Part 1
Jurisdiction

5 Application of Act

(1) This Act applies to all offences for which the offender may be proceeded against and tried in New Zealand.

(2) This Act applies to all acts done or omitted in New Zealand.


6 Persons not to be tried in respect of things done outside New Zealand

Subject to the provisions of section 7, no act done or omitted outside New Zealand is an offence, unless it is an offence by virtue of any provision of this Act or of any other enactment.


7 Place of commission of offence

For the purpose of jurisdiction, where any act or omission forming part of any offence, or any event necessary to the completion of any offence, occurs in New Zealand, the offence shall be deemed to be committed in New Zealand, whether the person charged with the offence was in New Zealand or not at the time of the act, omission, or event.


7A Extraterritorial jurisdiction in respect of certain offences with transnational aspects

(1) Even if the acts or omissions alleged to constitute the offence occurred wholly outside New Zealand, proceedings may be brought for any offence against this Act committed in the course of carrying out a terrorist act (as defined in section 5(1) of the Terrorism Suppression Act 2002) or an offence against section 98AA, section 98A, section 98C, section 98D, any of sections 100 to 104, section 105(2), section 116, section 117, section 243, section 298A, or section 298B—

(a) if the person to be charged—
(i) is a New Zealand citizen; or
(ii) is ordinarily resident in New Zealand; or
(iii) has been found in New Zealand and has not been extradited; or
(iv) is a body corporate, or a corporation sole, incorp¬orated under the law of New Zealand; or

(b) if any of the acts or omissions is alleged to have occurred—
(i) on board a ship registered or required to be registered under the Ship Registration Act 1992; or
(ii) on board a ship used as a ship of the New Zealand Defence Force; or
(iii) on board a New Zealand aircraft; or
(iv) on board an aircraft that is leased to a lessee whose principal place of business is in New Zealand, or who is a New Zealand citizen or a person ordinarily resident in New Zealand; or

(c) if a person in respect of whom the offence is alleged to have been committed—
(i) is a New Zealand citizen; or
(ii) is ordinarily resident in New Zealand; or

(d) in the case of an offence against section 98A, if the group of people with or in which the person to be charged is alleged to have participated are alleged to have as their objective or one of their objectives the obtaining of material benefits by the commission in New Zealand of offences or conduct referred to in paragraph (a) or paragraph (b) of section 98A(2).

(2) Even if the acts or omissions alleged to constitute the offence occurred wholly outside New Zealand, proceedings may be brought for an offence against section 98C or section 98D,—

(a) in the case of an offence against section 98C(1) or section 98D, if the act or omission is alleged to relate to the entry of a person into New Zealand; or

(b) in the case of an offence against section 98C(2), if the act or omission is alleged to relate to arranging the bringing of a person to New Zealand.

(2A) Even if some or all of the acts alleged to constitute the offence occurred wholly outside New Zealand, proceedings may be brought for an offence against section 13 1B—

(a) if the person to be charged—
(i) is a New Zealand citizen; or
(ii) is ordinarily resident in New Zealand; or
(iii) has been found in New Zealand and has not been extradited; or

(b) if any of the acts is alleged to have occurred—
(i) on board a ship registered or required to be registered under the Ship Registration Act 1992; or
(ii) on board a ship used as a ship of the New Zealand Defence Force; or
(iii) on board a New Zealand aircraft; or
(iv) on board an aircraft that is leased to a lessee whose principal place of business is in New Zealand, or who is a New Zealand citizen or a person ordinarily resident in New Zealand; or

(c) if a person in respect of whom the offence is alleged to have been committed—
(i) is a New Zealand citizen; or
(ii) is ordinarily resident in New Zealand.

(3) Neither section 8 nor section 400 applies to an offence referred to in subsection (1).

(4) Nothing in subsections (1) to (3) limits or affects—

(a) the application of section 7 to the occurrence in New Zealand of—
(i) an act or omission forming part of an offence; or
(ii) an event necessary to the completion of an of-fence; or

(b) the application of section 8A.


7B Attorney-General’s consent required where jurisdiction claimed under section 7A

(1) Proceedings for an offence against section 98AA, section 98A, section 116, section 117, section 243, section 298A, or sec-tion 298B cannot be brought in a New Zealand court against a
person without the Attorney-General’s consent, if jurisdiction over the person is claimed by virtue of section 7A.

(2) A person over whom jurisdiction is claimed by virtue of sec-tion 7A may be arrested for an offence against section 98AA, section 98A, section 116, section 117, or section 243, or a war¬rant for the person’s arrest for the offence may be issued and executed, and the person may be remanded in custody or on bail, even though the Attorney-General’s consent to the bring¬ing of proceedings against the person has not been obtained.

(3) Proceedings for an offence against this Act committed in the course of carrying out a terrorist act (as defined in section 5(1) of the Terrorism Suppression Act 2002) cannot be brought in a New Zealand court against a person without the Attorney-General’s consent, if jurisdiction over the person is claimed solely by virtue of section 7A.


8 Jurisdiction in respect of crimes on ships or aircraft beyond New Zealand

(1) This section applies to any act done or omitted beyond New Zealand by any person—

(a) on board any Commonwealth ship; or

(b) on board any New Zealand aircraft; or

(c) on board any ship or aircraft, if that person arrives in New Zealand on that ship or aircraft in the course or at the end of a journey during which the act was done or omitted; or

(d) being a British subject, on board any foreign ship (not being a ship to which he belongs) on the high seas, or on board any such ship within the territorial waters of any Commonwealth country; or

(e) being a New Zealand citizen or a person ordinarily resident in New Zealand, on board any aircraft:

provided that paragraph (c) shall not apply where the act was done or omitted by a person, not being a British subject, on any ship or aircraft for the time being used as a ship or aircraft of any of the armed forces of a country that is not a Common-wealth country.

(2) If a person does or omits to do any act to which this section applies, and that act or omission would, if it occurred within New Zealand, be an offence, under this Act or any other enactment (whether that enactment was passed before or after the commencement of this Act), punishable by imprisonment for life or by 2 or more years’ imprisonment, then, subject to the provisions of this Act and that other enactment, the person is liable on conviction as if the act or omission had occurred in New Zealand.

(2A) If any proceedings are taken by virtue of the jurisdiction conferred by this section, it is a defence to prove that the act or omission would not have been an offence under the law of the country of which the person charged was a national or citizen at the time of the act or omission, if it had occurred in that country.

(3) Where at any place beyond New Zealand any person who belongs, or within 3 months previously has belonged, to any Commonwealth ship does or omits any act, whether on shore or afloat, not being an act or omission to which subsection (1) applies, and that act or omission would, if it occurred within New Zealand, be an offence punishable by imprisonment for life or by 2 or more years’ imprisonment, then this section shall apply in respect of that act or omission in the same manner in all respects as if it had occurred on board a Commonwealth ship.

(4) The provisions of this section shall have the same operation in relation to the Republic of Ireland and to the citizens thereof, and to ships registered therein or belonging thereto, and to persons who belong or have belonged to those ships, and to all other persons on board those ships, as if the Republic of Ireland were a Commonwealth country and as if the citizens thereof were British subjects.

(5) This section shall be read subject to the provisions of section 400.

(6) In this section, the expression British subject includes a British protected person within the meaning of the British Nationality and Citizenship Act 1948.

(7) Nothing in this section shall apply with respect to any offence against the Maritime Transport Act 1994 or Part 5A of the Civil Aviation Act 1990.

8A Jurisdiction in respect of certain persons with diplomatic or consular immunity

(1) This section applies to every person who is—

(a) a head of mission or head of post within the meaning of the Foreign Affairs Act 1988; or

(b) a person who is on overseas service pursuant to section 6 of the Foreign Affairs Act 1988; or

(c) a New Zealand citizen ordinarily resident in New Zealand and who is—
(i) a member of the family of a person described in paragraph (a) or paragraph (b); or
(ii) a member of the staff of a New Zealand overseas post or a New Zealand overseas mission, whether or not an officer or employee of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade or a person employed under section 10 of the Foreign Affairs Act 1988; or
(iii) an officer or employee of the State services (as defined in section 2(1) of the State Sector Act 1988), or of New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (as established by the New Zealand Trade and Enterprise Act 2003), who is serving in a New Zealand overseas post or a New Zealand overseas mission.

(2) Where—

(a) any person to whom this section applies does, or omits to do, any act outside New Zealand (whether or not the act or omission concerned constitutes an offence under the laws in force in the place where it took place) that, if done or omitted within New Zealand would constitute an offence punishable by imprisonment for 1 year or more; and

(b) that person has immunity from criminal jurisdiction in the place where that act or omission took place; and

(c) that immunity has not been waived (otherwise than to any extent necessary to enable the extradition of that person),—

that act or omission shall be deemed to have taken place within New Zealand.

(3) No charging document may be filed against any person over whom jurisdiction is claimed by virtue of subsection (2) with¬out the leave of the Attorney-General.

(4) Subsection (5) applies to any offence before a charging document may be filed in respect of which the consent of the Attorney-General is required by subsection (3).

(5) Where any person is alleged to have committed an offence to which this subsection applies,—

(a) he may be arrested; or

(b) a warrant for his arrest may be issued and executed,— and he may be remanded in custody or on bail, notwithstanding that the consent of the Attorney-General has not been obtained to the filing of a charging document in respect of that offence;

but no further proceedings shall be taken until that consent has been obtained.