Retention money resources

Resources are available to help those impacted understand the requirements of the retention money regime.

Guidance document

MBIE has published guidance to help people who withhold retention money comply with the strengthened retention regime.

Retention Money Guidance for the Construction Contracts Act 2002 [PDF 6.8MB]

This guidance is for:

property owners, developers, contractors and anyone who withholds retention money
contractors and subcontractors who have retention money withheld from them as a security for performance
legal, accounting and insolvency professionals.

The guidance includes:

how to comply with the Amendment Act
roles and responsibilities of MBIE, people who withhold retention money, people who have retention money withheld from them, insolvency practitioners, and others
how people who withhold retention money can meet reporting requirements to the people they withhold retention money from
what happens to retention money held in the event of insolvency or receivership
information on the consequences of non-compliance or misrepresentation
definitions and explanations of key terms and concepts.

Webinar

On 25 August 2023, MBIE held a webinar for main contractors, sub-contractors, clients, and payment certifiers (Quantity Surveyors and Engineers to Contract) to explain what the changes in the Amendment Act mean for these groups.