Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi
Foreign investors will find it easier to buy New Zealand companies and property after the government reforms the Overseas Investment Act.
Associate Minister of Finance David Seymour announced the government had agreed to the principles for changing the law around foreign investment, saying the country's policy settings were the "worst in the developed world".
"At the core of these principles is reversing the presumption that investing in New Zealand is a privilege and that investors must justify their transaction to the government."
Feedback from international investors was New Zealand's rules imposed significant compliance costs, delays and uncertain outcomes, he said.
"The truth is that, in the overseas investment game, New Zealand has been benched by international investors. Being 38th out of 38 countries for openness to investment means we're simply not in the game.
"We need to change from, 'You can invest in New Zealand if you can prove the benefits of it', to 'You can invest in New Zealand if you've got a willing buyer, a willing seller, and there are no dangers to New Zealand's interests'."
Seymour told RNZ that, anecdotally, New Zealand was viewed by overseas companies and individuals as having "thumbed its nose at the world and isn't really interested".
The current law around foreign investment was holding back wage growth, he said.
"Just yesterday [Friday], I was at an event where I spoke to a lawyer who said New Zealand is perceived as too hard, people have given up and when I do get interest, it's quite challenging to navigate the bureaucracy. We are doing everything we can to make that easier."
Kiwis should not be concerned about foreign investment; instead, they should see it as a "vote of confidence" in the country, Seymour said.
"People want to invest here because they think that good things are going to happen in the future of this country. We should be more worried if people don't want to invest in New Zealand."
Any investors were subject to New Zealand laws, "regardless of what colour their passport is", he added.
The government was aiming to pass legislation on the Overseas Investment Act before the end of 2025.