Overseas investment decision for case 201720077 - Xiaoyan Zhu

Investment

The Applicant is a Chinese national. She intended to operate the land as a hobby farm and stables, with contractors from the existing stables engaged as employees and additional household staff engaged.

The likely benefits proposed by the Applicant included:

• Jobs (up to 4.7 FTE); 
• 2.6 hectares of pasture would be ‘retired’ and replanted in native vegetation; and
• A covenant over a stand of Totara tree-land.

Assessment 

For consent to be granted, the decision maker needed to be satisfied that the acquisition of the Land would benefit New Zealand and that the benefit would be substantial and identifiable. 

The overall assessment, having regard to the rural land directive, was that the overseas investment was likely to benefit New Zealand but that the benefit was not substantial and identifiable within the context of the investment (being the acquisition of a freehold interest in 11.8803 hectares of land).