Importer terms and conditions for New Zealand businesses buying from overseas

Usually when the business is doing more than placing occasional orders on a supplier's standard paperwork. If you import regularly, hold stock, resell goods, work with multiple overseas suppliers or need consistent rules on delivery, shortages, damage, inspection and payment, your own terms become much more important. They can also help where responsibility is split across suppliers, freight providers and local customers. Without a clear document, important points may be left to conflicting emails, invoices or supplier terms that do not reflect how your operation actually runs.

They commonly deal with how orders are placed and accepted, pricing, payment timing, shipping and delivery assumptions, title and risk, inspection on arrival, claims for damaged or missing goods, delays, force majeure-style disruptions, warranties, returns, liability allocation, termination and how disputes are handled under the contract. Depending on your model, the terms may also need to refer to storage, third-party logistics, product information, customer communications and information sharing with service providers. The drafting is shaped by the actual trade flow, not just by the fact that goods are imported.

We usually need a practical summary of how your import business works. That includes what goods you import, whether they are standard or made to specification, who your counterparties are, how orders are confirmed, who arranges freight, when you treat goods as accepted, how defects are reported, whether you resell locally, and whether you already use purchase orders or supplier terms. If warehousing, fulfilment or customer data is involved, that may also affect the wording because the right drafting depends on how information is actually collected, used and shared in practice.

Once instructed, we will ask for the main commercial details and any current terms, quotes, order forms or supplier documents you use. We then prepare draft importer terms that reflect the structure of your trading arrangements and identify any clauses that need your commercial decision. Timing depends on complexity and how quickly instructions are confirmed, but the work is aimed at producing the core document efficiently. The fixed-fee covers drafting and agreed amendments, not ongoing contract administration or back-and-forth negotiations with overseas counterparties.

Often not. Generic templates tend to stay at a high level and may not deal properly with shipment delays, partial deliveries, inspection windows, landed cost assumptions, damaged stock, or the handover points between supplier, carrier, warehouse and buyer. They also may not fit your sales model if you import for resale, import on demand, or combine imported goods with local services. A tailored document is usually more useful where your margins, stock risk or customer commitments depend on getting those practical points stated clearly.

Submit an enquiry on this page or click 'Get started'. One of our legal consultants will review it within 1 business day and get in touch to understand what you need.

Your consultant will then email you a fixed-fee quote setting out the cost, scope and timing. If you're happy with it, you can accept the quote and sign our engagement letter online.

Once you've accepted, one of our Australian-qualified lawyers will work with you to complete your project. They'll contact you by email or phone if they need anything.

Sprintlaw works on fixed-fee pricing wherever possible, so you can review the scope and cost before you decide whether to proceed. For the Importer Terms And Conditions 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 work online, so we can help wherever you are in New Zealand. Our team works remotely, mainly from Australia.

Your work is done by our Australian-qualified lawyers, who hold Australian practising certificates and specialise in business law. None of them are New Zealand lawyers or hold a New Zealand practising certificate.

Sprintlaw NZ Limited is a legal consultancy, not a law firm, and is not regulated by the New Zealand Law Society. We don't act in court or tribunal matters, conveyancing (including leases and business sales) or other reserved areas of work. Communications with Sprintlaw are unlikely to be protected by legal professional privilege. We still keep everything confidential under our engagement letter.