Steps to set up a Māori land trust
Submit your application
To put Māori land into a trust, you'll need to get agreement from the other owners and apply to the Māori Land Court.
After the hui, you'll be ready to make an application to the Māori Land Court, as long as you've got general agreement on:
- creating a trust
- who you want to nominate as trustees
- the terms of the trust order.
The application can be made by any of the landowners or by someone nominated for this at the owners’ meeting.
For the application, you will need:
-
An application form
For an ahu whenua trust, use:
Form 37 – Application to constitute an Ahu Whenua Trust [PDF 102 KB]
For other trusts or an incorporation, use:
Form 1 – General form of application [PDF 122 KB]
If you're creating a whānau trust, you'll need to use:
Form 36 – Application to constitute a Whānau Trust (non succession) [PDF 98 KB]
-
Proof of notice
You'll need to include documentation which shows that proper notice was given for the hui to get agreement on creating a trust, for example an image of the social media post or a copy of the newspaper ad.
You can also provide information in the application form about how you gave notice, if you don't have physical proof.
Meeting of Owners – Newspaper advertisement template [DOCX 33KB]
-
Meeting minutes
Provide a copy of the minutes of the meeting(s) where owners:
- agreed to the creation of a trust
- nominated (responsible) trustees
- agreed terms of the trust.
Information from the Māori Land Court about what minutes must include
-
Register of attendees at hui
If the list of hui attendees is long, you can add it to the minutes as a separate document.
-
Trust order
Include a copy of the draft trust order that was developed with owners and agreed at your hui.
-
Proposed trustee consent documents
To create a trust (or incorporation) you need to supply consents from properly nominated trustees for the new trust or members for the committee of management of the incorporation.
Document B1 – Consent to be appointed as trustee [PDF 124KB]
-
Proposed trustee CVs
The Māori Land Court need to see that proposed trustees have the skills to work in governance. A CV should outline work experience and/or other relevant skills, knowledge, training or experience.
Lodging the forms
When you've got all the information together you can file your completed application with the registrar at the Māori Land Court office closest to your whenua.
You'll also need to pay the filing fee of $60 for a trust application or $200 for an incorporation.
You can lodge the application in person or by post, or contact the Māori Land Court if you would prefer to do it online.
