By Steve Leadbetter (Solicitor – CS Law)
If you have recently received a resident visa to live in New Zealand, but are not yet a NZ citizen, it is important to understand the rules around purchasing property in this country.
With the exception of citizens or permanent residents of Australia or Singapore, anyone who is not a NZ citizen and is intending to buy residential property must either be “ordinarily resident in NZ”, or be purchasing property with a spouse or partner who is ordinarily resident in NZ, or first obtain consent from the Overseas Investment Office (OIO).
So what does it mean to be an ordinary resident in NZ?
The OIO sets out four requirements that each must be met if you are to be considered ordinarily resident.