Our Contact Centre will be closed from 5pm on 24 December 2024, reopening at 8am on 3 January 2025. National Office (Aitken Street, Wellington) reception will be closed from 5pm on Friday 20 December, reopening at 8am on Monday 6 January 2025. For more information, see Court and Tribunal hours
If it’s not urgent you file your application with the court and a copy of the application and affidavit will be served on the offender and anyone else you want the Order to cover. The court calls this making an application on notice. If the offender doesn’t want the Order to be made, a hearing will be held and the judge will take into account what you and the offender have to say.
If you need to apply urgently
If you feel you’re at risk you can make an application urgently – the court calls this making an application without notice. A judge can make a temporary Order that will last for 3 months. After the temporary Order is made, a copy of that Order and a copy of the application and affidavit will be served on the offender and anyone else it covers.
If the offender doesn’t respond within 3 months, the Order will become permanent. If the offender doesn’t want a permanent Order to be made, a hearing will be held and the judge will take into account what you and the offender have to say.
Fill in the forms
Fill in 1 of these forms. To apply for a Non-Contact Order fill in this form: Application for Non-Contact Order [PDF, 645 KB] If you want the court to make a Non-Contact Order last longer (or you want to end a Non-Contact Order), fill in this form: (please note this form cannot be used to change a person's bail conditions) Change a Non-Contact Order [PDF, 618 KB]
File your application. (You need to file an application to change a Non-Contact Order at the same court that made the Non-Contact Order.) Find out more about how to file documents
What happens next
A registrar at the court or a judge will look at your application:
If you’ve applied ‘on notice’, your documents will be served on the other person. If the other person doesn’t want the Order to be made, you’ll be sent a letter with a hearing date. You don’t have to go to the hearing if you don’t want to. The judge will look at the evidence you gave in your application. The court will tell you what happened at the hearing and whether the Order was made.
If you’ve applied ‘without notice’, a judge will look at the application and can put in place a temporary (3 month) Non-Contact Order without hearing from the offender. You‘ll be sent a letter with their decision. Your documents will be served on the other person. If the other person doesn’t respond within 3 months, the order will become final. If they don’t want the Order to become final, you’ll be sent a letter with a hearing date. You don’t have to go to the hearing if you don’t want to. The judge will look at the evidence you gave in your application. The court will tell you what happened at the hearing and whether the Order was made.