Guidance

New Zealand: information for victims of rape and sexual assault

Published 16 June 2023

If you’ve been sexually assaulted it’s important to remember that it was not your fault. Rape and sexual assault is always wrong, no matter who commits it or where it happens. It is traumatic and it can affect you both physically and emotionally. Do not be afraid to get help.

This information is provided to help British nationals overseas make informed decisions about whether and how to:

• seek medical advice and attention
• report to local police
• engage with foreign legal authorities following a rape or other form of sexual assault overseas.

For information on support available in the UK, see guidance on rape and sexual assault: returning to the UK.

First steps

It is your choice about what you do next, but this information may help you in coming to a decision. The most important thing is to make sure that you are as safe as you can be. You can:

• contact the international emergency number 111 and ask for police
• contact your tour operator if you are travelling with one
• contact your nearest British embassy, high commission or consulate phone +64 4 924 2888. Embassy staff will be empathetic, and non-judgmental, and can provide information on local police and medical procedures. Anything you tell them will be treated in the strictest confidence. They can contact your family or friends for you if you wish.

• British High Commission Wellington
• phone +64 4 924 2888 (24/7)
• online contact form

If you want to report the incident to the police in New Zealand

In an emergency or if the incident has just happened dial 111 and ask for Police. Police will attend your location to help you.

If it has not just happened you can phone the non-emergency police phone line on 105, report it online to New Zealand Police or visit your nearest Police station.

If you want to find out what your options are and how to get help, you can speak to New Zealand Police. You do not have to make a formal complaint, this is your choice. New Zealand Police can refer you to support agencies who can offer you support and counselling.

You can still report a rape or sexual assault if it happened to you days, weeks, months or even years ago.

If you approach the police directly, you can also ask them to inform the nearest British High Commission on +64 4 924 2888 for consular support. You will always be able to speak to trained consular staff on the telephone 24/7. If you wish and time and location permits, we can also arrange to visit you and provide you in-person support at the police station.

If the incident happened recently, the priority is your health, safety and wellbeing then the police may want to gather further physical and forensic evidence, for example by helping to organise a forensic medical examination. These examinations require your consent, and the police will help you get to a medical centre that offers this service.

Washing yourself or your clothes may make it difficult for the police to obtain forensic evidence. If you change your clothes, think about taking those you were wearing to the police. You may wish to preserve evidence by retaining items such as condoms, toothbrushes, or texts.

Tell the police if you think you have been drugged.

If you decide to report the incident to the police, they will usually come to you, with your consent they may bring a person from a support service as well. The police will conduct a preliminary interview which includes the date, time and circumstances. If the incident occurred within the last 1 to 7 days, they will arrange with your consent, a medical examination at the nearest clinic.

For a formal statement to be taken, a specialist interviewer will ask you questions to help you remember everything you can about the incident, including a description of the person /s who assaulted you. Sometimes the process of taking a statement can last several hours or will occur over multiple meetings with the police. See New Zealand Government victims information: Telling Police, for people affected by sexual violence..

You can have a support person with you while your statement is taken, but they cannot usually participate in the police interview. In New Zealand, it is common for people to use support services to help them with the process of making a formal statement to police if they are not sure about approaching police directly. Wherever possible there will be both male and female police officers, depending on your preference, to talk to you.

After your statement is finished, you will be asked to sign it. You should ask police for the report number and contact details for the police officer or detective in charge of the investigation.

The interview may be recorded by DVD, so that your words are preserved. If your complaint goes to court, the recorded interview may be given to lawyers. There are strict New Zealand laws around storing and security of filmed interviews.

The Police will also refer you to local support services near you who can help you.

If you do not want to report the incident to the police in New Zealand

Consular staff will still be able to help you. This includes helping you to contact your family and friends, insurance company, making arrangements to travel back to the UK and/or provide you with information on local support in the UK

If you do not want to report the incident to police in New Zealand, you can still access medical treatment, including a forensic medical examination at the hospital.

You can also access support from local support services near you even if you choose not to make a police report. Consular staff can help put you in touch with these services in New Zealand to help you get extra support, such as counselling.

It is your choice on whether to report what happened to the police.

If you want to report the incident to the police in the UK

If you are staying in New Zealand, you should report the crime there. If you are a British national and you need help to report the crime, you can contact the British High Commission or the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office in London

If you do not report the crime in New Zealand and you return to the UK, you can still report the matter to your local UK police

The UK police should send the information you provide to the country where the crime happened.

You can report the crime to the UK police even if you are not seeking an investigation abroad. The UK police can offer you access to victim support in the UK. They may still send some details of the crime to police in the country where it happened. This might be necessary in order to protect vulnerable people, or to stop more crimes being committed

The medical examination: what to expect

Your health, safety and welfare is the first priority. Depending on the length of time since the incident the, forensic medical examination may be used to collect evidence. Forensic medical examinations are performed by specially trained doctors or nurses and are available in cities, and usually available in rural areas. If you are not sure where you can go for an examination, you can contact one of your nearest specialist sexual assault support services or contact consular staff at the British High Commission.

A medical examination may be arranged with a specially trained doctor who will provide medical assistance and carry out a forensic examination.

The examination has 2 purposes:

• to deal with any health concerns such as sexually transmitted infections, or pregnancy
• to assist the police investigation through the collection of medical and forensic evidence if appropriate

The specialist medical service that performs the forensic and non-forensic examination is private and confidential. They offer 24/7 forensic examinations for adults and adolescents (with or without police reporting).

The doctor or nurse with your consent will be taking samples of your saliva, urine, blood and pubic hair. They may also collect swabs from your mouth, rectum and genitals or any other area where the person touched you. They may also take photographs to document any physical injuries.

Evidential interview will be conducted by a specialist interviewer.

Police will arrange for specialist support agencies to come to interview or who will advocate for the victim and explain the process.

If the person who has been assaulted is a child, medical staff will be legally obliged to make a report to child protection services or the police for further investigation.

Medical treatment in New Zealand

Medical services in New Zealand are high quality, and hospitals will be able to provide medical treatment to people after rape and sexual assault.

If you need emergency medical treatment and you are unable to get to a hospital, you can call 111 for an ambulance to come to you and take you to hospital. If you wish, consular staff may be able arrange to visit you and provide you with in-person support at the hospital.

Under the Reciprocal Healthcare Agreement, emergency treatment costs (including treatment related to sexual assault) are free for British visitors to New Zealand. British people living in New Zealand holding a residency status or a two year work visa will be treated under the public health system.

In New Zealand, emergency contraception pill is available without a prescription from a pharmacy, a doctor, sexual health clinics and community health centres. Emergency contraception needs to be taken within 72 hours of the crime for it to be effective.

HIV PEP (post-exposure prophylaxis) is available from hospital emergency departments and from some doctors and sexual health clinics. HIV PEP medication needs to be taken within 72 hours of the incident for it to be effective. The NHS may be able to commence or continue the 28-day treatment on return to the UK.

If you have had medication administered overseas, you should keep the label or make a note of the name of the medication, so that you can let your local health provider know when you return home. If you received medical treatment at a hospital, you should ask for a discharge summary which will contain this information.

Police investigations in New Zealand: what to expect

After the police have taken your formal statement, they may interview other witnesses. This may also include the person who assaulted you, but this person will not be given your statement before charges are laid. If you are worried about your safety, you should ask the police for advice.

The job of the investigating officers is to find out what happened and gather evidence. After Police have gathered all the evidence and spoken to the relevant people, a decision will be made on whether to prosecute (charge someone and take your case through the court process). The decision to prosecute will be made on a number of factors, including all the evidence available and other considerations including your wishes. Police will consult with you before a decision is made.

If the police make an arrest, they will take the person into custody. The police may decide to grant them conditional release subject to bail conditions. Alternatively, the police may also decide to refuse bail, but the person must then be given the opportunity to appear before a court to apply for bail.

Decisions made by police or judges about bail are required to factor in the safety of the victim of the crime. If a person is refused bail by police and the court, they will be remanded in custody until the trial or sentencing process. The police will inform you about whether the accused person has been granted bail to live in the community.

Court procedures: what to expect

It could be months or more than a year between arrest and trial. It can depend on if the suspect will plead guilty or not guilty. See the New Zealand Government Ministry of Justice The Court Process Diagram for a step-by-step guide. Your Police officer in charge will keep you updated on the progress.

If the suspect is ordered to trial, the only time you will expected to be in court is to give evidence, this is answering questions about what happened to you. If you have returned to the UK, you should speak to your prosecution team or Police officer in charge about providing this by video link.

The prosecuting lawyer represents the Crown and the public and presents the case against the suspect (defendant). They will present evidence to the jury by calling witnesses and may also produce photos, videos and other evidence to support the case. They will ask you questions about what happened and may also call other witnesses. The information they present in court is based on the case prepared by police.

See the New Zealand Government, victims information: The court process, for people affected by sexual violence.

It is possible to drop charges after filed if you wish to do so. Speak to the Police officer in charge at any time.

Police can request reparation on your behalf with the courts.

Hiring a lawyer

The prosecuting lawyer represents the Crown and the public and presents the case against the suspect in a trial. You can still appoint your own private lawyer if you choose to. They would not play a part of the court trial against the suspect (defendant).

To find a lawyer see the New Zealand lawyers list.

Communication

The Police officer in charge will be your main point of contact. If you appoint a private lawyer you will need to decide how communication and updates would be best for you, either continue direct from the Police officer or through your private lawyer.

If you have returned to the UK or are not in New Zealand, you can communicate with the Police officer in charge by email.

Legal aid

You may be eligible for legal aid in New Zealand. Legal aid is considered a loan. You may have to repay some or all your legal aid, depending on how much you earn, what assets you own and whether you receive any money as a result of your case. Read information on New Zealand Government Ministry of Justice Legal Aid for further details.

Sentencing

If the defendant pleads guilty, or is found guilty, on any or all charges, the next step is sentencing. Usually this will be scheduled for a later date.

You may be asked to submit a victim impact statement. This is a way for you to be heard in the process and tell the court how the crime has affected you. The judge is required to consider your victim impact statement when sentencing the offender.

The Court can give a range of sentences and a combination of sentences depending on what’s appropriate in the circumstances. The court may order the offender to pay a fine or reparation, complete community work, home detention or sentence the offender to prison.

If the defendant is found not guilty on all charges, then they’re free to go without any conviction. This can be unexpected and difficult for you and you may want to talk this over with your support person.

Compensation

Courts can order the offender to pay compensation any injuries or losses, after they have been convicted in a criminal court.

ACC is a state-funded compensation scheme to cover physical or psychological injuries suffered as a result of a sexual or violent crime, this includes visitors. Please see ACC for further details.

When you return home to the UK

You may want to let your GP or a Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) know what has happened to you so that you can talk about the experience and seek further support and advice where you live

Country	Resource
England	NHS Choices website, or search the internet for ‘NHS SARC’
Scotland	Archway SARC, phone 0141 211 8175
Wales	New Pathways SARC: phone 01685 379 310 Ynys Saff Sexual Assault Referral Centre - Cardiff and Vale University Health Board cavuhb.nhs.wales/our-services/sexual-health/services-provided/ynys-saff-sexual-assault-referral-centre/
Northern Ireland	Rowan SARC Northern Ireland: phone 0800 389 4424

If you believe you may be at risk of having contracted a sexually transmitted infection (STI), you should ask your local health provider to test you. You should do this even if you have been tested in the country that the assault took place in.

Useful links and support organisations in New Zealand

It is your choice to let people know. If you are ready to talk about it, these organisations may be able to help you.

New Zealand Police: sexual assault, what can I do if I have been sexually assaulted? If this is an emergency phone 111 or non-emergency 105

Find your local support services in your area: list of support services for survivors of sexual assault in New Zealand, Phone +64 9 360 4001

Safe to talk: free confidential contact with a trained specialist who can also connect you with services in your community if that’s what you want. Live chat, text 4334 or phone 0800 044 334

New Zealand Government, victims Information: Telling the Police, The Court Process

ACC: sensitive claims unit Phone 0800 735 566

Disclaimer

This information has been prepared by UK government officials who are not legally or medically trained. It should therefore never be used as a substitute for professional medical or legal advice. It is intended to help British nationals overseas make their own informed decisions. Neither the UK government nor any official of the consulate accept liability for any loss or damage which you might suffer as a result of relying on the information supplied.

Medical information has been provided by The Havens Sexual Assault Referral Centres of Kings College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and was accurate at the time of production (February 2022).