Find out what microdata is available through the Data Lab about people, households, and businesses, and how to apply to access it for your research project. 

About the Data Lab

New Zealand-based researchers can apply to access microdata for bona fide research or analytical purposes that are in the public interest.  The Data Lab service is available at Stat NZ offices and at secure research facilities around New Zealand. 

Application process

Data Lab locations

You can only access microdata in a secure Data Lab environment.  Within this environment you can run code, create datasets, store material and share this with other researchers working on your project, and access additional metadata.  Computers in the Data Lab cannot access the internet or connect to printers. 

International Data Labs

Stats NZ has approved the first international Data Lab to give researchers greater access to the data it holds.  The Sydney-based lab opened at the premises of Ernst & Young on 16 August 2017.  Analysts from Ernst & Young are using Stats NZ’s IDI for a project they are doing with the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) and the Ministry for Vulnerable Children (Oranga Tamariki).  Security arrangements at the Sydney Data Lab are the same as those for Data Labs in New Zealand.