Who needs to do the census Me whakakī au i te tatauranga
A census form needs to be completed for every person who was in the country on Census Night, Tuesday 7 March 2023.
The census counts:
- all the people who are in Aotearoa New Zealand on the night of Tuesday 7 March 2023, whether they live here permanently or not
- all the dwellings in Aotearoa New Zealand that are occupied on the night of Tuesday 7 March 2023. Dwellings are the places where those people are living or staying.
That means:
- each dwelling that is occupied on census night needs to complete a Dwelling Form
- each person needs to complete an Individual Form, or have one completed on their behalf. For example, adults can fill out census forms for children or babies.
The census counts people: so an Individual Form must be completed for every person who was in Aotearoa New Zealand on census night
This includes:
- New Zealand citizens
- New Zealand permanent residents
- people staying in New Zealand for any reason.
This is a legal requirement under the Data and Statistics Act 2022.
- Call us to let us know that there was no one at your dwelling on census night.
- Start the online census form at www.census.govt.nz. You will be asked for a few details, and to complete a declaration to say there was no one at your dwelling on census night.
- If you usually live in Australia, but are in Aotearoa New Zealand on holiday on the night of Tuesday 7 March 2023, you need to do the census.
If you were not in Aotearoa New Zealand on the night of Tuesday 7 March 2023, you do not need to take part in the census, even though you usually live here.
If other people were in your dwelling, they would have been asked to add your name as someone who is usually at the dwelling, but who was not there on census night.
What if I was in Aotearoa New Zealand when I received my census pack, but everyone in my dwelling was overseas on census night?
To make sure we do not follow up with you, you can do one of the following.
You need to take part in the census, even though you do not usually live here.
Example
The census counts the places where people live or stay (dwellings): so a Dwelling Form must be completed for every dwelling in Aotearoa New Zealand that was occupied on census night
Dwellings are the places people live or stay. They can be private dwellings, or non-private dwellings.
- Private dwellings are places where households live. Common types of private dwellings are houses, townhouses, flats, units, and apartments.
- Non-private dwellings include places like hotels, hostels, hospitals, and retirement homes. They are places that provide temporary or communal accommodation.
- One person in your dwelling needs to complete a Dwelling Form for your dwelling.
- Every person who stayed in your dwelling on Census Night (Tuesday, 7 March 2023) needs to complete an Individual Form, or have one completed on their behalf.
- Every person in your accommodation needs to complete an Individual Form.
- You will not need to complete a Dwelling Form. The person in charge of the non-private dwelling will complete this.
If you did not get a census letter or paper forms, please contact us. It is important for you and your communities that you are counted in the census.
The person in charge of the non-private dwelling (for example, a hotel manager) should have given you what you need to do the census.
If the person in charge did not give you census materials on census day, please contact us. It is important for you and your communities that you are counted in the census.
The census counts people and dwellings in Aotearoa New Zealand. What counts as “Aotearoa New Zealand”?
For the purposes of the census, Aotearoa New Zealand includes all islands and waters within the Realm of New Zealand (excluding Tokelau, the Ross Dependency, and the self-governing states of the Cook Islands and Niue).
This means that people who were on boats or ships in New Zealand waters on the night of Tuesday 7 March 2023 need to do the census, as well as everyone on land.