How to search the Incorporated Societies Register

What you can search for

Information available on the register for an incorporated society includes its:

• Name
• Incorporation number
• New Zealand Business Number (NZBN)
• Status — Either ‘Registered’, ‘External Administration’ (for example, if a society is in liquidation), or ‘Dissolved/Removed’
• Date of incorporation
• Date of reregistration – but only if it has reregistered under the Incorporated Societies Act 2022 (2022 Act).
• Registered office address
• Officer details (where recorded)
  • Societies registered under the 2022 Act must record the details of every officer.
    • You can see each officer's name and start date (when they were either elected or appointed).
    • You will also see details of former officers.
  • For societies that were registered under the 1908 Act it was optional to record officer details on the register.
• Constitution or rules
• Annual financial statements and annual returns (only for societies that not registered as charities)
• Certificates of incorporation and amalgamation.

How to check whether a society reregistered

It is quick and easy to check whether a society reregistered under the Incorporated Societies Act 2022.

• Carry out a free search and look for the ‘Incorporated Societies Act’ marker on the ‘General Details’ screen.
• We will display ‘2022’ for any society that is registered under the 2022 Act.
• If it was an existing society that had reregistered, we will also show the date of reregistration.

Screenshot of a search result

Searching the register

To conduct a search, enter a society’s name, incorporation number or New Zealand Business Number (NZBN) into the search bar on the register’s homepage.

A ‘quick-search’ list of results will appear immediately, providing basic information for societies matching your search criteria, including society name, incorporation number, NZBN and current status and the Act they're registered under.

For a more detailed list of results, which includes addresses and incorporation date, click on ‘All results’ at the top right-hand corner of the page, or the ‘View more detailed results’ link at the bottom of the quick-search list of results.

Viewing details of a society

To view the publicly available information we hold for an incorporated society, click on its name in the search results list.

Accessing documents for a society

All public documents filed with us are available free of charge. These include:

• a copy of the society’s rules or constitution
• copies of the annual financial statements and annual returns
• change of address forms (if any)
• certificate of incorporation (includes reregistration date) and amalgamation (if applicable).

To access a society’s documents

1. Search for the incorporated society, as described above.
2. Click on the society’s name.
3. On the ‘View Details’ screen, click on the ‘Filings’ tab.
4. Choose from the list of documents by clicking the link.
5. Click on the document number to view, or export the document as a PDF.

Archived documents

All documents filed since April 2002 are available electronically. Prior to 2002, the last complete set of amended rules or trust deed variations are also available electronically.

Archived documents for incorporated societies that were declared dissolved prior to 31 Dec 2002 are available from Archives New Zealand. A search for any archived document can be made on the Archives New Zealand website.

If the records are not available electronically or through Archives New Zealand, the society should be approached directly for a copy.

Other guides in

Searching the Incorporated Societies Register

• Searching our other registers

Other help topics