Dear Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment,

The Immigration Act 2009 gives immigration officers, and the department, various powers of arrest and detention, either without warrant or under a warrant of commitment. I would like to request the following information under the OIA:

* how many people are currently detained under section 312 (Limited power of detention for up to 4 hours)? How many have been detained under this section in the past year?
* how many people are currently detained under section 313 (Initial period of detention for up to 96 hours without warrant)? How many have been detained under this section in the past year? If there are statistics available on the average length of detention, or a breakdown of detention periods (0-24 hours, 24-48 hours etc), then I'd like a copy.
* how many people are currently detained under a warrant of commitment (sections 316-324)? If statistics are kept, I'd like a breakdown of detention periods; if anyone has been held longer than 6 months, I'd like a breakdown of their nationality and their length of detention in days.
* how many people have been detained under a warrant of commitment in the past year? If there are statistics available on the average length of detention, or a breakdown of detention periods (1-7 days, 8-14 days etc), then I'd like a copy.
* Is anyone currently detained under s163 (Deportation liability of persons threatening security), or has anyone been detained under this clause in the past year?

I would prefer to receive an electronic response. Queries about
this request will be automatically forwarded to me by the
fyi.org.nz website.

Yours faithfully,

Alex Harris