Purpose of a bond

The bond is money held by Tenancy Services that could cover:

• damage to the property
• any claim(s) relating to the tenancy
• unpaid rent.

Tenants who have looked after the house, paid rent in full, and paid any amounts owing should get a refund of their bond when the tenancy ends.

Rent arrears and overdue rent

Start of the tenancy

• Landlords can charge up to 4 weeks’ rent as bond.
• If a landlord charges a bond for any tenancy, they must lodge it. This includes service tenancies and bonds paid by the Ministry of Social Development.
• In a boarding house tenancy, if the bond is 1 week’s rent or less it doesn’t have to be lodged.

Types of tenancies

• Landlords who charge a bond must lodge it digitally with Tenancy Services. They must give tenant’s a receipt. The bond must be lodged within 23 working days of receiving a full or part payment.
• Other forms of security are not allowed, but a landlord may ask a tenant for a guarantor.

Charging a bond

Changes to bond information during a tenancy

If your bond information changes, you must update Tenancy Services and inform the other party. An accurate bond record allows for a faster refund at the end of the tenancy.

• If a tenant named on the bond moves out, or a new tenant paying bond moves in and joins an existing tenancy, there are 2 forms that need to be completed.

Changing information on a bond record

If a landlord changes or an agent is appointed, you will need to complete 1 of 2 forms – depending on whether it’s a permanent or temporary change.

Change of landlord 

• Send your bond forms to bonds@tenancy.govt.nz. You must also update us if your contact details or the property details change (you can email or call 0800 836 262).

If rent is increased, a landlord may ask for additional bond.

• The landlord must lodge the additional bond received from tenants using our Bond lodgement tool - ‘Top up an existing bond’
• The top up can only be for the value of the rent increase, multiplied by the number of weeks bond collected at the start of the tenancy.
• The top-up must be lodged digitally within 23 working days of receiving a full or part payment

Lodge your bond(external link)

If a landlord plans to leave New Zealand for more than 21 consecutive days, they must appoint an agent.

• The landlord must let the tenants know how to contact the agent if there are issues at the property.
• The landlord and agent must also complete and sign a ‘landlord/agent contact’ form and send this to bonds@tenancy.govt.nz.

End of the tenancy

Complete in full and sign the bond refund form after the final inspection.

The process of getting your bond refunded depends on when the bond was lodged. Find out about the process of Refunding bond

Refunding a bond

The way you complete a bond transfer has changed. If you are a tenant starting a new tenancy and would like to have your current bond paid to your new landlord, you can indicate this when you fill out a bond refund form. Talk to your new landlord first to check they agree.