Privacy Act 2020 to come into effect on 1 December articles

The Privacy Bill had its third and final reading on Friday and was passed into law with unanimous multi-party support. The Privacy Act 2020 will come into effect on 1 December, replacing the existing 27-year old Privacy Act 1993.

In a statement published on Friday, Privacy Commissioner John Edwards stated that the new Privacy Act provides a “modernised framework to better protect New Zealanders’ privacy rights in today’s environment”.

New Zealand businesses should begin preparing for the changes brought into effect by the new Act, which include mandatory breach reporting and more stringent data export controls. Among other things, organisations will need to review internal practices and procedures, privacy policies, and contractual arrangements with suppliers and outsourced service providers who process personal information on behalf of their business, to ensure that these arrangements enable them to comply with their obligations under the new Act.

Overseas organisations who process personal information about New Zealanders without a physical or legal presence here will also need to consider how the new Act will apply to them from 1 December.

For further information on the key reforms in the new Act, please see here. The Stace Hammond team will be providing training on best forms of compliance with the new Act and we will send further details on these trainings shortly.

In the meantime, if you have any questions relating to the changes brought into effect under the new Act, or how they relate to you, please contact us on the details below.

View the Privacy Commissioner’s media release on the new Act