Record locations

Where possible, our aim is to store record sets locally according to the land registration district they relate to.

Records are available either through LINZ or Archives New Zealand. Items held by Archives New Zealand are listed in their Archway system.

We have many different record types, including:

• Crown grants
• Crown records
• deeds
• documents
• legalisation cards
• microfilm
• plans (SO, DP, ML)
• plans (deeds plans)
• plans (roll plans)
• plan registers
• provisional registers
• registers & indexes
• survey field books & traverse records
• warrants.

Crown grants

The original early land grants, later replaced by Records of Title.

A full national set of Crown grants is held at Archives New Zealand (Wellington), listed under ABWN 8090. See more on the page: Crown grants - Where you can find Crown grants.

Crown records

Non-survey and title records. These include Crown purchase records.

These items are split between LINZ and Archives New Zealand. Please contact us to determine the location of the particular item required.

Deeds

Deeds are the earliest system for transferring and dealing with land. They are the most common example of registers and indexes.

Deeds index volumes around the country have been digitised and are available online through the Archway system.

Documents

Also known as 'instruments'. These are the legal documents dealing with sale and ownership of land which are lodged at LINZ (e.g. transfers, easements, mortgages, etc).

Legalisation cards

After 1971, legalisation cards were used to reference statutory actions against parcels on survey plans (prior to 1971 statutory actions were recorded on the plan face).

These items have been digitised and are available in Landonline.

Microfilm

A range of microfilm / aperture cards covering a variety of records in each land district. A set of the colour fiche is held in Wellington (for ‘back up’ purposes only).

Plans (SO, DP, ML)

Plan sequences deposited as legal representations of land. The main sequences are Survey Office (SO) Deposited Plan (DP) and Māori Land (ML). These are all available through Landonline.

Plans (deeds plans)

Plans supporting the deeds records by showing land areas that have been divided up by particular deeds.

Plans (roll plans)

Large plans stored in rolls, often some of the older plans. Many have Survey Office (SO) references and are available through Landonline.

Plan registers

Registers recording all plans as they were lodged, in numerical order.

Provisional registers / Qualified Records of Title

An interim title issued for land held by the Crown or under Māori Land Court jurisdiction.

Registers & indexes

Registers were used to record details, often cross-referencing information to other records such as plans. These include block registers, survey district registers, reserves registers, etc. Indexes are cross-references to the registers and to a wide range of other records (eg section indexes, tenure indexes). Most of this information is now available through Landonline.

These items are split between LINZ offices and Archives New Zealand. Please contact us to determine the location of the particular item required.

Survey field books & traverse book records

The earliest records of surveys. Surveyors use field books to record measurements taken in the field. Traverse books provide a record of coordinates for each survey mark within a survey.

North Island survey field books and traverse book records pre-1971 have been digitised and are available online at fieldbooks.linz.govt.nz.

Copies of records from North Island books from 1971 onwards can be ordered from LINZ (Hamilton Office) - order a copy of a record.

Warrants

A means of transferring land that overlaps with the Crown Grants and the use of the Land Transfer system in the 1870s. A complete national set is held in Archives New Zealand (Wellington), listed as ABWN 591.