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Trade and Industry Department The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
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Commercial Information Circulars

24-hour hotline : 23 922 922

e-mail address : enquiry@tid.gov.hk

Ref : EIC 895/1

29 June 2021

Dear Sirs,

Commercial Information Circular No. 442/2021

Textiles Trader Registration Circular No. 5/2021

New Zealand : Reform of the Overseas Investment Act

Further to Commercial Information Circular No. 658/2020 cum Textiles Trader Registration Circular No.10/2020 of 31 August 2020 in relation to New Zealand's undergoing reforms on the Overseas Investment Act 2005, this circular provides further updates on New Zealand's overseas investment regime for the trade's information.

DETAILS

2.In June 2020, arising from the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, the New Zealand Government introduced the temporary emergency notification measures by virtue of Overseas Investment (Urgent Measures) Amendment Act which required foreign investors to submit prior notification to the New Zealand Government. With the COVID-19 pandemic subsides, the temporary emergency notification measures have been replaced by a new national security and public order and call-in power with effect from 7 June 2021 focusing on a narrower range of overseas investment transactions that pose significant national security and public order risks, such as those involving the acquisition of military technology or critical national infrastructure. In addition, where notification is voluntary and the transaction is not notified by the investor, the transaction may still be called in for review by the New Zealand Government subsequently.

3.Meanwhile, certain trade facilitating streamlining measures will be introduced in the Overseas Investment Amendment Act 2021 following its entry into force on 5 July 2021. Major changes include exemption of lower risk transactions from the prior consent requirement and streamlining of test assessments for repeated investors.

4.For details of the changes to New Zealand's overseas investment regime, please refer to the Overseas Investment Office's website of the New Zealand Government at the following link (English only) - https://www.linz.govt.nz/guidance/overseas-investment.

ENQUIRIES

5.For enquiries concerning the content of this circular, please contact us at 2398 5594.

Yours faithfully,

(Miss Carmen Chan)
for Director-General of Trade and Industry

Note: While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the above information, the Department cannot guarantee this to be so and will not be held liable for any reliance placed on the same.