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The High Court has ordered a foreign land investor who breached investment rules to pay nearly $50,000.
High Court generic image
Source: rnz.co.nz
Investor Zhao Bin tried and then abandoned a bid to buy a $6 million northern Auckland property in 2014 without seeking Overseas Investment Office approval.
He then entered into a 10-year lease for the same land for $1 a year, with right of renewal.
It was only four years later that Zhao consulted a different lawyer, who reported the arrangement to the Overseas Investment Office.
It said he had failed to seek or receive consent.
The High Court ordered him to pay a fine of $49,000, less than 1 per cent of the land value, and $15,000 in costs.