The Health and Safety at Work Amendment Act 2026 received Royal Assent on 9 July 2026 and comes into force on 1 April 2027, according to MBIE's health and safety reform page. It refocuses the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 (HSWA) on critical risks, and it changes how small businesses, officers and duty holders who follow approved codes of practice are treated.
What the Amendment Act Changes
MBIE lists the main changes as follows.
- The purpose of HSWA is sharpened to focus businesses on managing critical risks, "critical risk" is defined, and WorkSafe's main objective is aligned with supporting businesses to manage those risks.
- A "small PCBU" (person conducting a business or undertaking) is defined, and the duties of small PCBUs and other PCBUs in relation to critical risk are clarified.
- The due diligence duty of officers is clarified.
- The types of serious injury, illness and event that must be notified to the regulator are clarified.
- Approved codes of practice (ACOPs) gain a stronger "safe harbour" status, and people and groups can submit draft ACOPs to the regulator.
- Duties relating to recreational use of land are clarified, and overlap with other legislation, including seismic risk in work buildings, is addressed.
Critical Risks and the Small PCBU Threshold
WorkSafe's guidance on the updated purpose of HSWA describes critical risks as risks associated with hazards that are likely to cause death or serious injury, along with serious illness and long-term harm. It defines small PCBUs as those with fewer than 20 workers.
| Business | What WorkSafe says changes from 1 April 2027 |
|---|---|
| Small PCBU (fewer than 20 workers) | Needs to manage only critical risks, plus any risks covered by specific provisions, and must prioritise critical risks when meeting its duties |
| Large PCBU (20 or more workers) | Continues to manage all risks, but must prioritise critical risks when deciding what to address first and how to allocate time, money and resources |
| Two or more PCBUs sharing a duty | Must still consult, co-operate and co-ordinate so far as is reasonably practicable |
| PCBU following a relevant ACOP | Treated as having met its legal duty for that risk, for ACOPs approved from 1 April 2027 and two existing codes for forestry and port cargo handling |
WorkSafe says it will release further guidance on small PCBUs and critical risks, and on industry-led codes of practice, before the changes take effect.
An Earlier Version of This Article
This article originally described mandatory critical risk registers, an annual officer certification for companies with 20 or more employees, prescribed control hierarchies, a 24-hour notification rule for control failures and an indicative list of designated activities. None of those features appears in MBIE's or WorkSafe's summaries of the Act, and they have been removed. We regret the error.
What This Means for Public Liability Insurance
The Amendment Act does not require any business to hold public liability insurance, and nothing in MBIE's or WorkSafe's summaries changes how liability policies work. What it changes is the evidence that will be looked at after an incident.
Your Duty to Other People Is Unchanged
Section 36(2) of HSWA requires a PCBU to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that the health and safety of other people is not put at risk from its work. Clients, visitors and members of the public are the people a public liability policy is concerned with, so the reform's focus on critical risks is best read as a guide to where your attention should go first, not as a reduction in what you owe the public.
Codes of Practice Become More Important
The strengthened safe harbour means that, for a risk covered by a relevant ACOP, following the code will be treated as meeting the duty. That makes the code the obvious yardstick after an incident. Businesses in sectors with an ACOP should expect insurers, principals and claimants to ask whether it was followed, and should keep records that show it was.
Fines Stay Uninsurable
Section 29 of HSWA makes any insurance policy of no effect to the extent it indemnifies a person for a fine or infringement fee under the Act, and entering into or offering such an indemnity is itself an offence. Legal defence costs and court-ordered reparation are not fines, so they sit outside that prohibition. Ask your adviser whether your policy covers them.
Steps to Take Before 1 April 2027
- Count your workers to confirm whether you are a small or large PCBU, and check WorkSafe's guidance as it is published
- List the critical risks in your work, the hazards likely to cause death, serious injury or serious illness, and the controls you rely on
- Check whether an ACOP applies to your sector, and whether you can show you follow it
- Make sure officers understand the clarified due diligence duty
- Review shared-site arrangements with principals and subcontractors, because the duty to consult, co-operate and co-ordinate remains
- Tell your insurer or adviser about any change in the work you do, and confirm your public liability and statutory liability limits still fit
Next Steps
The reform is about where safety effort goes, not whether a business can be sued for damage it causes. Our coverage guide explains how public liability and statutory liability divide the risk. To have a referred adviser review your cover ahead of the April 2027 changes, Get a Quote or email hello@cover4you.co.nz.