Office of the Privacy Commissioner | New guidance gives agencies’ confidence about how Privacy Act works
Ask a lawyer a privacy question and you’ll often hear, “it depends”, because New Zealand’s Privacy Act is based on principles; it has nuance.
However, most New Zealand agencies need something more to rely on, which is why we write guidance. It’s a road map for doing privacy well.
Privacy Commissioner Michael Webster says, “This year we had a real push on information sharing guidance; for example, making sure people working in agencies that protect children know and are confident about what they can share and how to ensure the wellbeing and safety of children.
“Privacy is often given as a reason for not sharing information.
“It’s important for people working in child protection to be confident that there is no legislative barrier to information sharing where there is a wellbeing or safety concern for a child.
“Clear guidance helps people understand that a child’s wellbeing and safety comes first,” says Mr Webster.
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner also helped clarify new privacy rules about indirect collection (IPP3A) by developing detailed guidance, webinars for specific sectors, and video information.
“Doing privacy well is crucial for ensuring New Zealanders’ personal information is handled with care.
“By writing plain language guidance my Office can help support the implementation of legislative and regulatory privacy initiatives,” says the Privacy Commissioner. “We want New Zealand businesses to succeed while doing privacy well.”
Guidance developed in the 2025/6 includes:
- Information sharing for the wellbeing and safety of children and young people
- Privacy guidance for the education sector
- Using biometrics legally
- IPP3A: collection of information from another source
- Health Information Privacy Code Rule 3A
- Privacy statement, notice or policy? What's the difference?