Community Banking
Are you an incorporated society?
Re-register by 5 April 2026 for continued access to your NBS accounts
If your incorporated society hasn’t re-registered under the Incorporated Societies Act 2022 by 5 April 2026, your banking services with NBS will be disrupted, so this is something you’ll want to address very soon.
You could win $500 for your incorporated society (terms apply).
To be in with a chance to win, let us know if you've already re-registered or what your intentions are, so that we can continue to support your community banking needs.
The good news
Why this matters
- your society's NBS accounts being restricted or closed
- delays in payments and transactions
- extra work for your committee and members - you'll have to start afresh as a new incorporated society
What you need to do
- Check your society’s status - visit the Companies Office Incorporated Societies Register and see if you’ve already re-registered (or if you’re already registered under the Incorporated Societies Act 2022).
- Decide whether you want to remain as an incorporated society – you may not be active anymore or you’ve completed the purpose your society was originally set up for. Read our frequently asked questions for more information about what happens if you don’t re-register. If your society doesn't want to re-register, you’ll need to distribute the funds from your NBS account(s) before 5 April 2026.
- Re-register. If you re-register you’ll need to provide information to the Companies Office including:
- a constitution that meets the requirements of the 2022 Act
- contact details for your society
- details of committee members and other officers
- a start date
- Once you’ve re-registered, let us know. This helps us keep our records up to date and minimise impact to your society’s banking.
Keeping us informed
The changes that you want to make to your society will determine the information we’ll need from you and how we treat your accounts after 5 April 2026.
Use this guide to help you understand what we’ll do and complete our form so we can understand your status or intentions.
| Changes you're making | What you need to do for your NBS accounts | What we'll do |
| Re-registering with no changes to governance |
After re-registering with the Companies Office, there is nothing else you need to do. Please let us know of your new re-registration date using the form below. |
There is nothing for us to do. |
| Re-registering with changes to governance |
Check your banking details are correct. This may include account operation and signing authorities and internet banking access. New officers and signatories will need to provide ID and proof of address information. They may need to fill out additional forms. Detail of our identification requirements can be found here. |
Updated client due diligence. Collect and verify ID and proof of address for the key people (officers, signatories) involved in your society. Make the account authority changes in our systems. |
| Not re-registering |
If you don't re-register with the Companies Office by 5 April 2026, you need to be aware of your incorporated society's legislative obligations and the implications of not re-registering. Please let us know your intentions by completing the form below. |
If you don't register by 5 April 2026, your accounts will be frozen. Thie means you'll be unable to access your funds or transact on your account. |
| Closing your incorporated society |
Get in touch with your personal banker to organise closing your accounts. Please let us know your intentions by completing the form below. |
Close your accounts, redistribute any assets as instructed by the Registrar of Incorporated Societies and cover off outstanding lending obligations. |
| Changing your entity type to a company or partnership |
Get in touch with your personal banker to chat through changes you'd like to make. Please let us know your intentions by completing the form below. |
We may have to close your accounts under the old society and reopen accounts under the new type of entity. We will need to onboard the new entity. We'll need to set up new account authorities or amalgamate existing authorities, term investments and internet banking. This will involve closing and reopening accounts in the name of the new entity after completing client due diligence. |
| Changing your entity type to a charity or trust |
Get in touch with your personal banker to chat through changes you'd like to make. Please let us know your intentions by completing the form below. |
We'll update your details. We'll need to complete client due diligence on any new entity that will replace your incorporated society. |
Helpful links
Frequently asked questions
The deadline for re-registering is 5 April 2026, but don’t leave it until the last minute. Starting now gives you time to update your society’s constitution, adopt it at an annual general meeting or a special general meeting and register it via the Companies Office website. Read more about the steps you need to take to apply to re-register.
Your society will cease to exist as a legal entity and your bank accounts will be frozen and could be closed. It’s much easier to act now than to have to fix problems later. You can read more about what happens if you don’t re-register.
Yes, the new Act has specific requirements for constitutions, so you’ll need to update yours before re-registering. Read more information on what your new constitution needs to include. The Companies Office constitution builder tool is a great way to begin drafting your new constitution.
The Incorporated Societies section of the Companies Office website has great resources and templates to guide you through the process.
Start here: re-register your incorporated society You may also wish to consider receiving legal advice on these changes.
The main thing to remember
If you want to remain as an incorporated society, then re-registration is mandatory, but doable. Take a few minutes today to check your status and start the process. And let us know your intentions so that we can help you to continue to access and manage your accounts with us.
Let us know your plans
Prize draw terms and conditions
NBS Incorporated Societies Act 2022 prize draw promotion terms and conditions apply. There is one cash prize of $500 ('Prize') to be won.
The promotional period dates ('Promotional Period') are: 4 December 2025 - 27 February 2026. Draw date: Monday 2 March 2026, Announcement date: Friday 6 March 2026.
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