What Security Guards Can Legally Do in NZ: Trespass, Reasonable Force, and the New Citizen's Arrest Law

I've spent more than two decades in New Zealand security and taught defensive tactics to people who make these decisions for a living. Here's the question I get more than any other, from guards, from clients, and from the public: what can a security guard actually do?

The short answer: a security guard in New Zealand has no special legal powers. A guard can ask you to leave private property on the occupier's behalf and remove you with reasonable force if you refuse, can make a citizen's arrest if they find you committing a Crimes Act offence, and can use reasonable force to defend themselves or someone else. A guard cannot search you or your bag without your consent.

Start with the truth nobody says out loud. A security uniform grants no special legal powers. None. A guard in New Zealand is a private citizen performing a professional role. Their authority comes from the property occupier they act for, from conditions of entry people agree to, and from the same legal powers every New Zealander holds. A professional knows exactly where that authority starts and stops — that's what makes them a professional.

Asking you to leave — the Trespass Act 1980. The occupier of private property decides who may be there, and a guard acting on the occupier's behalf can warn you to leave. Refusing to go after a warning is an offence under section 3. A guard can also give a warning to stay off — and returning within two years of that warning is an offence under section 4. Penalties run up to a $1,000 fine or three months' imprisonment. Warnings can be given orally or in writing.

Removing someone — reasonable force. Under section 56 of the Crimes Act 1961, the occupier, and anyone lawfully assisting them, may use reasonable force to prevent trespass or remove a trespasser. Until 8 August 2026 the section also said you must not strike or do bodily harm. The Crimes Amendment Act 2026 removed that wording, and made the same change to section 52 for defending goods. The test is still reasonable force, and the Supreme Court in Taueki v R held that removing a trespasser ordinarily requires notice first and a reasonable chance to leave. Removal means guiding someone out, not hitting them.

Detaining someone — the law changed on 8 August 2026. Under the Crimes Amendment Act 2026, any person may arrest someone they find committing a Crimes Act offence, at any time of day. Previously this was limited to night-time offending or daytime crimes carrying three or more years' imprisonment. It's a genuine expansion — and a genuine responsibility. The person arresting must be sure they have the right person, tell them clearly a citizen's arrest is being made, contact Police as soon as practicable and follow their directions, including releasing the person if told to, or they lose the law's protection. Restraints may be used, but only while they are necessary, and the person must not be questioned or searched. Excessive force exposes the guard to criminal and civil liability. At Guard Select we teach what Police apply: detaining someone should be the last option considered, not the first. Read our full guide: Citizen's Arrest in NZ: What Changed in 2026 and How to Get It Right.

Searching you — no, not without consent. No security guard in New Zealand has the power to search you or your bag. Not even during a lawful citizen's arrest. Bag checks at venues and stores work only because you agree to them as a condition of entry — and you can decline, though the venue can then decline you entry.

Defending themselves or you — section 48. Like anyone, a guard may use reasonable force in self-defence or defence of another. Reasonable is judged on the circumstances as the person believed them to be — which is exactly why trained assessment matters more than physical confidence.

Every one of these powers shares the same test, and it's the one we build every Guard Select Academy course around: is the action lawful, reasonable, necessary, proportionate — and explainable afterwards? A guard who can't answer all five shouldn't act. A guard who can is a professional New Zealand can trust with these powers.

That's the standard this industry should be trained to. It's the standard we train to.

Hiring for a venue, site or event in Christchurch? You can find licensed security guards in Christchurch on Guard Select.

Updated 6 October 2026 to reflect the Crimes Amendment Act 2026. This article is general information, not legal advice.

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Yours faithfully,
Tarquyn Read
Founder, Guard Select