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Cost recovery for MPI Trade Certification

UPDATE – 3 June 2026

Cost recovery changes 

Thank you to all those who sent a submission on this closed consultation. All feedback has been analysed and the final changes decided by the Government. 

Table: The changes that will take effect from 1 July 2026

Sector Fee per document (GST exclusive) How is this charged?
Animal products $7.33 Per document issued from the new system
Phytosanitary (food, non-food and forestry) $7.33 Per document issued from the new system
Wine $7.33 Certification charged through a fee and separated from wine levy
Biosecurity imports $7.33 Covered by BSEL

The flat fee will apply to all current and future certificate and document types issued through MPI Trade Certification, with costs incurred when industry is able to request those documents in the new system.

The changes will take effect from 1 July 2026.

Gazette notice – NZ Gazette

Amendment regulations

Animal Products

Animal Products (Dairy Industry)

Wine Amendment Regulations

Cabinet paper and related documents

Cabinet paper: Ministry for Primary Industries’ Trade Certification and Annual Cost Recovery Package: Policy Decisions [PDF, 848 KB]

Appendix One: 2026 Annual Cost Recovery Package detailed proposals [PDF, 707 KB]

Appendix Two: MPI Trade Certification summary of responses [PDF, 713 KB]

Appendix Three: Stage 2 Cost Recovery Impact Statement [PDF, 2.2 MB]

Minute: ECO-26-MIN-0033 [PDF, 599 KB]

Supplementary impact analysis (Annual Review 2026) [PDF, 1.5 MB]

Background information about MPI Trade Certification

The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) consulted on how we should recover costs for the new integrated Trade Certification system. This platform will conduct electronic certification for over $33 billion in certified exports each year.

This system is critical to keep New Zealand’s primary exports moving across borders: it provides the official government-to-government assurances required by overseas markets. These assurances confirm that exported goods meet the requirements of importing countries. They are essential for maintaining and expanding market access.

New Zealand’s current certification systems are ageing, fragmented, and increasingly expensive to maintain. They limit our ability to respond to changing market requirements and meet international expectations.

The investment in MPI Trade Certification will:

  • replace current legacy systems with a single, modern platform
  • improve efficiency and reduce manual processes
  • enable paperless trade and faster border clearance
  • support New Zealand’s competitiveness in global markets.

More information on the investment, benefits, and long-term value of the system are in the 2022 business case.

MPI Trade Certification business case [PDF, 6.6 MB]

MPI Trade Certification supports these government initiatives:

Cost recovery proposals

We sought your input on the proposed cost recovery options for MPI Trade Certification. Your feedback was to help shape final decisions on how costs were allocated and recovered. This was to ensure the final fee structure was fair, reflected how the system was used, and supported long-term sustainability.

We proposed 2 options.

Option 1: Sector-specific allocation

Costs to be split based on system usage and sector-specific features. Fees would vary by sector.

Option 2: Flat fee (MPI preferred)

A single fee to be applied to all certificates and documents issued, regardless of sector. This option was preferred, as it was simpler, more equitable, and reflected actual usage.

More detail on these proposals, including the proposed new fee structures for animal products, wine, and phytosanitary (plant) products, was available in the consultation document.

This consultation opened on 24 October and we accepted submissions until 11.59pm on 5 December 2025.

Consultation document

MPI Trade Certification cost recovery options and what they mean for your sector [PDF, 872 KB]

Submissions are public information

Note that all, part, or a summary of your submission may be published on this website. Most often this happens when we issue a document that reviews the submissions received.

People can also ask for copies of submissions under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA). The OIA says we must make the content of submissions available unless we have good reason for withholding it. Those reasons are detailed in sections 6 and 9 of the OIA.

If you think there are grounds to withhold specific information from publication, make this clear in your submission or contact us. Reasons may include that it discloses commercially sensitive or personal information. However, any decision MPI makes to withhold details can be reviewed by the Ombudsman, who may direct us to release it.

Official Information Act 1982 – NZ Legislation

MPI business units