Gaining permission to access Māori land
Māori land is privately-owned land and does not have public access rights. You must seek permission from the owners or those authorised by them.
Find out how to cross private land
Settlement land
Crown land returned to Māori as part of a Treaty of Waitangi settlement has general land status rather than Māori land status under the Te Ture Whenua Māori Act 1993. Any pre-existing public access rights are usually preserved.
Helping Māori to access wāhi tapu
Sometimes Māori find it difficult to access wāhi tapu (sacred places) on private land or to cross private land to sites of particular significance.
Access to wāhi tapu is important for Māori. Some iwi authorities are working with private landowners to arrange better access to wāhi tapu.
Herenga ā Nuku may be able to help explore opportunities to improve access by Māori to sites. This could be through using existing access rights such as unformed legal roads. And it could be through negotiation and agreement with private landowners.
Landlocked land
Over a quarter of Māori whenua is landlocked. Landlocked land is land that does not have reasonable access to it.