NZ Customs Release

A joint Police and Customs operation has disrupted an estimated $80 million cocaine importation, with five arrests made. The seizure weighed in at 250 kilograms.

Four men were arrested in the Auckland region. Following the arrests, investigators executed six search warrants across Auckland.

At an address Police searched, four high powered firearms were located and seized, and a fifth man was arrested.

The New Zealand-India Free Trade Agreement (FTA) entered into?force on 20 October 2026.

India's dynamic and fast-growing market offers significant opportunities for export growth and diversification for New Zealand companies.?

The FTA will deliver preferential access for exporters to the large and fast-growing Indian market for 95% of our current exports over time.

New Zealand importers claiming preferential tariff treatment under the FTA must obtain a Certificate of Origin (CoO) issued by an authorised body in India. The CoO should be obtained prior to claiming preference and must be retained after the import entry is submitted.

The CoO must be provided to New Zealand Customs upon request, to support the preference claim and demonstrate that the goods meet applicable origin requirements. The requirements around CoO can be found in reg 51ZZP of the Customs and Excise Regulations 1996 and Chapter 3 of the FTA.
 

The Comptroller of Customs has set the duration and rates for the next levy period for Customs' Border Processing Levy.

The new levy rates will apply from 1 July 2027 to 30 June 2030 unless a decision is made to conduct a full review of the levy. Such a move would be a decision for the Minister of Customs to make and would require full public consultation. The earliest any amendments could be made would be July 2028. 

Customs reminds exporters claiming drawback on alcohol and tobacco products that entries must be complete and supported by sufficient records.

Information required

Regulation 68(1)(b) of the Customs and Excise Regulations 1996 requires the entry to identify the "kind, number, and date of the entry on which duty was paid". Without supporting information, such as invoices, claims may be delayed or declined.

Evidence of duty paid

Keep records linking the exported goods, duty-paid entry, duty paid and amount claimed. A domestic invoice alone may not suffice, as alcohol and tobacco duty rates change.

Periodic drawback claims must meet approval conditions and regulation 68A.

Export entries must be accurate

Erroneous entries or information may constitute an offence under the Customs and Excise Act 2018, and overpaid drawback may be recovered with compensatory interest.

For further information, see the drawback guidance on Customs' website.

Join ExportNZ and the Christchurch Business Club to hear from three of New Zealand's leading negotiators speak to Canterbury exporters and businesses.

New guidance and a supporting template are now available to help food importers carry out and document safety and suitability assessments before importing food into New Zealand.

The guidance provides an overview of safety and suitability assessments and a general approach to carrying them out. The template is designed to be used when recording assessment outcomes and supporting information.

The guidance and template will help importers to:

• understand how to carry out a safety and suitability assessment
• assess whether imported food is safe and suitable
• document assessment outcomes and supporting information.