Māori Land

Types of land
Under New Zealand law all land is classed as one of six types. These are:

• General land
  General land owned by Māori
• Māori freehold land
• Māori customary land
• Crown land
• Crown land reserved for Māori

Three of these categories are dealt with by Te Ture Whenua Māori Act:
Māori customary land
Māori customary land is the only form of title in New Zealand that is not derived from Crown grant. This is because that land has never been alienated from Māori ownership - Māori have the title as they had it in 1840. Māori customary land is inalienable.
Land can not be converted back to Māori customary land.
Māori freehold land
Māori freehold land arises when an investigation into the owners of a piece of land is carried out by the MLC. There is often more than one owner, and these people hold their interests as tenants in common.
General land owned by Māori
General land owned by Māori, is ordinary fee simple land, originally alienated from Māori by the Crown and now owned by a Māori or a group of people, of whom the majority are Māori.
The other three categories are dealt with by general property law:
General land
General land - ordinary land not owned by Māori
Crown land
Crown land - land that has not had a fee simple title put on it- some reserved for the use or benefit of Māori
Crown land reserved for Māori
History
Before Te Ture Whenua Māori Act was passed, the harsh provisions of the Māori Affairs Act 1953 and proceeding legislation meant that Māori could not enforce their rights to customary title and the Crown was free to transfer this land out of their ownership. In fact, land was actively alienated, by its conversion to fee simple title.
Originally all of New Zealand was Māori customary land. The Māori Land Court was set up to ascertain who held rights in land and convert that title to one which was derived from the Crown. This meant that individuals who had an interest in that land could on-sell it. Also, the rules of succession applied by the court meant that when an owner died the land was divided equally amongst their children, meaning that the land was continually fragmented, leading to a situation where there are hundreds of owners over one block of land.
What you can do with Māori Land
Māori land is not available for the payment of debts; however, there is nothing to prevent the revenue provided from the land being used for this purpose.
Te Ture Whenua Māori Act limits the way an owner can alienate or dispose of his or her interests in Māori land in their will. Interests in land can only be left to a person who meets one of these characteristics:

• children or other issue of the testator (ie person who made the will)
• any other person who would be entitled to succeed if the testator died intestate (ie without leaving a will)
• any other blood relative who is a member of the hapu associated with the land
• other owners of the land who are member of the hapu associated with the land
• whangai of the testator
• trustees of the children, other issue, or whangai

An interest in Māori freehold land may be alienated to a person who belongs to one of the preferred classes of alienees.
Trusts
In order to better ensure the retention and more efficient use of Māori land the Māori Land Court can set up a trust over that land. There are five types of trust. These are:

• putea trusts - allows small interests to be pooled
• whanau trusts - brings together the land interests of a whanau
• ahu whenua trusts - promotes the use and efficient administration of the land
• whenua topu trusts - manages use and administration of land for the benefit of a iwi or hapu

• kai tiaki trusts - manages land on behalf of a minor or someone with a disability