Document the move with a relocation deed that matches the lease changes

When a tenant is moving from one area or premises to another, the commercial agreement is often broader than a simple address change. Rent may change, the term may be adjusted, access dates may shift, and there may be questions about fit-out, reinstatement or who pays relocation costs. A relocation deed records those changes against the existing lease position. Without that document, parties can end up relying on emails or informal discussions that do not deal clearly with occupancy rights, timing or responsibility for works.

A relocation deed commonly deals with the new premises description, the date the move takes effect, any rent or outgoings changes, whether the lease term stays the same or is varied, and what happens to incentives or existing obligations. It may also address landlord consent, assignment-style issues, access for works, fit-out responsibilities, make good treatment for the old space, and when the tenant can occupy the new area. The exact content depends on how the original lease is written and what the parties have already agreed commercially.

The important details usually include the current lease wording, whether the relocation right already appears in the lease, what premises are being vacated and occupied, and whether rent, term or area measurements are changing. It also matters who is paying for fit-out, whether trading needs to continue during the move, and whether any landlord approvals are still outstanding. If the move is tied to refurbishment works or staged access, those facts can materially change how the deed should deal with timing, possession and responsibility.

A template may be a starting point, but relocation arrangements often interact closely with the existing lease and any side agreements already in place. A generic form may not deal properly with rent review mechanics, incentive treatment, assignment wording, or the practical handover between old and new premises. That can leave gaps at exactly the point where the parties need certainty. Legal review is useful where the move changes more than one lease variable, or where occupancy and fit-out obligations need to line up with the lease record.

Timing depends on how settled the commercial position already is and how much supporting material is available at the start. Usually, we would need the current lease, any correspondence or heads of terms about the move, and a clear summary of the proposed changes to rent, term, premises and works. If landlord consent or assignment-style issues are part of the move, that should be flagged early. Once we have the relevant documents and instructions, we can confirm likely timing for the drafting or review.

Just submit an enquiry via this page or click the 'get started' button on our website to submit an enquiry. After you've submitted an enquiry, one of our legal consultants will review your enquiry within 1 business day and get in touch to get a better idea of exactly what you are looking for.

Then your legal consultant will send through an email with a bit more information about the services you need, along with a fixed fee quote setting out costs, scope of the service and timing. Have a read through it, and if you're happy with the scope, you can accept and sign our engagement letter online - easy!

Once you've formally accepted, we'll connect you with a specialist lawyer and they will work with you to complete your project. They will contact you by email or phone if they need to get in touch.

Sprintlaw works on fixed-fee pricing wherever possible, so you can review the scope and cost before you decide whether to proceed. For the Relocation Deed service, pricing starts from $900.00.

After you enquire, a legal consultant will confirm what is included, the expected timing and whether any extra work is needed before you engage us.

We operate completely online, which means we can help you wherever you are in New Zealand. We have office spaces in Sydney, and in Melbourne, but our use of technology allows our team members to work remotely from around the world. Our legal team are mostly based in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. We also have a London office for Sprintlaw UK.

Our legal team is made up of experienced lawyers, who are specialists in various areas of law and hold an Australian legal practising certificate. None of our Sprintlaw lawyers are New Zealand qualified lawyers and they do not currently hold a New Zealand practising certificate.

They provide legal services working remotely from Australia via our 'legal consultancy' model, through which (under section 6 and section 35 of the New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006) our Australian legal team are permitted to provide legal services to New Zealand businesses provided they do not provide services in certain 'reserved' areas of law. You can read our FAQ page to learn a bit more about our 'legal consultancy' model.

Given the strong similarities between Australian and New Zealand law, and the areas of law in which we practice (being small business and startup law), we do not view the fact that our lawyers have not qualified in New Zealand as having any substantive impact on the quality of our service. We are committed to ensuring that we provide high quality, affordable legal services to all our New Zealand clients.

Our legal team have all trained at leading firms, but have left the traditional corporate law world to join us on our mission to create a new and better way of delivering legal services. They have specialist expertise in technology law, intellectual property law, contract drafting and review, corporate law and commercial law.