The biggest shake-up to New Zealand's health and safety laws in over a decade is making its way through Parliament. Here is what you need to know, without the jargon.
The Health and Safety at Work Amendment Bill 2026 was introduced to Parliament in February and passed its first reading on 12 February. Public submissions closed in March, and the Select Committee is due to report back by 12 June 2026. The Bill is expected to pass before Parliament rises in September, with changes taking effect the day after it receives Royal Assent.
In short, the Bill is designed to refocus New Zealand's health and safety system on critical risks, reduce unnecessary paperwork for smaller businesses, and give organisations more certainty about what they actually need to do.
It does not replace the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015. It amends it. The core framework stays, but the emphasis shifts.
This is the big one. The Bill introduces a formal definition of critical risk, which is a risk associated with a hazard that is likely to cause death, a notifiable injury or illness, a notifiable incident, or an occupational disease.
A new Schedule 1A lists specific hazards that are automatically considered critical. These are linked to existing regulations covering things like asbestos, hazardous substances, major hazard facilities, and more. On top of that, there is a catch-all test: if a hazard in your workplace could reasonably lead to one of those serious outcomes, it is a critical risk regardless of whether it appears on the schedule.
For most businesses working in trades, construction, manufacturing, or similar industries, critical risk will cover a large portion of what you are already managing. The practical change is less about removing risks from your radar and more about being deliberate about which ones need the most attention.
The Bill creates a new category called a "small PCBU", defined as a business with fewer than 20 workers for at least nine out of twelve months in a year.
If your business fits that definition, your obligations under the Act will be narrowed to focus on critical risks and basic worker welfare. That means you would still need to provide things like first aid, emergency plans, and appropriate facilities, but you would not be expected to have, for example, a formal psychosocial harm policy.
The idea is to reduce the burden on genuinely low-risk, small operations. A clothing shop, a small office, or a one-person consultancy should not have to carry the same paperwork as a large construction company. The Bill tries to make that distinction clearer.
That said, "small" does not automatically mean "low risk". If you run a small business in a high-risk industry, you will still need to identify and manage critical risks just like everyone else. The number of workers determines the category, but the nature of the work determines the risk.
The Bill strengthens Approved Codes of Practice (ACOPs) by turning them into "safe harbours". That means if you follow an ACOP that is relevant to a particular risk in your business, you will be taken to have met your obligations under the Act for that risk.
This is a significant change. Under the current system, following an ACOP is strong evidence that you are doing the right thing, but it is not a guarantee. The Bill makes it a guarantee, at least for ACOPs approved after the Bill comes into force.
The Bill also gives industry groups a bigger role in developing ACOPs, which should mean more practical, sector-specific guidance over time. Two recently approved ACOPs (for port operations and forestry) will also receive safe harbour status.
One of the more contested parts of the current Act is around officer duties, specifically what directors and senior leaders are personally responsible for. The Bill narrows this to governance responsibilities only. Day-to-day management of health and safety sits with managers, not officers.
This is particularly relevant for smaller businesses where the director might also be the site manager. Under the current law, that dual role creates confusion about where governance ends and operational responsibility begins. The Bill draws a clearer line.
A few things worth being clear about:
The Bill has not passed yet, but it is expected to before September. That does not leave a lot of time once it becomes law. Here are a few things worth doing now:
Not sure where your business sits? HARM offers independent H&S reviews and can help you work out what the Bill means for your specific situation. Learn more about HARM consulting, or book a 1:1 with Vanessa to talk it through.
This Bill is not about lowering the bar. It is about pointing the bar in the right direction. For small businesses, it should mean less time on paperwork that does not reduce harm and more focus on the things that actually matter. For larger organisations, it means being deliberate about which risks get the most attention and making sure governance is doing its job properly.
The changes are coming. The best thing you can do now is understand them before they land.