. /.   WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/TBT/N/NZL/47 
1 September 2008 
 (08-4086) 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade Original:   English 
  
NOTIFICATION 
 
The following notification is being circ ulated in accordance with Article 10.6. 
 
1. Member to Agreement notifying:   NEW ZEALAND
 
If applicable, name of local government involved (Articles 3.2 and 7.2):         
2. Agency responsible:    
Ministry of Economic Development 
PO Box 1473 Wellington New Zealand 
Fax:  +(64) 4 473 4638 
Email: gas.safety.regulations@med.govt.nz
 
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers, e-mail and web-site 
addresses, if available) of  agency or authority designated to handle comments 
regarding the notification shall be  indicated if different from above:         
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [  X ], 2.10.1 [   ], 5.6.2 [ X ], 5.7.1 [   ], other:         
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff heading.
ICS numbers may be provided in  addition, where applicable):   Appliances that use or 
are designed to use gas as a fuel, but excludes appliances designed to be exclusively fuelled 
from a container not exceeding 120 millilitres. 
Specified fittings* - fittings that are used, desi gned or intended to be used in or in 
connection with the supply, distribution, compre ssion or use of gas and have been specified 
by the Secretary of the Ministry of Economic Development. 
Gas appliances and fittings used fo r transport purposes are excluded. 
*Note no fittings have been specified by the Ch ief Executive of the Ministry of Economic 
Development at this time . 
5. Title, number of pages and langu age(s) of the notified document:   Proposed Gas Safety 
Regulations – A Discussion Paper (49 pages, in English). 
6. Description of content:   This document puts forward proposals to update the existing 
regulatory framework for gas safety and measur ement in New Zealand and incorporate new 
requirements introduced into the gas legislation in 2006.   
The majority of the document relates to requi rements specific to New Zealand; however, the 
amendments to the safety of gas appliances a nd specified fittings have implications for 
appliances and fittings manufactured overseas for import into New Zealand.  
The document sets out, among other things, the proposal to introduce requirements for 
independent third party certification, to the d eclaration regime, of appliance/fitting safety. G/TBT/N/NZL/47 
Page 2  
 
7. Objective and rationale, including the na ture of urgent problems where applicable:  
The supplier declaration regime for gas applia nces and fittings provides for the protection of 
human health and safety by placing an onus on importers and manufacturers that appliances and fittings are safe to use in New Zealand,  that is they meet the essential safety 
requirements, can operate on New Zealand speci fication gases and within out climatic and 
seismic environment.  Currently to ensure this, gas appliances need to meet the New 
Zealand Standard, NZS 5262, which sets out re quirements gas appliance safety must meet.  
Credibility concerns have been  raised by industry about the current supplier declaration 
regime because it is based on self declaration.  The proposal to introduce independent third 
party appliance safety certification is to addr ess the credibility concerns and provide greater 
assurance in human health and safety outcomes. 
The substantive part of the proposal is to requi re that an independent third party certify that 
appliances are safe for use in New Zealand. Th e third party will be accredited by the Joint 
Accreditation System of Australia and Ne w Zealand (JAS-ANZ) or an equivalent 
recognised by JAS-ANZ or by governmental  agreement. These accredited bodies are likely 
to base their certification on data produced by laboratories accredited by IANZ 
(International Accreditation New Zealand) or equivalent accreditation body.  
A secondary component of the proposal is to r ecognise in the regulations the essential safety 
requirements of the “ European Council Directive of 29 June 1990 on the approximation of 
the laws of the Member states relating to  appliances burning gaseous fuels (90/396/EEC) ” 
as being sufficient for the declaration regime so  long as the appliance or fitting also meets 
New Zealand’s requirements for gas specification, climate and seismic restraint. 
8. Relevant documents:   New Zealand Standard NZS 5262:2003 – Gas appliance safety; and, 
The European Council Directive of 29 June 1990 on the approximation of the laws of the 
Member states relating to applian ces burning gaseous fuels (90/396/EEC). 
9. Proposed date of adoption:   
Proposed date of entry into force:    - 
It is proposed that these requirements will come into force in July 2009. 
10. Final date for comments:   60 days from date of notification. 
11. Texts available from:  National enquiry point [  X ] or address, telephone and fax 
numbers, e-mail and web-site addresses, if available of the other body:   
The discussion document* is available from the Energy Safety website: 
http://www.energysafety.govt.nz/templa tes/MultipageDocumentTOC____33005.aspx  
*Note only national consultation has cl osed on the discussion document. WTO TBT 
consultation remains open for 60 da ys from this notification.   
The New Zealand Standard, NZS 5262 can be obt ained, at normal commercial rates, from: 
http://www.standards.co.nz/web-
shop/?action=viewSearchProduc t&mod=catalog&pid=5262:2003(NZS)  
The European Council Directive of 29 June 1990 on the approximation of the laws of the 
Member states relating to appliances burning gaseous fuels (90/396/EEC) is available via 
the following link: 
http://europa.eu/scadplus/leg/en/lvb/l21011.htm