For the purposes of section 16(1)(c) of the Act, the fee that must accompany an application for a licence is $120 [10(1)(external link)] from 1 January 2020. Additional fees will be incurred during the application process, which will vary on a case by case basis depending on the level of Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency input required.
An operator who develops their own safety system, safety case and associated documentation required for a licence (eg risk assessments, interoperability agreements), to a standard that meets the criteria for approval, will have limited additional application fees.
From 1 January 2020, Waka Kotahi time spent ‘considering and deciding’ an application is chargeable at $120/hr, with the first hour being free [10(2)(external link)], so we recommend using all of the guidance material on our website before you get to the stage of submitting your application.
The rail specialists in our Rail Safety Regulation team are more than happy to help you set up your operation or new rail activities. We’re able to start helping you well before you’re close to the application stage as well.
We can provide general information but if you need specific help in getting an application prepared, there may be a charge. You may want advice on:
We can also help with more specific advice on things like:
Licence applications can also be structured in phases as required. For instance, new operators may wish to get an initial licence for track construction, before progressing to rail vehicle testing and eventually moving onto the National Rail System. Working with the Rail Safety Regulation team to structure a licence this way will be much easier that initiating the safety case variation process a number of times.
