Why have you changed your fees and charges?
Why have some fees gone up and some gone down?
Will my wait time for a test increase?
What happens if I book a re-sit test before 1 October but the test itself is on 2 October?
I was due to sit my test soon, but need to reschedule. Will I have to pay the reschedule fee?
Why couldn’t I pay the new fees before October 1?
Are there any circumstances in which I have to pay a separate test fee?
Why will 1- and 5-year endorsements cost the same after October 1?
Why is an exemption application going up by more than $70?
Why is an alcohol interlock licence or zero alcohol licence getting so much cheaper?
I want a refund on a driver licensing fee I paid.
Why wasn’t there a flyer in my reminder?
I paid an admin fee in September but now that transaction is free? Can I get my money back?
Why am I now paying $70 more for my goods service or large rental service vehicle licence?
How can it cost more than $14 to print a couple of rego labels?
Why am I being charged more for my vehicle certification (eg WoF) than your published fee
What are ‘other levies’ listed on my rego (MR1 and MR1B) invoice?
Why is the price of forms and labels increasing so much?
Do I have to use the new forms/labels now?
Can I return part pads of certification forms and labels for a refund?
Are there changes to inspection check sheets?
How can I tell the difference between the old and new labels and forms?
Who can I contact if I have other questions?
Waka Kotahi did not have a sustainable funding model to adequately regulate the land transport system, because we didn’t bring in enough revenue to cover our costs.
Some road users were paying too much, some too little, and others not at all. A key aim of the changes was to rebuild the regulatory system in a way that’s fair, with the right people paying for the right things.
Our fees are now based on how much it costs us to provide a service. We have increased fees where the cost of providing the product or service was greater than the fee paid for it. We have reduced fees where the cost of providing the product or service was less than the fee paid for it. New fees have been implemented where we had been providing a service free of charge.
Public consultation on changes to regulatory funding, fees and charges happened between March and May 2022.
Changes to funding were approved by the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Transport in December 2022.
Changes to 170 fees and charges were approved by government in April 2023.
Changes to regulations were approved on August 28, 2023 and came into effect on 1 October 2023.
It’s hard to predict what impact the new fees will have on the demand to sit licence tests. Waka Kotahi is closely monitoring behaviour around re-sits.
Should issues arise, then Waka Kotahi will address these with agents to see how we can minimise any impacts.
The average wait time for class 1 restricted and full driver licence tests for the week ending 13 October 2023 is shown below.
| Average Wait Times for class 1 full and restricted Tests by region For week ending 13 October 2023 |
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| Region | Full test average wait time (days) | Restricted test average wait time (days) |
| Northland average | 6 | 8 |
| Auckland North West average | 7 | 13 |
| Auckland Central South average | 11 | 17 |
| Waikato average | 12 | 15 |
| Bay of Plenty average | 13 | 18 |
| Wellington average | 9 | 11 |
| Canterbury average | 17 | 22 |
| Otago Southland average | 18 | 22 |
|
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We know many applicants don’t pass one or more tests the first time, and resit fees may discourage people from continuing to move through the licensing system to get a full driver licence.
Removing resit fees supports a wider objective of providing better access to the driver licensing system and increasing overall road safety for everyone. However, this policy does not provide the cheapest option for some.
If you booked a re-sit test before 1 October, you would have paid for the re-sit test.
If you book a re-sit test on or after 1 October, you will not pay for the re-sit test.
If you rescheduled a test before October 1, you would have paid to reschedule.
On or after October 1, there is no fee to reschedule.
You should still give two working days’ notice to reschedule or cancel your booking.
The new regulations didn’t come into effect until October 1, which means we could not charge the new fees until October 1.
Yes.
Overseas conversions – exempt countries:
PVIO endorsements:
Requalification (licence expired more than 5 years ago):
Alcohol Interlock or Zero Alcohol:
The same amount of work is required to process the 1-year or 5-year endorsements, so the cost of providing both services is the same.
Our fees are based on how much it costs us to provide a service. We increased fees where the cost of providing the product or service was greater than the fee that was paid for it. We reduced fees where the cost of providing the product or service was less than the fee that was paid for it.
Our fees are based on how much it costs us to provide a service. We increased fees where the cost of providing the product or service was greater than the fee that was paid for it. We reduced fees where the cost of providing the product or service was less than the fee that was paid for it.
As there are no longer fees for changing, cancelling or rebooking a test, most people won't need to apply for a refund of fees.
If you won't be continuing with your application due to special circumstances, you may be able to apply for a refund. Contact Waka Kotahi to find out how to apply.
From October 1, whether you do a course or sit a test you’ll pay the same fee for a class 2-5 or a class 6 licence. Making this change supports the removal of test re-sit fees and the wider objective of providing better access to the driver licensing system and increasing overall road safety for everyone. However, this policy does not provide the cheapest option for some.
Some reminder letters were sent before we had government approval of regulation changes. The new regulations (and new fees) didn’t come into effect until 1 October.
From September 1, we let people know changes were coming by:
You pay the fee that is correct at the time payment is taken.
We could not publicise fee changes until we had an official government decision approving the new regulations needed to change the fees.
Some reminders are sent up to 8 weeks in advance, so we could only send flyers alerting people to the changes 4 weeks before the changes came into force (once we had received that decision).
You pay the regulated admin fee that applies on the day of your transaction. We couldn't have charged the new fees until the regulations came into effect on 1 October.
From September 1 there were notifications at agents, on our website and in social media letting people know that the changes were coming.
TSL fees have been changed to reflect the cost of regulatory activities and risks in these areas. The fees that are paid when these particular vehicles are licenced now include an additional charge for the costs associated with regulating dangerous goods, as these are the vehicle types most likely to be carrying dangerous goods.
The updated fee is based on how much it costs us to provide the service – if we were undercharging then fees have gone up.
The fee to replace a rego label includes back-office activities related to processing payments, ensuring vehicle information is accurately represented and securely stored in the MVR, and providing customer service support.
All fees and charges listed reflect the Waka Kotahi portion of a fee or charge only. What you are charged when you get your vehicle certification may differ from this figure, as businesses add their charge on top.
Before October 1, if you had a heavy vehicle you would have seen a $1.53 levy listed on your invoice. The Audit and Standards Levy contributes to the development of compliance standards.
Before October 1, if you had a motor vehicle you would have seen a $1.89 levy listed on your invoice. The Safety Standards Levy is used to fund the ongoing development and administration of safety standards for motor vehicles.
After October 1, you won’t pay a levy. The cost of developing safety and compliance standards has been incorporated into charges paid by groups regulated by Waka Kotahi.
The fee you pay is based on the date you apply. We couldn't have charged the new fees until the regulations came into effect on 1 October.
From September 1 there were notifications at agents, on our website and in social media letting people know that the changes were coming up.
The updated fees are based on how much it costs us to provide a service – we’ve increased fees where the cost of providing the product or service was greater than the fee paid for it and reduced fees where the cost of providing the product or service was less than the fee paid for it.
You pay the regulated fee that applies on the day you apply for your endorsement. Applications made before 1 October paid the old fee, and applications made on or after 1 October pay the new fee.
Communication of the changes to fees started when we received government approval of the regulations. From September 1 there were notifications at agents, on our website and in social media letting people know that the changes were coming up.
No. The fee that you pay is based on the date you applied, not on the date of issue.
No. The fee you pay is based on the day you apply, not the date it is issued.
No, the fee you pay is based on the date you apply.
Vehicle certification was the area where regulatory failure occurred. Waka Kotahi has been working closely with certifiers and needs to continue to improve monitoring and auditing of this group.
We are increasing fees and charges where we were not recovering the cost of providing a service or regulating a group.
You can read more about why we need to change our fees and charges here:
Why we need to change our fees and charges
Yes. Waka Kotahi compliance visits after 1 October will check the right forms or labels are being used.
Yes. You can return all old stock for a full refund by ordering a prepaid courier bag through the Bluestar portal.
You can read more on the Inspection Portal.
Please remove and retain used carbon copy pages of Certification and WoF/CoF books before returning part books.
Inspection portal(external link)
No, there are no changes to inspection check sheets, and these do not need to be returned.
There are small design differences for covers of books and on the forms themselves, and changes to serial numbers (which now start with a letter rather than being all numbers). You can see the changes in the document linked below.
Changes to regulatory funding, fees and charges [PDF, 258 KB] [PDF, 781 KB] [PDF, 1.2 MB]
Form and label changes [PDF, 1.2 MB]
There is a grace period for rechecks, and for quarantined vehicles. In the case of recheck(s) on a vehicle that was first inspected before 1 October, you will be able to use an old label or form to complete the inspection process.
You can send any questions to feesreview@nzta.govt.nz and we will respond.
