the Regulatory Systems (Commercial Matters) Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 12).     Section 53ZE(5): inserted, on 28 October 2021, by section 3 of the Secondary Legislation Act 2021 (2021 No 7).     Section 53ZE(6): inserted, on 28 October 2021, by regulation 43 of the Legislation Act (Amendments to Legislation) Regulations 2021 (LI 2021/247).