Guide

Can I remove asbestos myself in New Zealand?

The Health and Safety at Work (Asbestos) Regulations 2016 place their duties on PCBUs — businesses, landlords and anyone you hire — not on a homeowner-occupier working on their own home. WorkSafe still says doing it yourself is extremely dangerous. And as soon as you pay someone, the licensing thresholds apply to them.

Last checked 15 September 2026 · Published 15 September 2026 · Written and checked by the team at NZ Asbestos Removal

The short version

The regulations bind PCBUs. WorkSafe says its PCBU guidance is not intended for homeowner-occupiers and residential tenants working on their own home.
WorkSafe still says removing asbestos yourself is extremely dangerous and advises against it.
Hire anyone and the licence rules bite: more than 10 m² of non-friable needs Class B or A (reg 56), any friable needs Class A (reg 54).
Only a laboratory can confirm asbestos, and WorkSafe says the sample should be taken by a competent person.
Waste must go to a disposal site authorised to accept asbestos. Never burn it, never bin it.

What does New Zealand law actually say about DIY asbestos removal?

New Zealand's asbestos rules sit in the Health and Safety at Work (Asbestos) Regulations 2016, made under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015. That Act regulates PCBUs: persons conducting a business or undertaking. A builder, a landlord, a property manager, a removal company — all PCBUs. A homeowner scraping their own ceiling on a Saturday is not.

WorkSafe states this directly in its guidance for PCBUs: the guidelines "are not intended for… homeowner-occupiers and residential tenants" doing work on their own home (WorkSafe, Managing asbestos in your building or workplace).

That is a statement about who the regulations bind. It is not permission, and it is not advice that the work is safe.

What does WorkSafe advise about removing asbestos yourself?

WorkSafe's homeowner page is blunt: doing asbestos work yourself is extremely dangerous, and the safest course is to have a licensed remover do it (WorkSafe, Asbestos in the home). Asbestos-related disease follows fibres you cannot see, from exposures decades earlier. There is no safe threshold published for a one-off DIY job because nobody can measure what you breathed.

Do the rules change if I pay someone to do it?

Yes. Pay a builder, a handyman or a removal company and they become a PCBU doing asbestos work. The thresholds then decide who may touch it: any amount of friable asbestos needs a Class A licence (reg 54); more than 10 m² of non-friable, counted cumulatively across the whole project at that site, needs Class B or A (reg 56).

Below 10 m² of non-friable, no licence is required — but if you are the PCBU commissioning it, the person doing the work must still be a competent person trained under reg 17 (reg 27). Your builder cannot simply add it to the job because it is small.

Should I test the material before deciding anything?

You cannot tell by looking. WorkSafe says the only way to confirm asbestos is to have a sample tested, and that sampling should only be done by a reputable, competent contractor — not by you with a screwdriver and a sandwich bag. That is why we sell a surveyor visit rather than a DIY kit. Book an asbestos test for $249 including GST, or read what asbestos testing involves.

If you do proceed yourself

We are not going to publish a how-to for removing asbestos, because WorkSafe advises against doing it. What we will say is the part people most often get wrong: the waste. Asbestos must go to a disposal site authorised to accept it, and it must never be burned or put in a council bin (WorkSafe, Asbestos in the home). Ring your council and ask which local facility takes it, and what wrapping and labelling they require, before you disturb anything.

And if the material is damaged, crumbling or has been water-damaged, stop. Keep people away from it and get it tested before anyone goes near it again.

We are not a licence holder. NZ Asbestos Removal is not a WorkSafe asbestos licence holder. Removal we arrange is carried out by licensed partners named, with their licence class and number, on each quote.

How we make money, and why the clearance is independent

Sources

Every rule and price on this page was checked against its source on 15 September 2026.

Questions people ask

Is DIY asbestos removal illegal in New Zealand?

Not for a homeowner-occupier working on their own home: the Health and Safety at Work (Asbestos) Regulations 2016 place their duties on PCBUs, and WorkSafe says its PCBU guidance is not intended for homeowner-occupiers and residential tenants. WorkSafe still advises strongly against it.

How much asbestos can I remove without a licence?

If you commission the work as a PCBU, up to 10 m² of non-friable asbestos, counted cumulatively over the whole removal project at the site, can be removed without a licence — but by a competent person trained under reg 17 (reg 27). Any friable asbestos needs a Class A licence, whatever the quantity (reg 54).

Can my builder remove a small amount of asbestos for me?

Only within the licensing limits. Your builder is a PCBU: over 10 m² of non-friable they need a Class B or Class A licence (reg 56), any friable material needs Class A (reg 54), and under 10 m² the person doing it must be trained under reg 17.

Can I take my own sample and send it to a lab?

WorkSafe says asbestos sampling should only be done by a reputable contractor, and for PCBUs, only by a competent person. We do not sell DIY sampling kits for that reason. Our $249 test sends a surveyor to take the sample properly.

Where do I take asbestos waste?

To a disposal site authorised to accept asbestos. WorkSafe says never to burn it or put it in a council rubbish bin, and to contact your council to find the site that takes it locally.

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