The existing quake-prone building system will be reworked, Construction Minister Chris Penk announced. “The Government is removing the New Building Standard (NBS) ratings currently used by engineers to determine whether a property is earthquake-prone,” he told the media. He expects the new system to save New Zealanders more than $8.2 billion in remediation and demolition costs.
The NBS will be replaced with a risk-based system that targets buildings posing a genuine threat to human life and safety. Under the current system, even a minor defect in one part of a building can render the entire structure earthquake-prone, resulting in inconsistency and high costs. “This category includes concrete buildings three storeys or higher, and those constructed with unreinforced masonry.”
Penk said that Auckland, Northland and the Chatham Islands will be removed from the regime entirely to reflect the low seismic risk in those areas. Unreinforced masonry buildings under three storeys in small and rural towns will no longer require remediation or warning notices. Still, owners must secure the façade before the building can be removed from the earthquake-prone register, per the Construction Minister.
“For buildings that still require some remediation, the Government is removing the rule that owners must upgrade fire safety and disability access at the same time as earthquake strengthening,” Penk said. “This requirement can add significantly to building costs and has discouraged owners from carrying out essential seismic safety work.”
The new system comes after an independent review led by the MBIE. By focusing on genuine risk, the reforms aim to make seismic strengthening achievable, allowing building owners to plan and fund essential work while enabling communities, businesses, and cities to thrive.
ACT Party leader David Seymour, who voted against the law in 2016, says the new system is long overdue. “Today’s triumph of reason and logic over emotion and populism gives hope. It shows Kiwis can solve many more problems to boot; all we need is courage.”
Labour Party leader Chris Hipkins instead took the day to focus on the sector’s economic state. “Since National took office, 20,000 people have lost their jobs in construction, an industry that should be booming with work. Instead, Luxon’s stop-start approach has cost people their jobs and pushed them overseas to find work.”
The changes mark one of the most significant shifts to New Zealand’s seismic safety framework in nearly a decade. With billions in projected savings and a sharper focus on genuine risk, the Government hopes the revised system will ease financial pressure on owners while keeping the public safe.
The reforms have already sparked political debate, but their success will ultimately be measured by whether they restore confidence in the built environment and help communities retain the spaces that underpin local life.
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