How designers work with the new overseas products pathways

Last updated: 29 August 2025

Over the shoulder view between 2 people at a desk checking a building plan on a computer screen

How designers, product specifiers and architects can use the Building Product Specifications, Endorsed Standards and Approved Products Certified Overseas to access a wider range of overseas products.

For designers, specifiers and architects, the new overseas products and standards pathways will allow you to suggest a wider range of products to your clients for use in Building Code compliant work.

Benefits of the new compliance pathways

Building Product Specifications benefits

Building product standards and specifications, which were in acceptable solutions and verification methods, have been moved into the Building Product Specifications – a new regulatory instrument.
Having all the standards and specifications in one place will make it easier to consider different product options in your designs and specifications.
A building consent authority (BCA) must accept building work using products cited in the Building Product Specifications as compliant with the Building Code, provided the work complies with the relevant acceptable solution or verification method.
More standards and specifications will be added to the Building Product Specifications over time, providing more choice of overseas products for use in your designs.

Approved Products Certified Overseas benefits

Approved Products Certified Overseas are certified building products or methods recognised by the Chief Executive of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE).

With this compliance pathway you can be confident specifying products recognised as Approved Products Certified Overseas as they will be deemed to comply with the Building Code and must be accepted by BCAs.
Aotearoa New Zealand-based manufacturers and importers:
- will need to make particular information about the building products they supply to the Aotearoa New Zealand market publicly available according to the building product information requirements, and
- must be able to provide evidence for any claims they make about their products.

Endorsed Standards benefits

Recognised groups of building standards from trusted overseas standards organisations and products from standards certification schemes will be published on our Endorsed Standards web page.
You can specify a standard from those on our Endorsed Standards web page, knowing the standard can be used as supporting evidence of compliance with the Building Code.
Endorsed Standards will make it easier for many building products from overseas to be specified in building designs, as a recognised standard can be relied on as supporting evidence of compliance with the Building Code.

How to work with the new pathways

Working with the Building Product Specifications

When you are planning on using an acceptable solution or verification method to establish compliance as part of your design, you can use the Building Product Specifications as a source of additional building products standards and specifications.

For example, Acceptable Solution E2/AS1 used to contain one product standard: AS/NZS 2908.2:2000. Now the Building Product Specifications contains this standard and two additional product standards: ISO 8336:2017 and BS EN 12467:2012+A2:2018 that can be used with E2/AS1.

This means you may be able to specify alternative products if they meet the requirements in the Building Product Specifications and the relevant acceptable solution or verification method.

Working with Approved Products Certified Overseas

Products recognised by MBIE will be issued a recognition notice that will be published on our Approved Products Certified Overseas web page.

When specifying products for a design, along with using CodeMark products, you can also use a recognised product. When you specify one of these products in your design, it will be deemed to comply with the Building Code, provided your design incorporates:

the product according to its intended use, and
any conditions or limitations of the recognition.

As part of the consent application, you will need to reference the:

recognition notice as evidence of compliance with the Building Code, and
product certificate for that product.

Referencing these ensures the BCA can confirm:

the product is recognised and is being used as intended, and
that the building work will comply with the Building Code.

Working with Endorsed Standards

When specifying products for building work, you can use the Endorsed Standards list on our web site. It has guidance on what standards from overseas standards organisations could be considered for your specification.

A BCA may consider your chosen product’s recognised standard when assessing your application to ensure: