New Zealand
New Zealand
The Registrar General’s office is under the authority of the Department of Internal Affairs. It is responsible for registration of births, deaths and marriages. Vital statistics production and publication are under the authority of Statistics New Zealand. A CRVS coordination team has been established with those two departments and the Ministry of Health.
The country has high level of civil registration, with an estimated 99% of births registered within 1 year, most of which within 5 days. The legal limit to register is 2 months, and it is a free to register children. However, certificates are issued on request only, and for a certain price, which is used as a financing mechanism for the Registration office. An estimated 99.9% of deaths are registered within 1 year, most of which within 3 days from the funeral, and for free. In 2017, approximately 90% of deaths were attributed a medically certified cause. The office can now provide most of its services online.
In parallel, an important part of New Zealand’s action for CRVS is support to small islands nations in the Pacific.
CRVS Focal Point:
Mr. Russell Burnard, General Manager Operations and Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Department of Internal Affairs
RSG Member:
Mr. Russell Burnard, General Manager Operations and Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Department of Internal Affairs
New Zealand
 | Goal 1. Universal civil registration of births, deaths and other vital events |
Goal 1 Targets:
1.A
By 2024, at least 90 per cent of births in the territory and jurisdiction in the given year are registered.
1.B
By 2024, at least 99 per cent of children under 5 years old in the territory and jurisdiction have had their birth registered.
1.C
By 2024, at least 99 per cent of all individuals in the territory and jurisdiction have had their birth registered.
1.D
By 2024, at least 99 per cent of all deaths that take place in the territory and jurisdiction in the given year are registered. Target 1E
1.E
By 2024, at least 99 per cent of all deaths recorded by the health sector in the territory and jurisdiction in the given year have a medically certified cause of death recorded using the international form of the death certificate.
 |
Goal 2. All individuals are provided with legal documentation of civil registration of births, deaths and other vital events, as necessary, to claim identity, civil status and ensuing rights |
Goal 2 Targets:
2.A
By 2024, at least 99 per cent of all births registered in the territory and jurisdiction are accompanied with the issuance of an official birth certificate that includes, as a minimum, the individual’s name, sex, date and place of birth, and name of parent(s) where known.
2.B
By 2024, at least 85 per cent of all deaths registered in the territory and jurisdiction in the given year are accompanied with the issuance of an official death certificate which includes, as a minimum, the deceased’s name, date of death, sex, and age.
 |
Goal 3. Accurate, complete and timely vital statistics (including on causes of death) are produced based on registration records and are disseminated |
Goal 3 Targets:
3.A
By...(year), annual nationally representative statistics on births – disaggregated by age of mother, sex of child, geographic area and administrative subdivision –are produced from registration records or other valid administrative data sources.
3.B
By ...(year), annual nationally representative statistics on deaths – disaggregated by age, sex, cause of death defined by ICD, geographic area and administrative subdivision – are produced from registration records or other valid administrative data sources.
3.C
By 2024, at least 99 per cent of deaths occurring in health facilities or with the attention of a medical practitioner have an underlying cause of death code derived from the medical certificate according to the standards defined by ICD (latest version as appropriate)
3.D
By 2024, the proportion of deaths coded to ill-defined codes will have been reduced to 1 per cent.
3.E
By 2024, at least ...per cent of deaths taking place outside of a health facility and without the attention of a medical practitioner have their underlying cause of death code determined through verbal autopsy in line with international standards.
3.F
By ...(year), key summary tabulations of vital statistics on births and deaths using registration records as the primary source, are made available in the public domain in electronic format annually, and within one calendar year.
3.G
By ...(year), key summary tabulations of vital statistics on causes of death using registration records as the primary source, are made available in the public domain in electronic format annually, and within two calendar years.
3.H
By ...(year), an accurate, complete and timely vital statistics report for the previous two years, using registration records as the primary source, is made available in the public domain.
|
Goal 1. Universal civil registration of births, deaths and other vital events |
Goal 1 is an expression of the internationally accepted principle of the universal coverage of civil registration. The CRVS system should register all vital events occurring in the territory and jurisdiction of the country or area, including among hard-to-reach and marginalized populations.
National Targets:
1.A
By 2024, at least 90 per cent of births in the territory and jurisdiction in the given year are registered.
BASELINE
201498%
MIDTERM
201798%
TARGET
202490%
1.B
By 2024, at least 99 per cent of children under 5 years old in the territory and jurisdiction have had their birth registered.
MIDTERM
2014100%
TARGET
202499%
1.C
By 2024, at least 99 per cent of all individuals in the territory and jurisdiction have had their birth registered.
TARGET
202499%
1.D
By 2024, at least 99 per cent of all deaths that take place in the territory and jurisdiction in the given year are registered. Target 1E
baseline
201499%
MIDTERM
201899%
TARGET
202499%
1.E
By 2024, at least 99 per cent of all deaths recorded by the health sector in the territory and jurisdiction in the given year have a medically certified cause of death recorded using the international form of the death certificate.
baseline
2014100%
MIDTERM
2018100%
TARGET
202499%
|
Goal 2. All individuals are provided with legal documentation of civil registration of births, deaths and other vital events, as necessary, to claim identity, civil status and ensuing rights |
Goal 2 reflects that CRVS systems provide legal documentation of civil registration to individuals and families for legal and administrative purposes. Legal documentation is strongly linked with a broad range of rights and activities, in particular legal identity. This goal addresses the distinction between the civil registration of a vital event and the possession of formal proof that it took place, in the form of legal documentation.
National Targets:
2.A
By 2024, at least 99 per cent of all births registered in the territory and jurisdiction are accompanied with the issuance of an official birth certificate that includes, as a minimum, the individual’s name, sex, date and place of birth, and name of parent(s) where known.
baseline
201398.3%
MIDTERM
201894.3%
TARGET
202499%
2.B
By 2024, at least 85 per cent of all deaths registered in the territory and jurisdiction in the given year are accompanied with the issuance of an official death certificate which includes, as a minimum, the deceased’s name, date of death, sex, and age.
baseline
2013100%
MIDTERM
2018100%
TARGET
202485%
 |
Goal 3. Accurate, complete and timely vital statistics (including on causes of death) are produced based on registration records and are disseminated |
Goal 3 highlights the critical importance of civil registration being linked to the production and quality assurance of vital statistics on the occurrence and characteristics of vital events.
National Targets:
3.A
By...(year), annual nationally representative statistics on births – disaggregated by age of mother, sex of child, geographic area and administrative subdivision –are produced from registration records or other valid administrative data sources.
TARGET
Target achieved
3.B
By ...(year), annual nationally representative statistics on deaths – disaggregated by age, sex, cause of death defined by ICD, geographic area and administrative subdivision – are produced from registration records or other valid administrative data sources.
TARGET
Target achieved
3.C
By 2024, at least 99 per cent of deaths occurring in health facilities or with the attention of a medical practitioner have an underlying cause of death code derived from the medical certificate according to the standards defined by ICD (latest version as appropriate)
Note: This target was not monitored as part of the Midterm Questionnaire on the Implementation of the Regional Action Framework for CRVS in Asia and the Pacific.
baseline
201499%
TARGET
202499%
3.D
By 2024, the proportion of deaths coded to ill-defined codes will have been reduced to 1 per cent.
baseline
20130.5%
MIDTERM
20150.7%
TARGET
20241%
3.E
By 2024, at least ...per cent of deaths taking place outside of a health facility and without the attention of a medical practitioner have their underlying cause of death code determined through verbal autopsy in line with international standards.
Note: In light of recent countries’ experiences, Verbal autopsy is not encouraged to be applied to a large population scale, but rather on a representative sample. To reflect this, Target 3E is not anymore monitored by the coverage percentage of Verbal autopsy, but by the use or not of Verbal autopsy and its different applications.
MIDTERM
No
TARGET
2024No
3.F
By ...(year), key summary tabulations of vital statistics on births and deaths using registration records as the primary source, are made available in the public domain in electronic format annually, and within one calendar year.
TARGET
Target achieved
3.G
By ...(year), key summary tabulations of vital statistics on causes of death using registration records as the primary source, are made available in the public domain in electronic format annually, and within two calendar years.
TARGET
Target achieved
3.H
By ...(year), an accurate, complete and timely vital statistics report for the previous two years, using registration records as the primary source, is made available in the public domain.
TARGET
Target achieved
New Zealand
National Coordination Mechanism
Status in New Zealand: Complete
Comprehensive Assessment
Status in New Zealand: Complete
National Targets for 2024
Status in New Zealand: Complete
Monitoring & Reporting Plan
Status in New Zealand: Not started
Inequality Assessment
Status in New Zealand: Not started
National Strategy
Status in New Zealand: Not started
National Focal Point
Status in New Zealand: Complete
Reporting to ESCAP - Baseline
Status in New Zealand: Complete
Reporting to ESCAP - Midterm
Status in New Zealand: Complete
New Zealand Events
09 December 2015 - 10 December 2015
The workshop for National CRVS Focal Points is aimed at strengthening capacities for setting national targets and collecting, compiling and…
02 October 2017 - 04 October 2017
The Pacific Civil Registrars Network (PCRN) is organizing a workshop on disaster planning and response in Suva, Fiji from 2 to 4 October 2017. The…
17 September 2019 - 19 September 2019
(Newsletter: CRVS Insight October 2019)
The Regional Steering Group is responsible for providing regional oversight and guidance for the…
13 November 2018 - 15 November 2018
The Regional Steering Group is responsible for providing regional oversight and guidance for the implementation of the Regional Action…
The Asia Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development 2021 will in part be dedicated to the in-depths review of SDGs 1, 2, 3, 8, 10, 12, 13, 16 and 17,…
18 October 2023 - 20 October 2023
The workshop, largely funded by the USA Embassy in New Zealand with support from the New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs, seeks to build…
New Zealand News
15 November 2023
In October, eight national Registrars or Registrars-General of Births, Deaths, and Marriages from various Polynesian regions, along with experts from…
03 June 2022
(Newsletter: CRVS Insight June 2022)
Civil registration is fundamental for securing legal identity and ensuring access to essential public services…
20 October 2021
(Newsletter: CRVS Insight October 2022)
The preparations for the Second Ministerial Conference on CRVS in Asia and the Pacific are nearly complete…
09 April 2021
(Newsletter: CRVS Insight April 2021)
The Center of Excellence has recently published a compendium of good practices on Harnessing Civil…
14 December 2020
(Newsletter: CRVS Insight December 2020)
Regional Steering Group members, Ms. Kamni Naidu (Fiji), Mr. Jeff Montgomery (NZ) and Ms. Gloria Mathenge (…
14 December 2020
(Newsletter: CRVS Insight December 2020)
Each month, our community newsletter puts a spotlight on one person from Asia-Pacific that has gone above…
30 October 2017
The Pacific Civil Registrars – Disaster Preparation and Response Workshop was conducted in Suva, Fiji from 2-5 October. The workshop …
11 May 2017
Road traffic accidents and injuries are an important cause of premature deaths in the Pacific Islands, but are often poorly recorded in our cause of…
17 April 2017
The Pacific Civil Registrars Network (PCRN) has been working to facilitate cross-border sharing of civil registration records where birth has…
03 April 2017
Do you want to know how many countries in Asia and the Pacific have a CRVS coordination mechanism? Are you interested in how ambitious the national…
16 January 2017
SmartStart is an online tool, designed for smart devises as well as desktops giving easy access to services and support during pregnancy and baby’s…
29 April 2016
Here you can find recent news, events and blogs relevant for CRVS in Asia and the Pacific.
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New Zealand Resources
Newsletters, 2020
Articles
Sixth Regional Steering Group Meeting for CRVS in Asia and the Pacific
Upcoming Stats Café on adopting rapid mortality surveillance for…
Presentations, 2020
The current pandemic is disrupting CRVS systems all over the world, but well-functioning systems are more essential than ever. The high importance…
Advocacy Materials, Country Assessments and Strategies, Report, 2019
Within the last five years, almost all Pacific Island countries and territories (PICTs) have undertaken an assessment of the civil registration and…
Country Assessments and Strategies, Report, 2020
Meeting Documents, 2017
An Information Paper on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics prepared for the 5th Regional Conference of Heads of Planning and Statistics (HOPS),…
Presentations, 2017
New Zealand's presentation at the 2017 PCRN Meeting on CRVS for Disasters held from 2-4 October in Suva, Fiji. The workshop was supported by the New…
Newsletters, 2017
Articles
Pacific civil registrars from 16 countries discuss common challenges and solutions to disaster response
Global Leaders Join…
Advocacy Materials, 2017
Civil Registration and Vital Statistics play a key role in facilitating progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. A well-functioning CRVS…
Advocacy Materials, 2014
An effective Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) system helps secure a person’s legal identity, tracks the major events of an individual’s…
Newsletters, 2017
Articles
Getting Every One in the Picture- What is 'universal registration' ?
Who is your national CRVS focal point?
Trial of data sharing in…
Advocacy Materials, Country Assessments and Strategies, 2017
Do you want to know how many countries in Asia and the Pacific have a CRVS coordination mechanism? Are you interested in how ambitious the national…
Country Assessments and Strategies, Presentations, 2015
New Zealand's country presentation made at the 1st Regional Steering Group for Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) Meeting, Bangkok, 28-30…
Country Assessments and Strategies, 2015
Many Pacific Island countries and territories are unable to get accurate counts of birth, death and causes of death information. This lack of…
Newsletters, 2017
Articles
Happy 2017 from the ESCAP CRVS team
Many Data4Health resources now publically available to assist countries
Malaysia…
Meeting Documents, UN Official Documents, 2016
The seventy-first session of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific adopted resolution 71/14 on the Asian and Pacific Civil…
Meeting Documents, 2014
Civil registration and vital statistics update briefing for the meeting of ministers of health of the Pacific island countries in Honiara July 2014
International Standards and Recommendations, UN Official Documents, 2014
Through Commission resolution 69/15, countries in Asia and the Pacific requested that further regional action be taken to support the improvement of…
Meeting Documents, 2016
WHAT WE DO: We provide an opportunity to share information, lessons learned and good practice. This fosters coordination and integration of Civil…
Country Assessments and Strategies, 2015
As part of the reporting structure of the Regional Action Framework on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) in Asia and the Pacific, by the…
Country Statements, 2014
New Zealand issued this statement in the Ministerial Conference agenda item 6 regarding the State of civil registration and vital statistics in Asia…
Country Statements, 2014
Country statement delivered during the Ministerial Conference under agenda item 4 - Implementation of the Regional Action Framework on CRVS in Asia…
Meeting Documents, 2014
Advocacy Materials, Meeting Documents, 2014
The Ministerial Declaration to "Get every one in the picture' in Asia and the Pacific was made at the Ministerial Conference on Civil Registration…
Meeting Documents, Report, UN Official Documents, 2014
The Report of the Ministerial Conference on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics in Asia and the Pacific gives an overview of the main outcomes of…
Advocacy Materials, Training and Tools, 2010
This working paper provides practical information on the preparation and use of a business case in support of a civil registration system. The paper…
Events
News
Resources
Newsletters, 2020
Presentations, 2020
Advocacy Materials, Country Assessments and Strategies, Report, 2019