End of Life Choice Act 2019

End of Life Choice Act 2019
New Zealand Parliament
Citation2019 No 67
Territorial extentNew Zealand
Passed byHouse of Representatives
Passed13 November 2019
Royal assent16 November 2019
Commenced7 November 2021
Legislative history
Bill titleEnd of Life Choice Bill
Bill citation269-3
Introduced byDavid Seymour
Introduced8 June 2017
Committee responsibleJustice Committee
First reading13 December 2017
Voting summary
  • 76 voted for
  • 44 voted against
Second reading26 June 2019
Voting summary
  • 70 voted for
  • 50 voted against
Third reading13 November 2019
Voting summary
  • 69 voted for
  • 51 voted against
Status: Current legislation

The End of Life Choice Act 2019 is an Act of Parliament in New Zealand that gives people with a terminal illness the option of receiving assisted suicide or euthanasia.[a][2] The act came into force on 7 November 2021, twelve months after the 2020 euthanasia referendum was declared in favour of the legislation.[3]

Political progress towards the act began in 2015, when ACT Party MP David Seymour entered it into the member's bill ballot.[4] The bill passed its first reading in December 2017, its second reading in June 2019,[5][6] and its third reading in November 2019, with 69 votes in favour and 51 opposed.[7] Changes introduced by New Zealand First before the third reading required that the bill would go to referendum to be introduced into law. A binding referendum was held in conjunction with the 2020 general election on whether the act should come into force,[8] with a majority of voters (65%) in favour.[9]

  1. ^ "Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Health, Departmental Report - New Zealand Parliament". www.parliament.nz. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  2. ^ "End of Life Choice Bill (as at 23 October 2019), Explanatory note". New Zealand Legislation: Bills. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
  3. ^ "End of Life Choice Act implementation". Ministry of Health NZ. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
  4. ^ Seymour, David. "Seymour lodges assisted dying Bill" (Press release). ACT New Zealand. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  5. ^ "Euthanasia bill passes second reading". The New Zealand Herald. 26 June 2019. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
  6. ^ "Euthanasia bill passes second reading in Parliament". Radio New Zealand. 26 June 2019. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
  7. ^ Henry Cooke (13 November 2019). "MPs vote in favour of End of Life Choice Bill at final reading". Stuff. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  8. ^ "Euthanasia bill passes final vote, goes to referendum". The New Zealand Herald. 13 November 2019. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
  9. ^ "Official referendum results released | Elections". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 6 November 2020.


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