This dataset is the definitive version of the annually released regional council boundaries for 2020 as defined by the regional councils and/or Local Government Commission, and maintained by Stats NZ (the custodian). This version contains 17 categories.

The regional council is the top tier of local government in New Zealand. There are 16 regional councils in New Zealand (defined by Part 1 of Schedule 2 of the Local Government Act 2002). Eleven are governed by an elected regional council, while five are governed by territorial authorities (the second tier of local government), who also perform the functions of a regional council and are known as unitary authorities.

Auckland Council unitary authority was formed in 2010, under the Local Government (Tamaki Makarau Reorganisation) Act 2009, replacing the Auckland Regional Council and seven territorial authorities.The seaward boundary of any coastal regional council is the twelve-mile New Zealand territorial limit. Regional councils are defined at meshblock and statistical area 2

Names are provided with and without tohutō/macrons. The name field without macrons is suffixed ‘ascii’.

This generalised version has been simplified for rapid drawing and is designed for thematic or web mapping purposes.

Digital boundary data became freely available on 1 July 2007.

This dataset is the definitive set of the annually released regional council boundaries for 2022 as defined by the regional councils and/or Local Government Commission and maintained by Stats NZ (the custodian), clipped to coastline. This clipped version has been created for map creation/cartographic purposes and so does not fully represent the official full extent boundaries.

The regional council is the top tier of local government in New Zealand. There are 16 regional councils in New Zealand (defined by Part 1 of Schedule 2 of the Local Government Act 2002). Eleven are governed by an elected regional council, while five are governed by territorial authorities (the second tier of local government), who also perform the functions of a regional council and are known as unitary authorities.

These unitary authorities are Auckland Council, Nelson City Council, and Gisborne, Tasman, and Marlborough District Councils. The Chatham Islands Council also performs some of the functions of a regional council but is not strictly a unitary authority. Unitary authorities act as regional councils for legislative purposes.

The seaward boundary of any coastal regional council is the twelve-mile New Zealand territorial limit. Regional councils are defined at meshblock level. Statistical area 1 and statistical area 2 geographies nest within regional council boundaries.

Names are provided with and without tohutō/macrons. The name field without macrons is suffixed ‘ascii’.

This generalised version has been simplified for rapid drawing and is designed for thematic or web mapping purposes.

Digital boundary data became freely available on 1 July 2007.

This dataset is the definitive version of the annually released regional council boundaries as at 1 January 2023 as defined by regional councils and/or Local Government Commission, and maintained by Stats NZ (the custodian). This version contains 16 regional councils and area outside region (Chatham Islands Territory).

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This dataset is the definitive version of the annually released regional council boundaries as at 1 January 2023 as defined by regional councils and/or Local Government Commission, and maintained by Stats NZ (the custodian). This version contains 16 regional councils and area outside region (Chatham Islands Territory). The annual boundaries are used for the full calendar year from 1 January. The annual update may have no changes from the previous release.

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The regional council is the top tier of local government in New Zealand. Regional councils are defined under schedule 2, part 1 of the Local Government Act 2002. They were established in November 1989 after the abolition of the 22 local government regions. Regional council boundaries must coincide with meshblock boundaries under schedule 3, clause 17 of the Local Government Act 2002.

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Regional council boundaries are based largely on water catchments, such as rivers, lakes, and harbours. The seaward boundary of the regions is the 12 mile (19.3km) New Zealand territorial limit. In determining regions, consideration was also given to regional communities of interest, natural resource management, land use planning, and environmental matters.

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There are 16 regions which cover every territorial authority in New Zealand, with the exception of the Chatham Islands Territory (included in 99 Area Outside Region). Five regions are administered as unitary authorities, which function as both regional council and territorial authority. These unitary authorities are Auckland Council, Nelson City Council, and Gisborne, Tasman, and Marlborough District Councils. The Chatham Islands Council also performs some of the functions of a regional council but is not strictly a unitary authority. Unitary authorities act as regional councils for legislative purposes. Regional councils are responsible for administrating many environmental and transport matters, such as land transport planning and harbour navigation and safety.

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Some regional council boundaries are coterminous with territorial authority boundaries, but there are several exceptions. An example is Taupo District, which is geographically split between four regions, although most of its area falls within the Waikato Region. Where territorial authorities straddle regional council boundaries, the affected area is statistically defined by complete regional councils. In general, however, regional councils contain complete territorial authorities.

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Auckland Council unitary authority was formed in 2010, under the Local Government (Tamaki Makarau Reorganisation) Act 2009, replacing the Auckland Regional Council and seven territorial authorities.

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Regional councils are defined at meshblock level. Statistical area 1 and statistical area 2 geographies nest within regional council boundaries.

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Numbering

The standard classification of regional council is a flat classification and contains 17 categories (including ‘99 Area Outside Region’).

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Generalised version

This generalised version has been simplified for rapid drawing and is designed for thematic or web mapping purposes.

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Macrons

Names are provided with and without tohutō/macrons. The column name for those without macrons is suffixed ‘ascii’.

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Digital data

Digital boundary data became freely available on 1 July 2007.

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To download geographic classifications in table formats such as CSV please use Ariā

New Zealand Region Boundaries provides a 2021 boundary with a total population count. The layer is designed to be used for mapping and analysis. It can be enriched with additional attributes using data enrichment tools in ArcGIS Online.The 2021 boundaries are provided by Michael Bauer Research GmbH. They are sourced from Statistics New Zealand, www.stats.govt.nz. These were published in October 2022. A new layer will be published in 18 months. Other administrative boundaries for this country are also available: Country TerritorialAuthority StatisticalArea

The region is the top tier of local government in New Zealand. There are 16 regions of New Zealand (Part 1 of Schedule 2 of the Local Government Act 2002). Eleven are governed by an elected regional council, while five are governed by territorial authorities (the second tier of local government) who also perform the functions of a regional council and thus are known as unitary authorities. These unitary authorities are Auckland Council, Nelson City Council, Gisborne, Tasman, and Marlborough District Councils. The Chatham Islands Council also perform some of the functions of a regional council, but is not strictly a unitary authority. Unitary authorities act as regional councils for the purposes of a wide range of Acts and regulations. Regional council areas are based on water catchment areas. Regional councils are responsible for the administration of many environmental and public transport matters.Regional Councils were established in 1989 after the abolition of the 22 local government regions. The local government act 2002, requires the boundaries of regions to confirm as far as possible to one or more water catchments. When determining regional boundaries, the local Government commission gave consideration to regional communities of interest when selecting water catchments to included in a region. It also considered factors such as natural resource management, land use planning and environmental matters. Some regional boundaries are conterminous with territorial authority boundaries but there are many exceptions. An example is Taupo District, which is split between four regions, although most of its area falls within the Waikato Region. Where territorial local authorities straddle regional council boundaries, the affected area have been statistically defined in complete area units. Generally regional councils contain complete territorial authorities. The unitary authority of the Auckland Council was formed in 2010, under the Local Government (Tamaki Makarau Reorganisation) Act 2009, replacing the Auckland Regional Council and seven territorial authorities.The seaward boundary of any costal regional council is the twelve mile New Zealand territorial limit. Regional councils are defined at meshblock and area unit level.Regional Councils included in the 2013 digital pattern are:Regional Council CodeRegional Council Name01Northland Region02Auckland Region03Waikato Region04Bay of Plenty Region05Gisborne Region06Hawke's Bay Region07Taranaki Region08Manawatu-Wanganui Region09Wellington Region12West Coast Region13Canterbury Region14Otago Region15Southland Region16Tasman Region17Nelson Region18Marlborough Region99Area Outside RegionAs at 1stJuly 2007, Digital Boundary data became freely available.Deriving of Output FilesThe original vertices delineating the meshblock boundary pattern were digitised in 1991 from 1:5,000 scale urban maps and 1:50,000 scale rural maps. The magnitude of error of the original digital points would have been in the range of +/- 10 metres in urban areas and +/- 25 metres in rural areas. Where meshblock boundaries coincide with cadastral boundaries the magnitude of error will be within the range of 1–5 metres in urban areas and 5 - 20 metres in rural areas. This being the estimated magnitude of error of Landonline.The creation of high definition and generalised meshblock boundaries for the 2013 digital pattern and the dissolving of these meshblocks into other geographies/boundaries were completed within Statistics New Zealand using ESRI's ArcGIS desktop suite and the Data Interoperability extension with the following process: 1. Import data and all attribute fields into an ESRI File Geodatabase from LINZ as a shapefile2. Run geometry checks and repairs.3. Run Topology Checks on all data (Must Not Have Gaps, Must Not Overlap), detailed below.4. Generalise the meshblock layers to a 1m tolerance to create generalised dataset. 5. Clip the high definition and generalised meshblock layers to the coastline using land water codes.6. Dissolve all four meshblock datasets (clipped and unclipped, for both generalised and high definition versions) to higher geographies to create the following output data layers: Area Unit, Territorial Authorities, Regional Council, Urban Areas, Community Boards, Territorial Authority Subdivisions, Wards Constituencies and Maori Constituencies for the four datasets. 7. Complete a frequency analysis to determine that each code only has a single record.8. Re-run topology checks for overlaps and gaps.9. Export all created datasets into MapInfo and Shapefile format using the Data Interoperability extension to create 3 output formats for each file. 10. Quality Assurance and rechecking of delivery files.The High Definition version is similar to how the layer exists in Landonline with a couple of changes to fix topology errors identified in topology checking. The following quality checks and steps were applied to the meshblock pattern:Translation of ESRI Shapefiles to ESRI geodatabase datasetThe meshblock dataset was imported into the ESRI File Geodatabase format, required to run the ESRI topology checks. Topology rules were set for each of the layers. Topology ChecksA tolerance of 0.1 cm was applied to the data, which meant that the topology engine validating the data saw any vertex closer than this distance as the same location. A default topology rule of “Must Be Larger than Cluster Tolerance” is applied to all data – this would highlight where any features with a width less than 0.1cm exist. No errors were found for this rule.Three additional topology rules were applied specifically within each of the layers in the ESRI geodatabase – namely “Must Not Overlap”, “Must Not Have Gaps” and “"Area Boundary Must Be Covered By Boundary Of (Meshblock)”. These check that a layer forms a continuous coverage over a surface, that any given point on that surface is only assigned to a single category, and that the dissolved boundaries are identical to the parent meshblock boundaries.Topology Checks Results: There were no errors in either the gap or overlap checks.GeneralisingTo create the generalised Meshblock layer the “Simplify Polygon” geoprocessing tool was used in ArcGIS, with the following parameters:Simplification Algorithm: POINT_REMOVEMaximum Allowable Offset: 1 metreMinimum Area: 1 square metreHandling Topological Errors: RESOLVE_ERRORSClipping of Layers to CoastlineThe processed feature class was then clipped to the coastline. The coastline was defined as features within the supplied Land2013 with codes and descriptions as follows:11- Island – Included12- Mainland – Included21- Inland Water – Included22- Inlet – Excluded23- Oceanic –Excluded33- Other – Included.Features were clipped using the Data Interoperability extension, attribute filter tool. The attribute filter was used on both the generalised and high definition meshblock datasets creating four meshblock layers. Each meshblock dataset also contained all higher geographies and land-water data as attributes. Note: Meshblock 0017001 which is classified as island, was excluded from the clipped meshblock layers, as most of this meshblock is oceanic. Dissolve meshblocks to higher geographiesStatistics New Zealand then dissolved the ESRI meshblock feature classes to the higher geographies, for both the full and clipped dataset, generalised and high definition datasets. To dissolve the higher geographies, a model was built using the dissolver, aggregator and sorter tools, with each output set to include geography code and names within the Data Interoperability extension. Export to MapInfo Format and ShapfilesThe data was exported to MapInfo and Shapefile format using ESRI's Data Interoperability extension Translation tool. Quality Assurance and rechecking of delivery filesThe feature counts of all files were checked to ensure all layers had the correct number of features. This included checking that all multipart features had translated correctly in the new file.

Refer to the current geographies boundaries table for a list of all current geographies and recent updates. This dataset is the definitive version of the annually released regional council boundaries as at 1 January 2025, as defined by the regional councils and/or Local Government Commission and maintained by Stats NZ. This version contains 16 regional councils and area outside region (Chatham Islands Territory). The regional council is the top tier of local government in New Zealand. Regional councils are defined under schedule 2, part 1 of the Local Government Act 2002. They were established in November 1989 after the abolition of the 22 local government regions. Regional council boundaries must coincide with meshblock boundaries under schedule 3, clause 17 of the Local Government Act 2002. Regional council boundaries are based largely on water catchments, such as rivers, lakes, and harbours. The seaward boundary of the regions is the 12 mile (19.3km) New Zealand territorial limit. In determining regions, consideration was also given to regional communities of interest, natural resource management, land use planning, and environmental matters. There are 16 regions which cover every territorial authority in New Zealand, with the exception of the Chatham Islands Territory (included in 99 Area Outside Region). Five regions are administered as unitary authorities, which function as both regional council and territorial authority. These unitary authorities are Auckland Council, Nelson City Council, and Gisborne, Tasman, and Marlborough District Councils. The Chatham Islands Council also performs some of the functions of a regional council but is not strictly a unitary authority. Unitary authorities act as regional councils for legislative purposes. Regional councils are responsible for administrating many environmental and transport matters, such as land transport planning and harbour navigation and safety. Some regional council boundaries are coterminous with territorial authority boundaries, but there are several exceptions. An example is Taupo District, which is geographically split between four regions, although most of its area falls within the Waikato Region. Where territorial authorities straddle regional council boundaries, the affected area is statistically defined by complete regional councils. In general, however, regional councils contain complete territorial authorities. Auckland Council unitary authority was formed in 2010, under the Local Government (Tamaki Makarau Reorganisation) Act 2009, replacing the Auckland Regional Council and seven territorial authorities. Regional councils are defined at meshblock level. Statistical area 1 and statistical area 2 geographies nest within regional council boundaries. Numbering The standard classification of regional council is a flat classification and contains 17 categories (including ‘99 Area Outside Region’). ​ High-definition version This high definition (HD) version is the most detailed geometry, suitable for use in GIS for geometric analysis operations and for the computation of areas, centroids and other metrics. The HD version is aligned to the LINZ cadastre. ​ Macrons Names are provided with and without tohutō/macrons. The column name for those without macrons is suffixed ‘ascii’. ​ Digital data Digital boundary data became freely available on 1 July 2007. ​ Further information To download geographic classifications in table formats such as CSV please use Ariā For more information please refer to the Statistical standard for geographic areas 2023. Contact: geography@stats.govt.nz

This dataset is the definitive set of statistical area 2 (SA2) boundaries for 2022 as defined by Stats NZ (the custodian). This version contains 2,260 SA2 features.

SA2s were introduced as part of the Statistical Standard for Geographic Areas 2018 (SSGA2018) which replaced the New Zealand Standard Areas Classification (NZSAC1992). The SA2 geography replaces the (NZSAC1992) area unit geography.

SA2 is an output geography that provides higher aggregations of population data than can be provided at the statistical area 1 (SA1) level. The SA2 geography aims to reflect communities that interact together socially and economically. In populated areas, SA2s generally contain similar sized populations.

SA2s are built from SA1s and either define or aggregate to define urban rural areas, territorial authorities, and regional councils. SA2s in city council areas generally have a population of 2,000–4,000 residents while SA2s in district council areas generally have a population of 1,000–3,000 residents. In rural areas, many SA2s have fewer than 1,000 residents because they are in conservation areas or contain sparse populations that cover a large area.

Names are provided with and without tohutō/macrons. The name field without macrons is suffixed ‘ascii’.

This generalised version has been simplified for rapid drawing and is designed for thematic or web mapping purposes.

Digital boundary data became freely available on 1 July 2007.

New Zealand Population: North Island (NI) data was reported at 4,077,800.000 Person in 2024. This records an increase from the previous number of 4,001,800.000 Person for 2023. New Zealand Population: North Island (NI) data is updated yearly, averaging 3,311,700.000 Person from Jun 1996 (Median) to 2024, with 29 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 4,077,800.000 Person in 2024 and a record low of 2,810,100.000 Person in 1996. New Zealand Population: North Island (NI) data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Stats NZ. The data is categorized under Global Database’s New Zealand – Table NZ.G005: Population: by Region.

The life-cycle age groups are:

• under 15 years
• 15 to 29 years
• 30 to 64 years
• 65 years and over.

Map shows the percentage change in the census usually resident population count for life-cycle age groups between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses.

Download lookup file from Stats NZ ArcGIS Online or Stats NZ geographic data service.

Footnotes

Geographical boundaries
Statistical standard for geographic areas 2023 (updated December 2023) has information about geographic boundaries as of 1 January 2023. Address data from 2013 and 2018 Censuses was updated to be consistent with the 2023 areas. Due to the changes in area boundaries and coding methodologies, 2013 and 2018 counts published in 2023 may be slightly different to those published in 2013 or 2018.

Subnational census usually resident population
The census usually resident population count of an area (subnational count) is a count of all people who usually live in that area and were present in New Zealand on census night. It excludes visitors from overseas, visitors from elsewhere in New Zealand, and residents temporarily overseas on census night. For example, a person who usually lives in Christchurch city and is visiting Wellington city on census night will be included in the census usually resident population count of Christchurch city. 

Caution using time series
Time series data should be interpreted with care due to changes in census methodology and differences in response rates between censuses. The 2023 and 2018 Censuses used a combined census methodology (using census responses and administrative data), while the 2013 Census used a full-field enumeration methodology (with no use of administrative data).

About the 2023 Census dataset
For information on the 2023 dataset see Using a combined census model for the 2023 Census. We combined data from the census forms with administrative data to create the 2023 Census dataset, which meets Stats NZ's quality criteria for population structure information. We added real data about real people to the dataset where we were confident the people who hadn’t completed a census form (which is known as admin enumeration) will be counted. We also used data from the 2018 and 2013 Censuses, administrative data sources, and statistical imputation methods to fill in some missing characteristics of people and dwellings.

Data quality
The quality of data in the 2023 Census is assessed using the quality rating scale and the quality assurance framework to determine whether data is fit for purpose and suitable for release. Data quality assurance in the 2023 Census has more information.

Quality rating of a variable
The quality rating of a variable provides an overall evaluation of data quality for that variable, usually at the highest levels of classification. The quality ratings shown are for the 2023 Census unless stated. There is variability in the quality of data at smaller geographies. Data quality may also vary between censuses, for subpopulations, or when cross tabulated with other variables or at lower levels of the classification. Data quality ratings for 2023 Census variables has more information on quality ratings by variable.

Age concept quality rating
Age is rated as very high quality.
Age – 2023 Census: Information by concept has more information, for example, definitions and data quality.

Using data for good
Stats NZ expects that, when working with census data, it is done so with a positive purpose, as outlined in the Māori Data Governance Model (Data Iwi Leaders Group, 2023). This model states that "data should support transformative outcomes and should uplift and strengthen our relationships with each other and with our environments. The avoidance of harm is the minimum expectation for data use. Māori data should also contribute to iwi and hapū tino rangatiratanga".

Confidentiality
The 2023 Census confidentiality rules have been applied to 2013, 2018, and 2023 data. These rules protect the confidentiality of individuals, families, households, dwellings, and undertakings in 2023 Census data. Counts are calculated using fixed random rounding to base 3 (FRR3) and suppression of ‘sensitive’ counts less than six, where tables report multiple geographic variables and/or small populations. Individual figures may not always sum to stated totals. Applying confidentiality rules to 2023 Census data and summary of changes since 2018 and 2013 Censuses has more information about 2023 Census confidentiality rules.

Discover the latest eCommerce statistics in New Zealand for 2025, including store count by category and platform, estimated sales amount by platform and category, products sold by platform and category, and total app spend by platform and category. Gain valuable insights into the retail landscape in New Zealand, uncovering the distribution of stores across categories and platforms.

The total population in New Zealand was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 0.5 million people (+9.33 percent). After the tenth consecutive increasing year, the total population is estimated to reach 5.84 million people and therefore a new peak in 2029. Notably, the total population was continuously increasing over the past years.According to the International Monetary Fund, the total population of a country consists of all persons falling within the scope of the census.Find more key insights for the total population in countries like Kiribati, Vanuatu, and Samoa.

This dataset contains information on: · Estimated resident population (ERP) at 30 June 1996, 2001, 2006, 2013, and 2018 for total population · ERP at 30 June 2018 by ethnic groups (European or Other (including New Zealander), Māori, Pacific, Asian, and Middle Eastern/Latin American/African) – estimates and percentage · Sex ratio – number of males per 100 females · ERP at 30 June 2018 by broad age groups and median age · Geographies available are regional council areas, territorial authority and Auckland local board areas, Statistical Area 2, and urban rural. Note: The geography corresponds to 2020 boundaries Note: -999 indicates data are not available. ​ About the estimated resident population The estimated resident population at 30 June in the census year is based on the census usually resident population count, with updates for: · net census undercount (as measured by a post-enumeration survey) · residents temporarily overseas on census night · births, deaths and net migration between census night and 30 June · reconciliation with demographic estimates at the youngest ages. The estimated resident population is not directly comparable with the census usually resident population count because of these adjustments. For more detailed information about the methods used to calculate each base population, see DataInfo+ Demographic estimates. ​ Ethnic groups It is important to note that these ethnic groups are not mutually exclusive because people can and do identify with more than one ethnicity. People who identify with more than one ethnicity have been included in each ethnic group. The 'Māori', 'Pacific', 'Asian' and 'Middle Eastern/Latin American/African' ethnic groups are defined in level 1 of the Ethnicity New Zealand Standard Classification 2005. The estimates for the 'European or Other (including New Zealander)' group include people who belong to the 'European' or 'Other ethnicity' groups defined in level 1 of the standard classification. If a person belongs to both the 'European' and 'Other ethnicity' groups they have only been counted once. Almost all people in the 'Other ethnicity' group belong to the 'New Zealander' sub-group. ​ Time series This time series is irregular. Because the 2011 Census was cancelled after the Canterbury earthquake on 22 February 2011, the gap between the 2006-base and 2013-base estimated resident population is seven years. The change in data between 2006 and 2013 may be greater than in the usual five-year gap between censuses. Be careful when comparing trends. ​ Rounding Individual figures may not sum to stated totals due to rounding. ​ More information See Estimated resident population (2018-base): At 30 June 2018 for commentary about the 2018 ERP. Subnational population estimates concepts – DataInfo+ provides definitions of terms used in the map. Access more population estimates data in NZ.Stat: Theme: Population estimates.

Topicality: 01-01-2025Projection: New Zealand Transverse Mercator (NZTM)This layer contains the archive of regional council boundaries as defined by regional councils and/or Local Government Commission, and maintained by Stats NZ (the custodian).The regional council is the top tier of local government in New Zealand. Regional councils are defined under schedule 2, part 1 of the Local Government Act 2002. They were established in November 1989 after the abolition of the 22 local government regions. Regional council boundaries must coincide with meshblock boundaries under schedule 3, clause 17 of the Local Government Act 2002.Regional council boundaries are based largely on water catchments, such as rivers, lakes, and harbours. The seaward boundary of the regions is the 12 mile (19.3km) New Zealand territorial limit. In determining regions, consideration was also given to regional communities of interest, natural resource management, land use planning, and environmental matters. This layer get updated yearly with the latest boundary data. You can use this layer when you need any year of boundary data in your map. By setting a filter on the dataset year you can filter on specific year of the dataset.For information about the fields in this dataset go to the Data tab.The layer is further generalised by Eagle Technology for improved performance on the web, therefore it doesn't fully represent the official boundaries.If you only need the latest boundary data in your map you can use the current version of this dataset. All the current versions of Stats NZ Boundary layers can be found here.The official dataset can be found on https://datafinder.stats.govt.nz.This layer is offered by Eagle Technology (Official Esri Distributor). Eagle Technology offers services that can be used in the ArcGIS platform. The Content team at Eagle Technology updates the layers on a regular basis and regularly adds new content to the Living Atlas. By using this content and combining it with other data you can create new information products quickly and easily.If you have any questions or comments about the content, please let us now at livingatlas@eagle.co.nz

This dataset is the definitive set of annually released regional council boundaries for 2022 as defined by the regional councils and/or Local Government Commission and maintained by Stats NZ (the custodian). The regional council is the top tier of local government in New Zealand. There are 16 regional councils in New Zealand (defined by Part 1 of Schedule 2 of the Local Government Act 2002). Eleven are governed by an elected regional council, while five are governed by territorial authorities (the second tier of local government), who also perform the functions of a regional council and are known as unitary authorities. These unitary authorities are Auckland Council, Nelson City Council, and Gisborne, Tasman, and Marlborough District Councils. The Chatham Islands Council also performs some of the functions of a regional council but is not strictly a unitary authority. Unitary authorities act as regional councils for legislative purposes. The seaward boundary of any coastal regional council is the twelve-mile New Zealand territorial limit. Regional councils are defined at meshblock level. Statistical area 1 and statistical area 2 geographies nest within regional council boundaries. Names are provided with and without tohutō/macrons. The name field without macrons is suffixed ‘ascii’. This generalised version has been simplified for rapid drawing and is designed for thematic or web mapping purposes. Digital boundary data became freely available on 1 July 2007.

In 2022, the Auckland region held the largest share of online spending across all of New Zealand's regions, accounting for around 35 percent of all spending. In comparison, the Wellington region made up 12 percent of all online spending in New Zealand.

The geographies table lists the most up to date versions of geographies maintained by Stats NZ. The geographies divide New Zealand into geographic areas, such as statistical areas, territorial authorities, and regional councils.

From 2024 onwards, new geographies are published when they change, rather than annually, in a high-definition version not a generalised version. The table will be maintained and updated to reflect new versions of geographies.

This file provides a definitive list of the current version of each geography. Additionally, supplementary information provided includes the date published, current version, a comments field along with a pdf link to each layer in Datafinder.

For further details about our geographies please refer to the Statistical standard for geographic areas 2023.

For our geographic hierarchy please refer to the Geographic hierarchy diagram.

In 2020, 1,600 people who were employed in the travel agency or tour arrangement services industry in New Zealand came from Auckland. Contrastingly, for the same year, 70 people who were employed in the travel agency or tour arrangement industry were from the Tasman region in New Zealand.

In 2020, around 1.4 million people from the Auckland region were part of the working age population in New Zealand. The region with the second largest working age population in the country was the Northland region.

This is the definitive set of regional council boundaries for 2001 as defined by the Local Government Commission and/or regional councils themselves but maintained by Statistics New Zealand (the custodian) as at 1 January 2001. The regional council is the top tier of local government in New Zealand. There are 16 regional councils in New Zealand (defined by Part 1 of Schedule 2 of the Local Government Act 2002). Eleven are governed by an elected regional council, while five are governed by territorial authorities (the second tier of local government) who also perform the functions of a regional council and are known as unitary authorities. These unitary authorities are Nelson City Council, and Gisborne, Tasman, and Marlborough District Councils. The Chatham Islands Council also performs some of the functions of a regional council, but is not strictly a unitary authority. Unitary authorities act as regional councils for the purposes of a wide range of legislative purposes. Regional councils are responsible for the administration of many environmental and transport matters such as land transport planning and harbour navigation and safety. Regional Councils were established in 1989 after the abolition of the 22 local government regions. The Local Government Act 2002 requires the boundaries of regions to conform, as far as possible, to one or more water catchments. When determining regional boundaries, the Local Government Commission gave consideration to regional communities of interest when selecting which water catchments to include in a region. It also considered factors such as natural resource management, land use planning and environmental matters. Some regional council boundaries are coterminous with territorial authority boundaries but there are several exceptions. An example is Taupo District, which is geographically split between four regions, although most of its area falls within the Waikato Region. Where territorial local authorities straddle regional council boundaries, the affected area is statistically defined by complete area units. In general, however, regional councils contain complete territorial authorities. The seaward boundary of any coastal regional council is the twelve mile New Zealand territorial limit.

A collection of digital geological maps in GIS formats comprising geological, geophysical and topographic layers. Some geological map products include other components such as printed maps, printable PDF geological maps, accompanying explanatory text, 3D geological models and interpreted drill hole databases. The data are available for download and/or through web services.

The geological maps cover all or parts of New Zealand and its islands, Victoria Land and the Ross Sea region of Antarctica and the continent of Zealandia. Includes the national QMAP 1:250 000 Geological Map of New Zealand dataset and the 1:1 Million Geological Map of New Zealand as well as new geological map products as they are published.

These maps represent the post-2012 component of the Regional Geological Map Archive and Datafile, one of New Zealand Nationally Significant Collections and Databases, and complement older geological maps available from the Historic Geological Map Archive repository.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.21420/QF82-7D42?x=y

Cite as: GNS Science. (2012). Geological Map of New Zealand [Data set]. GNS Science. https://doi.org/10.21420/QF82-7D42?x=y