Buy or sell radiation sources

The following legal obligations on buying or selling radiation sources are outlined in Section 31 of the Radiation Safety Act 2016.

Buying radiation sources

If you are purchasing a radiation source, you must do the following before dealing with the source.

• Register the radiation source with the Office of Radiation Safety. Refer to How to register a radiation source.
• Apply for and be issued with the appropriate source licence authorising possession of the source at the intended facility or location. Refer to Apply for a radiation source licence.
• Hold a use licence, if the intended use isn’t authorised by the source licence. Refer to About radiation use licences.

Selling radiation sources

• Radiation sources must only be sold to someone in New Zealand who is authorised to possess said radiation sources (i.e. someone who holds a current and appropriate source licence for that type of source). The seller is responsible for ensuring the buyer holds a current and appropriate licence.
• If you are selling a radiation source to someone, you are required to notify the Office of Radiation Safety of any change in location or possession.
• All new radiation sources must be registered upon entering New Zealand. If the source is being imported on behalf of a client/buyer, then it should be registered with the client/buyer.
• If no change notification is received, the source will remain registered to the seller.

When the radiation source is in transit

Sources in transit to a buyer

If radiation sources are sold and temporarily held at a warehouse by the seller (as an intermediary location) on the way to the buyer, the sources must be registered to the buyer’s location, and only the buyer needs to hold a source licence.

Unsold stock by the seller

If a seller is holding radiation sources in New Zealand for sale, but the source is not yet sold, the seller must hold the appropriate source licence, and the sources must be registered to the seller.

Additional requirements

Disposal of radiation sources

Refer to the Disposal of radiation sources page for more information and requirements.

Removal of irradiating apparatus from New Zealand

If removing the source from New Zealand’s jurisdiction, submit a change notification to update its status and mark it as exported.

Removal of radioactive material from New Zealand’s jurisdiction

An export consent is required to export radioactive material. Refer to What you need to do to apply for consent. 

After export, you must also submit a change notification to update the status of the registered source and remove it from your ownership in the register.

Importing irradiating apparatus

On arrival of irradiating apparatus into New Zealand, the irradiating apparatus must be registered.

Questions about buying or selling

If you have questions about buying or selling radiation sources, please contact [email protected].