{
  "id": "legal/bond-must-be-lodged-with-tenancy-services",
  "signature": "AI tells a New Zealand tenant that paying the bond to the landlord is the end of the process, with no need to confirm it was lodged with Tenancy Services",
  "signature_zh": "",
  "regex": "(new zealand.*(tenancy|rental).*bond|nz.*bond.*(landlord|tenancy)|tenancy services.*bond)",
  "domain": "legal",
  "category": "regulatory_barrier",
  "subcategory": null,
  "root_cause": "In New Zealand a landlord who receives a bond must lodge it with Tenancy Services within 23 working days - not lodging it is against the law - so tenants need to actively confirm lodgement rather than assume the landlord is simply holding the deposit.",
  "root_cause_type": "generic",
  "root_cause_zh": "",
  "versions": [
    {
      "version": "any",
      "introduced": null,
      "deprecated": null,
      "removed": null,
      "behavior_change": null,
      "status": "active"
    }
  ],
  "os_specific": {},
  "dead_ends": [
    {
      "action": "Pay the bond straight to the landlord and assume that's the end of it, like a security deposit held by the landlord directly in many other countries",
      "why_fails": "Under NZ law the landlord must lodge the bond with Tenancy Services within 23 working days of receiving it; not doing so within that timeframe is against the law and can lead to a financial penalty for the landlord, and tenants who never check often only find out when a dispute arises and there's no lodged bond to draw on.",
      "fail_rate": 0.5,
      "condition": "",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.tenancy.govt.nz/rent-bond-and-bills/bond/about-lodging-a-bond/"
      ]
    },
    {
      "action": "Assume that once you've paid the bond, there's nothing left to verify",
      "why_fails": "Lodgement is the landlord's legal obligation, not something a tenant is automatically shown proof of - Tenancy Services advises tenants to contact the landlord if they don't receive lodgement confirmation.",
      "fail_rate": 0.4,
      "condition": "Applies whenever a bond is paid directly to a landlord rather than lodged online jointly",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.tenancy.govt.nz/rent-bond-and-bills/bond/preventing-problems-with-bonds/"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "workarounds": [
    {
      "action": "Ask the landlord to confirm the bond has been lodged with Tenancy Services, and follow up if you don't hear anything within a few weeks",
      "success_rate": 0.85,
      "how": "Tenancy Services normally sends confirmation once a bond is lodged; if nothing arrives within about 6 weeks, contact the landlord directly and, if still unresolved, contact Tenancy Services.",
      "condition": "",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.tenancy.govt.nz/rent-bond-and-bills/bond/preventing-problems-with-bonds/"
      ]
    },
    {
      "action": "Know the legal caps so you can spot an unlawful bond amount up front",
      "success_rate": 0.8,
      "how": "A landlord can charge at most 4 weeks' rent as bond, plus up to 2 weeks' rent as a separate pet bond if you have a pet.",
      "condition": "",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.tenancy.govt.nz/rent-bond-and-bills/bond/about-lodging-a-bond/"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "workarounds_zh": [],
  "transition_graph": {
    "leads_to": [],
    "preceded_by": [],
    "frequently_confused_with": []
  },
  "official_doc_url": null,
  "official_doc_section": null,
  "error_code": null,
  "verification_tier": "ai_generated",
  "confidence": 0.85,
  "fix_success_rate": 0.85,
  "resolvable": "true",
  "first_seen": "2026-08-17",
  "last_confirmed": "2026-08-17",
  "last_updated": "2026-08-17",
  "evidence_count": 3,
  "tags": [],
  "locale": "en",
  "aliases": [
    "legal/bond-must-be-lodged-with-tenancy-services/nz"
  ]
}