| Country name | conventional long form: none conventional short form: New Zealand abbreviation: NZ etymology: Dutch explorer Abel TASMAN was the first European to reach New Zealand in 1642; he named it Staten Landt, but Dutch cartographers renamed it Nova Zeelandia in 1645 after the Dutch province of Zeeland; British explorer Captain James COOK subsequently anglicized the name to New Zealand when he mapped the islands in 1769 |
| Government type | parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm |
| Capital | name: Wellington geographic coordinates: 41 18 S, 174 47 E time difference: UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in September; ends first Sunday in April note: New Zealand has two time zones: New Zealand standard time (UTC+12) and Chatham Islands time (45 minutes in advance of New Zealand standard time; UTC+12:45) etymology: named in 1840 after Arthur Wellesley, the first Duke of Wellington and victorious general at the Battle of Waterloo |
| Administrative divisions | 16 regions and 1 territory*; Auckland, Bay of Plenty, Canterbury, Chatham Islands*, Gisborne, Hawke's Bay, Manawatu-Wanganui, Marlborough, Nelson, Northland, Otago, Southland, Taranaki, Tasman, Waikato, Wellington, West Coast |
| Dependent areas | Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau |
| Independence | 26 September 1907 (from the UK) |
| National holiday | Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840); Anzac Day (commemorated as the anniversary of the landing of troops of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps during World War I at Gallipoli, Turkey), 25 April (1915) |
| Constitution | history: New Zealand has no single constitution document; the Constitution Act 1986, effective 1 January 1987, includes only part of the uncodified constitution; others include a collection of statutes or "acts of Parliament," the Treaty of Waitangi, Orders in Council, letters patent, court decisions, and unwritten conventions amendments: proposed as bill by Parliament or by referendum called either by the government or by citizens; passage of a bill as an act normally requires two separate readings with committee reviews in between to make changes and corrections, a third reading approved by the House of Representatives membership or by the majority of votes in a referendum, and assent of the governor-general; passage of amendments to reserved constitutional provisions affecting the term of Parliament, electoral districts, and voting restrictions requires approval by 75% of the House membership or the majority of votes in a referendum; amended many times, last in 2020 |
| Legal system | common law system, based on English model, with special legislation and land courts for the Maori |
| International law organization participation | accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of New Zealand dual citizenship recognized: yes residency requirement for naturalization: 3 years |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor-General Dame Patricia Lee REDDY (since 28 September 2016) head of government: Prime Minister Jacinda ARDERN (since 26 October 2017); Deputy Prime Minister Grant ROBERTSON (since 2 November 2020) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor-general on the recommendation of the prime minister elections/appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; governor-general appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by the governor-general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor-general; note - Prime Minister ARDERN heads up a minority coalition government consisting of the Labor and New Zealand First parties with confidence and supply support from the Green Party |
| Legislative branch | description: unicameral House of Representatives - commonly called Parliament (120 seats for 2020-23 term); 72 members directly elected in 65 single-seat constituencies and 7 Maori constituencies by simple majority vote and 48 directly elected by closed party-list proportional representation vote; members serve 3-year terms) elections: last held on 17 October 2020 (next scheduled for 2023) election results: percent of vote by party - Labor Party 49.1%, National Party 26.8%, ACT Party 8%, Green Party 6.3%, Maori Party 1%; seats by party - Labor Party 64, National Party 35, Green Party 10, ACT Party 10, Maori Party 1; composition - men 63, women 57, percent of women 47.5% |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: Supreme Court (consists of 5 justices, including the chief justice); note - the Supreme Court in 2004 replaced the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (in London) as the final appeals court judge selection and term of office: justices appointed by the governor-general upon the recommendation of the attorney- general; justices appointed until compulsory retirement at age 70 subordinate courts: Court of Appeal; High Court; tribunals and authorities; district courts; specialized courts for issues related to employment, environment, family, Maori lands, youth, military; tribunals |
| Political parties and leaders | ACT New Zealand [David SEYMOUR] Green Party [James SHAW] Mana Movement [Hone HARAWIRA] (formerly Mana Party) Maori Party [Che WILSON and Kaapua SMITH] New Zealand First Party or NZ First [Winston PETERS] New Zealand Labor Party [Jacinda ARDERN] New Zealand National Party [Judith COLLINS] United Future New Zealand [Damian LIGHT] |
| International organization participation | ADB, ANZUS, APEC, ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CD, CP, EAS, EBRD, FAO, FATF, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, Pacific Alliance (observer), Paris Club (associate), PCA, PIF, SICA (observer), Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMISS, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Rosemary BANKS (since 11 January 2019) chancery: 37 Observatory Circle NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 328-4800 FAX: [1] (202) 667-5277 email address and website: wshinfo@mfat.govt.nz https://www.mfat.govt.nz/en/countries-and-regions/americas/united-states-of-america/ consulate(s) general: Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Kevin COVERT (20 December 2020) note - also accredited to Samoa embassy: 29 Fitzherbert Terrace, Thorndon, Wellington 6011 mailing address: 4370 Auckland Place, Washington DC 20521-4370 telephone: [64] (4) 462-6000 FAX: [64] (4) 499-0490 email address and website: AucklandACS@state.gov https://nz.usembassy.gov/ consulate(s) general: Auckland |
| Flag description | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant with four red five-pointed stars edged in white centered in the outer half of the flag; the stars represent the Southern Cross constellation |
| National anthem | name: God Defend New Zealand lyrics/music: Thomas BRACKEN [English], Thomas Henry SMITH [Maori]/John Joseph WOODS note: adopted 1940 as national song, adopted 1977 as co-national anthem; New Zealand has two national anthems with equal status; as a commonwealth realm, in addition to "God Defend New Zealand," "God Save the Queen" serves as a national anthem (see United Kingdom); "God Save the Queen" normally played only when a member of the royal family or the governor-general is present; in all other cases, "God Defend New Zealand" is played |
| National symbol(s) | Southern Cross constellation (four, five-pointed stars), kiwi (bird), silver fern; national colors: black, white, red (ochre) |
Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021
