How the new system will differ from the RMA

Find out what will be different and how the new planning system works.

The new planning system will still include plans, rules, consents, permits and opportunities for people to have a say. But it changes how the system works and where key decisions are made.

Two Acts instead of one

Under the RMA, decisions about land use, development, natural resources and environmental protection are made under a single law. The new planning system splits these responsibilities across two Acts:

  • The Planning Act, which covers how land is used and developed, including housing, infrastructure, towns and cities, rural areas, natural hazards, and planning rules for property and development.
  • The Natural Environment Act, which covers how natural resources are used, protected and improved. This includes setting environmental limits for freshwater, coastal water, air, land, soil and indigenous biodiversity.

Key features of the new system

The new planning system includes a range of changes that affect which activities need approval and how planning and environmental decisions are made.

Compared with the RMA, fewer activities are expected to need a consent, permit or designation where they meet the relevant rules. More issues are also expected to be addressed earlier through national direction, national standards and regional plans, so planning and consenting processes can focus on the matters that still need decisions.

This means the new system will work differently from the RMA in several ways, including:

  • allowing more activities to go ahead without a consent or permit when they meet the relevant rules
  • introducing environmental limits to guide how natural resources are managed
  • requiring councils to consider the impact of certain rules relating to how landowners can reasonably use their land when developing plans, and to provide relief where the impact is significant
  • requiring every region to develop a spatial plan for growth, infrastructure, natural hazards and environmental management
  • making greater use of national standards to ensure plans, rules and requirements are more consistent across the country
  • reducing the need to revisit matters already addressed through national direction and plans
  • creating a Planning Tribunal to provide a simpler and more cost-effective way to resolve specified disputes and accountability matters
  • making planning information easier to find, use and compare through improved digital tools and data systems
  • requiring ongoing monitoring and reporting on how the planning system is performing.

The new system will be introduced in stages. Some changes will happen during the transition period, while others will be introduced over time through national policy direction, national standards, regional combined plans and new digital tools.