Following the transfer of the regulation of the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act (CCCFA) to the Financial Markets Authority (FMA) on 1 July 2026 all references in this document to the Commerce Commission should be read as being the FMA.
As part of the transfer process amendments were made to the CCCFA. This document has been impacted by those changes in the following ways:
Under the amendments to the CCCFA, a number of changes have been made to lender obligations as well as the consequences of compliance. In particular, the following changes need to be considered when reviewing this guidance:
Section 21 — Continuing Disclosure Not Required
- A new section 21(1A) has been inserted continuing the disclosure requirement in section 21(1)(b)(i) – to the extent it relates to information in section 19(1)(b) (unpaid balance information) – is treated as satisfied where the creditor maintains, at all reasonable times, a website that does either or both of: (a) allowing the debtor to access information about the unpaid balance after each transaction credited or debited to the debtor's account; or (b) allowing the debtor to access information about the unpaid balance as at the end of each day in which a transaction is credited or debited.
- A new section 21(1B) defines "transaction" for the purpose of 21(1A) as any advance, interest charge, amount paid or credited, fee, or charge referred to in section 19(1)(c), (d), (e), or (f). The effect is to allow lenders to discharge a portion of the continuing disclosure obligation through digital access tools rather than periodic statements.
Section 22 — Disclosure Of Agreed Changes
- A new section 22(3)(ba) is inserted and excludes from the variation disclosure obligation a change that reduces the amount of each payment due under the contract for a period not exceeding 3 months in specific circumstances being where the creditor considers on reasonable grounds that any consequential increase to the total amount of interest charges payable, and to the total number of payments, under the contract is immaterial and where the reduction is not made following an application under section 55 (hardship).
New Section 26AB — Disclosure Not Required For Guarantor Who Is Trustee Or Partner
- A new section 26AB is inserted and provides that sections 24 to 26A do not require disclosure to be made to a guarantor who is either a trustee acting in their capacity as a trustee of an express trust, or a person acting in their capacity as a partner of a partnership
- Section 99(1A) of the CCCFA has been repealed and has been replaced with a new approach with the introduction of sections 94AA to 94AC of the CCCFA, which will allow a court – on application by the debtor or the FMA – to order that a debtor is not liable for all or some of the costs of borrowing where the lender has failed to comply with section 17 or section 22 of the CCCFA. Equivalent provisions apply to lessees and to transferees under buy-back transactions.
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