Understanding bail

Bail means the person who is charged with an offence is allowed to stay in the community until their next court appearance. They must follow bail conditions (rules) set by police or a judge.

The court or police grant bail and set the conditions the person who is charged with an offence will have to follow. You may be asked your views about bail conditions.

Police bail

If the person who is charged with an offence is on police bail, they are released and are required to follow bail conditions set by police. 

Court bail

If the person who is charged with an offence is on court bail, they are released and are required to follow bail conditions set by a judicial officer. 

Bail conditions are rules that a person charged with an offence must follow while they are released on bail. This includes that they must show up to their next court appearance.  
 
Other bail conditions can also apply, such as: 

• living at a specified address
• not contacting you or witnesses directly or through someone else
• staying away from certain places (for example, your home, workplace, or suburb)
• following a curfew (being at home during set hours)
• reporting to a police station at certain times
• not consuming alcohol or drugs, and sometimes being tested
• surrendering their passport (to prevent leaving the country)
• wearing an electronic monitoring device (EM bail) (wearing an ankle bracelet and staying at an approved address).  

The person who is charged must follow their bail conditions even if another court order is in place. For example, a protection order may allow contact between you in some cases, if you agree to that. But if their bail conditions say they must not contact you, they cannot contact you while that bail condition is in place.

If the person contacts you or comes near you when their bail conditions prohibit that, or does something that may break their bail conditions, you can report it to police.
 
In an emergency, or if you feel unsafe, always call 111.

Otherwise, you can also:  

• call 105 or contact the police officer in charge of your case
• speak to your Court Victim Advisor, you can freephone them on 0800 650 654
• freephone the Victims Information Line on 0800 650 654. 

If it feels safe, it can be helpful to keep any messages, calls, screenshots, or other information that may show what happened. 

If you are a victim of a specified offence under the Victims’ Rights Act 2002, the prosecutor needs to make all reasonable efforts to find out what your views on bail are and let the court know. In the Act, this includes victims of sexual violence, serious assault, serious injury, death, incapacity, or another offence that has caused ongoing fears for physical safety or security. 

Your views can help influence bail conditions, especially where it relates to your safety and the safety of your family and whānau. Your views will be shared by the prosecutor to the court before bail decisions are finalised.  
 
The person charged with an offence will be present. If you are worried about what the person who harmed you may be told, you can talk to the police officer in charge of your case or your Court Victim Advisor. They can talk with you about how your information may be used.  
 
Find out about who is covered as a victim of a specified offence and the rights that may apply in Part 3 of the Victims’ Rights Act 2002(external link)

Under the Victims' Rights Act 2002, victims of specified offences must be notified about some types of bail conditions as soon as practicable. This includes any bail conditions that are about:

• your safety
• the safety of your family and whānau
• the person not contacting you or your immediate family
• the person not associating with you or your immediate family.
• You can also nominate someone else (your representative) to receive that notice for you.

You or your representative must also be told if these conditions are later changed, removed, or replaced. The Police officer in charge will notify you, or your Court Victim Advisor. You can choose how to be contacted and receive information about bail decisions that relate to your safety.

Victims' Rights Act 2002 | New Zealand Legislation(external link)