Registration

Owner Services is here to help you find information about how to become an owner through succession and registration, the distribution of dividends, forest access, grants and other opportunities.

To become an owner in Lake Taupō Forest Trust, firstly you must be registered with the Māori Land Court (MLC). Succession is the transfer of shares from a deceased owner to their descendants and beneficiaries.

There are two main steps to complete to become an owner:

• Succession with the Māori Land Court, and;
• Registration with Lake Taupō Forest Trust.

Registration

Please complete all parts of the registration form. Contact our office on 07 386 8839 if you require assistance.

Individual Owner Registration –  ‘Owner Registration Form’

Whanau Trust Registration – ‘Whanau Trust Registration Form’

Required Documentation:

• Verified bank account details (bank statement/stamped deposit slip/screenshot of online banking)
• Copy of identification (passport or driver licence or birth certificate)

Application

You can fill out an application for succession at the Māori Land Court. Applications are available on their website: https://www.maorilandcourt.govt.nz/your-maori-land/succession/.

MLC will be able to advise you on the appropriate form for your situation. The MLC encourages owners to set up a whānau trust if possible to avoid shares being broken into smaller and smaller pieces.

Call or visit your nearest Māori Land Court office for further help: https://www.maorilandcourt.govt.nz/contact-us/

Once you’ve completed the application, take it into your nearest MLC office. There will be a filing fee to pay.

Hearing

A succession requires a hearing before a Judge so you, your whānau or your legal representative can confirm the facts of the succession. You can choose to have the hearing at the Māori Land Court venue closest to where you live. MLC will notify you when this will happen.

Vesting Order

Following the hearing, MLC will issue a vesting order. This can take several weeks or months to come through.

Once you’ve received the vesting order, bring it in to the LTFT office in Tūrangi (or scan and e-mail a copy to ownership@ltft.co.nz) where Owner Services can officially register you as an owner. Owner Services are also notified when new vesting orders for owners of Lake Taupō Forest Trust blocks are issued and so they may be in touch with you as well.

Owner Services will supply you with an LTFT Owner’s Registration form to fill out which you can either pick up at the Tūrangi office or they will mail/e-mail to you. Once you’ve completed and returned this registration form to Owner Services, they will enter your details into the Owner database.

Congratulations, you are now an owner in Lake Taupō Forest Trust!

You are now eligible to receive benefits from the Lake Taupō Forest Trust including:

• Annual distribution (see below);
• Access to Grants;
• Forest Access Permits for hunting or food gathering;
• Participate in the election of Trustees;
• Access to beneficial distributions;
• Owner communications from the Trust.