Asia Region Funds Passport

New Zealand passport fund offering into another passport country

How to apply 

A New Zealand registered scheme that wants to make an offer into another passport country must first apply to the FMA under s 134(3) of the FMC Act for the scheme to be registered as a passport fund.

• Here's the application form, once you have your documents ready please contact us at [email protected] for an editable form.
• Forms can be emailed to [email protected].
• We’re here to help so please contact us if you have any questions either by email [email protected] or contact us.

Application assessment

We will assess your application to see if you meet the registration requirements set out in regulation 82B of the FMC Regulations. This will include an assessment of whether the manager of the scheme is an ‘eligible entity’ under section 3(4) of Annex 2 of the MoC and whether the scheme is and will be operated in compliance with the passport rules in Annex 3 of the MoC (passport rules). 

If your application is successful, we will make a direction that the scheme is registered as a passport fund on the Disclose register. Each fund covered in your application that will be offered under the passport will be assigned a unique registration code by us and entered on the register of New Zealand Passport Funds. You will need to lodge an indication of the scheme’s status as a passport fund on the Disclose schemes register together with the information referred to in reg 63B of the FMC Regulations as soon as practicable once your application is approved.  If that information changes or a change of circumstances has arisen that means the information is no longer current then you will need to lodge updated information within 5 working days (see reg 63C of the FMC Regulations).

Your obligations

• When you have been registered as a passport fund you will need to comply with the passport rules. 
• New Zealand law (other than disclosure requirements under Part 3 of the FMC Act) will apply to any offers you make in another passport country. 
• You may also be subject to certain laws and requirements in the passport country you are offering into (e.g. disclosure requirements in relation to your offer). 
• You can find out more information about the requirements that will apply when you make an offer in another passport country on the passport website. 
• If you intend to make an offer in another participating country under the passport you will first need to lodge a notice of intention on the Disclose register under regs 26 and 27 of the ARFP regulations.

How to apply

A foreign passport fund that wishes to make an offer into New Zealand will need to first apply to the New Zealand Financial Markets Authority for entry to New Zealand.

• Here's the application form, once you have your documents ready please contact us at [email protected] for an editable form.
• Forms can be emailed at [email protected].
• We’re here to help so please contact us if you have any questions either by email [email protected] or contact us.

You can find the New Zealand Passport Funds Register and the Register of Foreign Passport Funds Approved for NZ Entry on our licensed and reporting entities page.

Licensed & reporting entities

Foreign passport funds

The application fee for entry of a foreign passport funds under reg 12(1)(a) of the Financial Markets Conduct (Asia Region Funds Passport) Regulations 2019 is based on the amount of time spent on the application.  This is charged at the FMA hourly rate ($230 per hour spent by FMA board members and $178.25 per hour spent by FMA staff. All amounts are in New Zealand dollars and include GST). We will send you an invoice for the amount you need to pay. For more information see the Financial Markets Conduct (Fees) Regulations 2014.

See more information on the levies payable by financial markets participants.

For specific information on the fees and levies payable by foreign passport funds see our Guidance for foreign passport fund operators. 

New Zealand passport funds

The fee for an application to be registered as a passport fund under s 134(3) of the FMC Act is based on the amount of time spent on the application. This is charged at the FMA hourly rate($230 per hour spent by FMA board members and $178.25 per hour spent by FMA staff. All amounts are in New Zealand dollars and include GST). We will send you an invoice for the amount you need to pay. For more information see the Financial Markets Conduct (Fees) Regulations 2014.

Standard levies applicable to registered managed investment schemes apply for New Zealand passport fund participants. For general information on the levies payable by financial markets participants including licensed managers (of registered schemes) and licensed supervisors of managed investment products in registered schemes see here.

FAQs regarding ARFP Annual Implementation Review

Who must have an annual implementation review?

The Financial Markets Conduct (Asia Region Funds Passport) Regulations 2019 require an annual implementation review of the operation of all Passport Funds where the FMA is the home regulator. These are funds that:

• have been approved as Passport Funds; and
• are managed by licensed MIS managers in New Zealand.

The implementation review is required to determine if there is reason to believe the funds have not been (or are believed to have not been) operated in compliance with the Passport Rules.

Who can perform an implementation review?

The implementation review must be completed by either:

• a licensed auditor, i.e. licensed in NZ; or
• the licensed supervisor of the Passport Fund.

Note that the implementation reviewer cannot be the Operator of the Passport Fund or a related party of the Operator of the Passport Fund.

What period of time must the implementation review cover?

The implementation review must cover the same period as the audited financial statements for the scheme that includes the Passport Fund. Note that this is not necessarily the same period covered in the MIS manager’s audited financial statements.

When is the implementation review report due?

The implementation review report must be delivered to the FMA and all relevant addressees within 3 months of the end of the review period. Note that this is earlier than the scheme’s custodian assurance review report due date.

Who is the implementation review report delivered to?

The implementation review report must be delivered by the Operator of the Passport Fund to each of the following by the due date:

• Supervisor
• FMA
• Each Host Regulator for any country where:
  • any Passport Fund member (regardless of whether a Passport Fund was offered during the review period):
    • resided during the review period; and
    • did reside when originally purchasing the Passport Fund;
  • any offer of the Passport Fund was made during the period between the beginning of the review period and the date of the implementation review report.

Note that the implementation reviewer (i.e. supervisor or licensed auditor) must provide the implementation review report to the Operator of the Passport Fund in time for the Operator of the Passport Fund to meet its due date.

The implementation review report and reviewer’s opinion must be addressed to the Operator of the Passport Fund and to each party to whom it is delivered, and must authorise its use for the purposes of operating or providing oversight of the Passport Fund.

Who is party to the engagement for the implementation review?

The Operator of the Passport Fund and the entity performing the implementation review will be the parties to the review engagement. This reflects the requirement that under Clause 15(6) of the Passport Rules, the Operator is responsible for ensuring that an implementation reviewer is engaged for the Passport Fund. The other addressees are not required to be included in the engagement, but must be addressed and provided a copy of the report pursuant to 15(8) and (9) of the Passport Rules.

When must the engagement letter for the implementation review be signed?

The Passport Rules require that an implementation reviewer must be engaged at all times. As the fund is registered as a Passport Fund after approval from the FMA, the engagement must commence upon FMA approval. In order to approve the application for Passport Fund status, we require evidence that the implementation reviewer has been engaged. This can be either:

• a signed engagement letter without contingencies; or
• a signed engagement letter that is contingent upon FMA approval of the fund as a Passport Fund.

Who is required to provide assistance in the performance of the implementation review?

• Operator of the Passport Fund
• Outsourced service providers of the Operator of the Passport Fund
• Custodian of the Passport Fund
• Supervisor in its role as custodian or in its role of providing oversight of the custodian
• Supervisor in its role as supervisor of the Passport Fund

Can the implementation reviewer limit their liability?

We believe it is acceptable for the implementation reviewer to limit their liability to three to five times the fee for their engagement.

Does the implementation reviewer need to receive a legal opinion in the host country that the Passport Fund has complied with local regulations?

The implementation reviewer should take steps to ensure they are comfortable that the Passport Fund has complied with local regulations in any host countries. A legal opinion is acceptable for this aspect of the review, but is not required.

What information is included in the implementation review report?

The Passport Rules require that the report note whether the supervisor is aware of any matter that indicates, or is likely to indicate, that the Passport Fund was not operated in accordance with the Passport Rules during the review period in any respect that may be material to an addressee of the report.

Any matters identified must be described, including:

• the information leading to this determination
• why it is believed to be (or likely to be) a breach of the Passport Rules.

Our interpretation of this requirement is that the opinion above is meant to be a summary of the implementation review akin to the opinion in an assurance review.

There are two aspects of this review:

• Summarisation of any material limit breaks or material breaches of the Passport Rules.
• An Agreed Upon Procedures report supporting a conclusion that the fund has operated in compliance with the Passport Rules, i.e. what did the supervisor look at to determine compliance with the various Passport Rule requirements – general oversight and some level of testing.

The opinion must be based on sufficient enquiry to support a reasonable opinion for the control objectives noted below.

The detail of the report should indicate the information that was tested to form the basis of any findings, the nature of those findings, and whether they are considered to be material from the perspective of the addressees of the implementation report.

Note that while the implementation review and report should be structured similarly to an assurance review and report, that does not imply that the implementation review should be conducted in accordance with SAE 3150 or ISAE (NZ) 3402. While the structure is similar, we do not require the same level of rigour.

However, we do expect the review to be sufficiently thorough and rigorous to provide a reasonable basis for the opinion.

A simple certification is not sufficient. Similarly, a description of ongoing monitoring, while a large part of the implementation review, is not sufficient – that is second line activity; there needs to be some amount of reasonable third line checks.

What are the required control objectives for the implementation review?

The control objectives are meant to cover the key requirements of the Passport Rules in broad terms, leaving flexibility in determining how to implement those rules to the Operator of the Passport Fund and the supervisor. The controls are meant to cover aspects that are unique to the Passport Rules, not to replicate effort already taken under the FMC Act.

Control objectives

At all times during the review period, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Passport Rules:

(1)  Operator has officers with relevant qualifications (Clause 6)

(2)  Operator meets the financial resources test (Clause 7)

(3)  Operator has adequate internal controls to ensure that:

i. Assets are managed in accordance with relevant requirements of the SIPO and the Passport Rules and limit breaks are recognised and reported as required through a sufficient monitoring framework (subclause 8(2)(b)(i))

ii. Records sufficiently explain the transactions of the fund and all transactions in the interests of the fund (Clause 8(2)(b)(ii))

iii. Operator has duly kept a register of members including information sufficient to determine the passport jurisdiction of each member and the related obligations in the event of deregistration (Clause 8(2)(b)(iii) and Clause 54)

(4)  Operator has a risk monitoring and management process sufficient for the size, complexity, and risk of assets managed (Clause 8(2)(c))

(5)  Operator is in compliance with the requirements of the FMC Act and other relevant New Zealand legislation (Clause 8(d)). Note this does not require additional testing, but should describe ongoing efforts by the supervisor to ensure material compliance

(6)  Operator meets the track record tests (Clause 9)

(7)  Operator provides sufficient oversight for outsourced functions (Clause 11(4) and Clause 11(5))

(8)  Supervisor has ensured that the custodian meets the specified criteria and adequately holds and accounts for portfolio assets (Clause 13)

(9)  Operator provides audited scheme financial statements within 3 months of the balance date (Clause 16)

(10)  Operator meets all requirements for making an offer in both New Zealand and any host economy (Clause 17)

(11)  Operator has processes adequate to make redemptions as required under the Passport Rules (Part 7)