Source: Radio New Zealand
Authors have to confirm their eligibility for payment every year, whether or not they have new books in libraries. Google Maps
Authors who missed out on a payment for having books in the library are receiving the money they are owed.
RNZ reported in February that 318 authors had received an email in error in July confirming they were registered for the Public Lending Right scheme, when they were not actually registered.
The Public Lending Right (PLR) scheme makes a payment to authors each year, when they have sufficient books in New Zealand libraries.
The payments are made in December from a government fund of $2.4 million. In 2025 there were 1541 registered and the per-book rate was $5.19.
Authors have to confirm their eligibility for payment every year, whether or not they have new books in libraries.
National librarian Te Pouhuaki Rachel Esson said in a statement on Thursday that 46 of those people had been identified as being eligible for a payment this year.
“We sincerely apologise for our failure to do that, and for the inconvenience it has caused.
“Authors are now being contacted directly regarding the outcome of our investigations and explaining next steps. We are reviewing the PLR administrative process, and the scheme’s usability to prevent this error from happening again.”
She said the 46 eligible authors who did not receive a payment had been offered the amount they would have received if their registration had been successfully processed.
“This payment comes from existing sources of National Library funding and is based on the 2025 book rate.”
Another 272 people had been contacted to confirm they were not eligible for a payment last year. Authors must have at least 50 copies of their book in a library to qualify.
“Our investigations have found that they were not eligible for the 2025 PLR round and/or did not attempt to register before 1 March 2025. Accordingly, they will not be receiving a payment in connection with the 2025 PLR round.
“We have had useful feedback from authors about how the registration process could be improved. A key recommendation from authors is an automated response in real-time to let them know that their registration has been received would resolve many concerns. In the absence of an automated email for the 2026 year, we have been manually sending acknowledgment of registration.
“The Public Lending Right Advisory Group, consisting of members from the New Zealand Society of Authors, the Library and Information Association, the Ministry of Culture and Heritage, and the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment, met in March to discuss the ongoing review of the PLR Scheme and will continue to do so over the coming months.”
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
