Summary Offences (Move-on Orders) Amendment Bill
This bill gives police a new tool called a 'move-on order'. If someone is behaving in a disorderly, intimidating, threatening, or disruptive way in a public place — or is begging or rough sleeping there — a police officer can order them to leave that area for up to 24 hours. The order must be written down and handed to the person. Ignoring the order is a criminal offence. Protests, legal freedom camping, and charity fundraising are not covered by this law.
What this affects
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Police get a new power to order people to leave a public area for up to 24 hours if they are behaving in a disorderly or disruptive way, with fines or imprisonment for those who refuse to comply.
A constable may issue a move-on order to a person if the constable has reasonable grounds to suspect that the person is engaging in, or has recently engaged in, any of the following conduct in a public place: behaving in a manner that is disorderly, intimidating, or threatening...
A person who commits an offence against this section is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 months or a fine not exceeding $2,000.
A person who commits an offence under this section is liable to a fine not exceeding $500.
Progress through Parliament
Have your say
This bill is open for public submissions to the Justice Committee. Anyone can tell the committee what they think, and you don’t need to be an expert. Submissions close 1 July 2026.
Bill text sourced from legislation.govt.nz (Parliamentary Counsel Office). Arapono’s summary and breakdown are drafted with AI grounded in that official text and reviewed by an Arapono editor for accuracy and neutrality before publishing. Arapono is non-partisan and takes no position on this bill.