Incorporated Societies Act 2022 - District Constitution
A ‘draft’ template of a District Constitution is available for consideration of your respective Executives. NZ Indoor Bowls welcomes any feedback Districts may consider requires amendment or seeks clarification in the interpretation.
Re-registration of Districts as an Incorporated Society under the new Act close in April 2026.
The draft template has been obtained from multiple sources and other organisations who have re-registered using the ‘base; document have already passed scrutiny and successfully been accredited. The draft template, although comprehensive, is ‘generic’ in many characteristics e.g. membership categories are not spelled out in detail. This information should be detailed in a separate ‘District Regulations’ document.
To ensure consistency, NZ Indoor Bowls requests that Districts do not make wholesale changes to the draft document. There may be aspects of the document that do not apply to all Districts, but we have tried to establish one document for all 34 Districts.
In reviewing the template Districts should note the areas highlighted in yellow including -
Registered Name of District, Incorporated Society No. and Logo
Annual/Special General Meeting Date of adoptionName of District (multiple references)
Names of Recognised Organisations (e.g. NZ Visually Impaired, Special Olympics, etc.)
Structure of and Positions on District Executive
District Executives should also be aware of the following -
Officers must declare conflicts of interest and a register of these must be maintained.
New accounting regulations may apply depending on the size of your organisation. Little or no change for ‘small societies’ defined as less than $50,000 in payments and less than $50,000 in current assets in the two years prior to re-registration. Again, accounting advice may be required to ensure compliance.
Districts holding a ‘club licence’ must be Incorporated. Failure to re-register on time will result in re-applying for a new licence!
Districts are required to maintain a register of members. Consent of new members of the organisation will need to be collected. A ‘tick box’ may be all that is required when renewing existing annual memberships. NZ Indoor Bowls is in the process of resuming the development of a single standardised database for use by all Districts and free of charge. Districts will only have access/visibility of their own data.
Actions Required
Review draft template and amend as required.
Adopt the new constitution at an Annual or Special General Meeting.
Apply to Companies Office for re-registration as an Incorporated Society
If your Club is Incorporated, then a separate Club Constitution is being drafted and will be available by the end of February.
The NZ Indoor Bowls Constitution is being re-written and will be presented for adoption at a Special General Meeting at the Nationals in June.
