TL;DR: Producer statements are professional opinions, written on industry forms, telling the building consent authority (BCA) that a piece of design or construction work meets the Building Code. PS1 and PS2 cover design and support the building consent. PS3 and PS4 cover construction and support the code compliance certificate (CCC). The Building Act 2004 doesn't mention them: the council takes them as evidence for its own "reasonable grounds" test and decides how much weight each one gets.
Producer statements come up on almost every consented job in New Zealand that goes past a standard timber-framed house. The engineer's design comes with one. The membrane installer hands one over at the end. Often the council's list of conditions asks you, the builder, for one too. Ask five people on site what a PS1, PS2, PS3 or PS4 actually means and you'll probably get five different answers. This guide covers what each statement says, who signs it, when a council asks for it, what your own PS3 commits you to, and how to keep the whole set together so the CCC isn't held up for want of one form.
What are producer statements, and why does the Building Act not mention them?
The Building Act 2004 has no section on producer statements. What the Act does is set a test. Under section 49, a BCA must grant a building consent if it is satisfied on reasonable grounds that the provisions of the Building Code would be met if the work were done to the plans and specifications. Under section 94, it must issue a CCC if it is satisfied on reasonable grounds that the work complies with the building consent.
Producer statements are one way councils get to "reasonable grounds" without redoing every check themselves. The forms were developed by the industry's professional bodies, not by government. The forms were first drawn up by a committee of the New Zealand Institute of Architects, Engineering New Zealand and ACE New Zealand, and the engineering versions most councils now see (PS1, PS2 and PS4) were revised in 2021 and are published by Engineering New Zealand and ACE New Zealand. MBIE's guidance on producer statements at building.govt.nz describes them as a professional opinion based on sound judgement and specialist expertise. It also says plainly that a producer statement is not a product warranty or a guarantee of compliance, and that it has no particular status under the Act.
For you, that means three things:
- No council is required to accept one. A producer statement is one source of information the BCA may rely on, and it's not automatic.
- The author matters as much as the form. Councils judge whether the person signing is competent in that field. A correctly filled-in form from the wrong person can be given little weight.
- Policies differ between councils. Each BCA sets its own producer statement policy, including whose statements it will accept and in what form. Check your council's policy before you rely on a particular signer.
Law reform is also under way. A Building Amendment Bill was introduced to Parliament on 29 June 2026 and is before a select committee due to report by 30 December 2026, with proposals including proportionate liability and compulsory professional indemnity insurance for design professionals. Before you assume the position above is unchanged, check building.govt.nz for what has passed.
What do PS1, PS2, PS3 and PS4 each say?
There are four statements. Two cover design and are lodged with the consent application. Two cover construction and are lodged towards the CCC.
- PS1, design. The designer states that their design complies with named clauses of the Building Code. MBIE's guidance says a PS1 should name the specific clause or clauses the design meets and how it meets them: through an Acceptable Solution, a Verification Method or a specific engineered design. A typical example is a structural engineer's PS1 for B1 Structure covering a portal frame or a foundation outside the scope of the standard you would otherwise build to.
- PS2, design review. A second, independent design professional states that they have reviewed someone else's design and agree it complies. Councils ask for these where the original designer isn't someone they accept outright, or where the design is complex enough to need a peer review.
- PS3, construction. The person who did the work states that it has been carried out to the consented plans and specifications and the relevant Building Code clauses. It's usually issued by the contractor or installer: the builder, the membrane applicator, the fire-stopping installer, the balustrade fabricator.
- PS4, construction review. The design professional who monitored construction states that they have reviewed the contractor's work and that it was built to the consented design. It sits on top of the engineer's site inspections and depends on them. An engineer can't sign a PS4 for work they never saw.
The pairing is easy to remember. PS1 and PS3 are the people who did the design and the build. PS2 and PS4 are the people who checked them.
Who signs each producer statement?
The form names a role, and the council decides whether the person in that role is acceptable.
- PS1 and PS2 are signed by design professionals, most often structural, geotechnical or fire engineers. Many councils accept engineering producer statements from Chartered Professional Engineers (CPEng) and from others they consider qualified and experienced in that field. Some councils, Auckland among them, keep a register of authors they've approved.
- PS3 is signed by whoever carried out the work. For a proprietary system that's often a certified installer of that product. For general building work it can be the builder. Where the work is restricted building work, councils commonly want the PS3 author to be an LBP holding the relevant licence class, or a member of a relevant trade or professional body.
- PS4 is signed by the design professional who did or supervised the construction monitoring, usually the same engineering firm that issued the PS1. Since a 2024 Court of Appeal ruling that an inaccurate PS4 can expose the engineer to criminal liability under the Building Act, ACE New Zealand and Engineering New Zealand have issued guidance on PS4s, so ask your engineer early which level of construction monitoring they're working to.
Don't sign a PS3 for work you didn't do or supervise, and don't accept a PS3 from a subcontractor who can't show the council they're competent in that trade. Either way the statement is weaker than it looks on paper.
When does a building consent authority ask for producer statements?
Most of the time the council's requirement shows up in one of two places.
At consent. If the design includes specific engineering, the BCA will usually want a PS1 from the designer with the application, and possibly a PS2. A house built entirely within NZS 3604 may need no engineering producer statement at all. Once a beam, a foundation or a bracing element goes outside the scope of that standard, it needs specific design and a PS1 normally follows. Our NZS 3604 explainer covers what the standard deals with and where specific design takes over. For the wider consent process, see Building Consent Explained.
In the consent conditions. When the consent is issued, the council often lists the producer statements it'll want before it issues the CCC. Typical items are a PS4 for structural or seismic elements the engineer is monitoring, and a PS3 for external waterproofing membranes, proprietary cladding systems, fire-stopping or barriers. Some councils have you agree this list up front. Auckland Council, for example, has a producer statement construction agreement form that sets out which items need a PS3 and which need a PS4.
Read those conditions the day the consent arrives, not the week you apply for the CCC. Every producer statement on that list is a document someone else has to produce, and the council can withhold the CCC until it has them.
Building work exempt under Schedule 1 of the Building Act 2004 needs no consent, so there's no consent condition asking for producer statements, though an engineer may still issue an A-series statement (PS1A, PS2A or PS4A) for exempt work they designed or monitored. The work still has to comply with the Building Code.
What does signing a PS3 commit a builder to?
A PS3 is short, and signing it is a bigger step than it looks. When you sign one you're telling the council that:
- the work described was carried out by you or under your supervision
- it was built to the consented plans and specifications, including any amendments
- it complies with the Building Code clauses the form names
The council may then rely on that statement instead of inspecting the work itself. That's the point of a producer statement, and it's also why you carry a professional responsibility for what you've signed. MBIE describes producer statements as professional opinions, and an opinion you've put your name to can be tested later if the work fails. Before you sign:
- Make the scope exact. Name the property, the consent number, the drawings and spec sections, and the work actually covered. "All building work" on a job with five subcontractors overstates what you can stand behind.
- List the clauses you can speak to. E2 External moisture for the cladding you installed is reasonable. B1 Structure for an engineered steel frame someone else erected is not.
- Attach the evidence. Photos at key stages, product installation records and any amendment approvals belong with the PS3, not in someone's phone.
- Check your cover. Ask your insurer or lawyer whether your professional indemnity or contract works policy responds to statements you sign, and whether your contract sets out who is to provide them.
If you're an LBP, keep your licence in mind too. The Building Practitioners Board hears complaints about LBPs' conduct, and certifying work you didn't do or supervise is a quick way to end up in front of it.
How is a PS3 different from a record of work?
Builders mix these two up more often than anything else, and councils frequently want both on the same job.
A record of work is statutory. Section 88 of the Building Act 2004 requires an LBP to provide a record of work for the restricted building work they carried out or supervised. It lists each element, such as foundations, framing, roof or external moisture management, and says whether the LBP did it or supervised it. It's a licensing requirement, and the council puts it on the property file.
A PS3 is non-statutory. It's an opinion that specific work complies with the consent and named Code clauses, and the council chooses whether to rely on it.
Some council PS3 forms ask you to attach your record of work as supporting evidence. They aren't interchangeable, though: a record of work doesn't replace a PS3 the consent conditions ask for, and a PS3 doesn't meet your section 88 obligation. Designers have a matching document. An LBP who designs restricted building work provides a certificate of work under section 45 of the Act, and MBIE says it's good practice to attach any related producer statements and reference them in it.
How do you keep the set together for the CCC?
The CCC is where missing producer statements hurt. One late PS4 from a busy engineer can hold up final sign-off for weeks, along with retentions and settlement. A simple system prevents most of it:
- Build a register from the consent conditions. List every producer statement the council has asked for, with the item it covers, the type (PS3 or PS4), who owes it and when.
- Put the requirement in every subcontract. MBIE's guidance tells owners to make sure each contractor's engagement includes providing the producer statement at completion. Do the same with your subbies, so the membrane installer knows their PS3 is part of the job and not a favour.
- Book the engineer's monitoring visits into the programme. No observation means no PS4. If a hold point is missed and the work gets covered, the engineer may not be able to sign at all.
- Collect as you go. Chase each statement as soon as that trade finishes, while they still have the paperwork and still want the final payment.
- Check every form before filing it. Right property, right consent number, current drawing revisions, named clauses, signed and dated by someone your council accepts.
- Lodge the set together. Send the producer statements, records of work and any other documents the conditions require with the CCC application, in the format your council asks for.
Councils' CCC processes and lodgement systems vary, so check your BCA's checklist for the final application before you start chasing paperwork.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a building consent authority have to accept a producer statement? No. Producer statements have no particular status under the Building Act 2004, and MBIE's guidance treats them as one source of information a BCA may rely on when deciding whether it has reasonable grounds. Each council sets its own policy on whose statements it accepts and may ask for more evidence.
Can a builder sign a PS1? A PS1 is a design statement, so it's signed by the person responsible for the design, usually an engineer or another design professional the council accepts in that field. A builder signs a PS3 for construction work they carried out or supervised.
Is a PS3 the same as an LBP record of work? No. A record of work is required by section 88 of the Building Act 2004 for restricted building work an LBP carried out or supervised. A PS3 is a non-statutory opinion that the work complies with the consent and named Building Code clauses. Councils often ask for both.
What happens if a subcontractor won't provide their PS3? The council may refuse the CCC until it has enough evidence that the work complies, which could mean other evidence, extra inspections or opening up work for checking. Make the PS3 a written condition of every subcontract and collect it before the final payment.
Do I need producer statements for work that doesn't need a building consent? Work exempt under Schedule 1 of the Building Act 2004 needs no building consent, so there's no consent condition calling for producer statements, though an engineer who designed or monitored exempt work may issue an A-series statement (PS1A, PS2A or PS4A) for your records. The work must still comply with the Building Code, and keeping your own records of how it does is still sensible.
Keep the consent paperwork with the job
Built Simple keeps each job's drawings, specs, consent conditions, approvals and the producer statements you're chasing in one place, so the whole set is ready when the CCC application goes in. Free to start.
