The country's spy watchdog is unable to say whether the intelligence agencies' compliance systems are sound.
But Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security, Cheryl Gwyn, said that did not mean they were deficient.
In her annual report for the year ended 30 June, last year, Cheryl Gwyn said while she was not able to certify the compliance of either the SIS or the Government Communications Security Bureau, she is pleased with the progress the GCSB had made since revelations it had illegally monitored the internet entrepreneur Kim Dotcom.
She said the GCSB had committed considerable resources to ensuring it complied with its legal requirements.
During the reporting period the SIS did not have an overall compliance framework.
But she said the new SIS director, Rebecca Kitteridge, had made it a strong focus for this year and had appointed a compliance advisor to ensure the agency met its requirements.