New Zealand bank account number

New Zealand bank account numbers in NZD follow a standardised format of 16 digits:

  • a prefix representing the bank and branch (six digits), otherwise known as the Bank code;
  • the body (seven digits); and
  • the suffix representing the product/account type (two or three digits).

While the New Zealand format is similar to Australia's Bank State Branch, the two systems are not interchangeable.

New Zealand bank account numbers in foreign currencies vary by bank.

Background

The origins of the format lay in the establishment of the Databank Systems Limited, a company set up by a consortium of competing New Zealand banks, to provide computing resources (development and operational) for the consortium members.[1]

Bank codes are coordinated by Payments NZ who administer the Bulk Electronic Clearing System (BECS). The scope of BECS includes direct debits, automatic payments, bill payments, and direct credits.[2] Payments NZ also administer the following payment systems in New Zealand:[3]

  • Paper Clearing System
  • High Value Clearing System
  • Consumer Electronic Clearing System

Format of account numbers

Account numbers are generally presented in the format:

BB-bbbb-AAAAAAA-SSS

where B is the bank number (2 digits), b is the branch number (4 digits), A is the account number (7 digits) and S are digits of the suffix (2 or 3 digits). Where a bank displays the suffix as two digits, a leading zero is added to pad the suffix to three digits; i.e. BB-bbbb-AAAAAAA-SS becomes BB-bbbb-AAAAAAA-0SS.

This format allows customers to have a single account number with differing suffixes for multiple accounts of differing types. This does not include credit card and loan products.

Account number prefix

Bank accounts are prefixed with six digits, two indicating the bank and four which indicate the branch. The table below shows which banks are allocated which bank prefix. A current list of branches as their associated bank/branch numbers is available for download from the Payments NZ website.

Bank name Bank prefix Branch range
ANZ 01, 04,[4] 06 and 11 (see below) 0001–5699
BNZ 02 0001–1299
The Co-operative Bank 02 1242, 1245–1250 (agency arrangement via BNZ)
Westpac 03 0001–1999
Heartland 03
Kookmin Bank 02 Agency arrangement via BNZ
NZCU 03 Agency arrangement via Westpac
Rabobank New Zealand 03 0001–1999
China Construction Bank New Zealand 05 8884-8889
National Bank of New Zealand[a] now ANZ 06 0001–1499
National Australia Bank 08 0000–9999
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China 10 5165—5169
PostBank[a] 11 5000–8999
ASB 12 3000–3999
Trust Bank Southland[a] 13 4900–4999
Trust Bank Otago[a] 14 4700–4799
TSB 15 3900–3999
Trust Bank Canterbury[a] 16 4400–4499
Trust Bank Waikato[a] 17 3300–3399
Trust Bank Bay of Plenty[a] 18 3500–3599
Trust Bank South Canterbury[a] 19 4600–4649
Trust Bank Auckland[a] 21 4800–4899
Trust Bank Central[a] 20 4100–4199
Trust Bank Wanganui[a] 22 4000–4049
Westland Bank[a] 24 4300–4349
Trust Bank Wellington[a] 23 3700–3799
Countrywide[a] 25 2500–2599
United Bank[a] 29 0000–9999
HSBC 30 2900–2956
Citibank 31 2800–2849
Kiwibank 38 9000–9499
Bank of China 88 8800-8805
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o This bank no longer trades under this name or is defunct.

Transferwise as of 2024 uses bank prefix 04.

Account number body

The account body consists of seven digits, right adjusted and padded with zeroes if necessary. The last digit of the body is a check digit which can be validated using a modulus algorithm.[5]

Account number suffix

The table below shows the account number suffixes as introduced by Databank Systems Limited from 1969.[1] [6]

Type of account Suffix
Cheque Account 00
Number 2 Account 02
Fixed Account 03
Savings Account 30
Credit Card Account 40
Thrift Club Account 50
Term Deposit Account 81

Some banks (such as BNZ) include three digits of the suffix in their presentation of the number to the end customer. Other banks only show the last two digits of the suffix to the end customer. Technically, all banks have three digit suffixes, it's just that the first digit of the suffix is always 0 so it's usually ignored.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Databank Systems Limited, Computing a Nation, c1988, 16 page booklet
  2. ^ Payments NZ website, description of Bulk Electronic Clearing System, accessed 30/05/2013
  3. ^ Payments NZ website, list of all payment systems, accessed 30/05/2013
  4. ^ "Bank Branch Register". Payments NZ. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
  5. ^ "Non-Resident Withholding Tax And Resident Withholding Tax Specification Document For the year ending 31 March 2016" (PDF). Inland Revenue / Te Tari Taake. 16 January 2019. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 October 2018. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  6. ^ "IBAN Checker". randommer.io. Retrieved 20 September 2020.