Getting started in the New Zealand Emissions Trading Register. User Guide

Transcription

1 Getting started in the New Zealand Emissions Trading Register User Guide

2 2 About this user guide The purpose of this guide is to give you general information about getting set up and using the Emissions Trading Register (the Register) online. You may also want to read the Managing your account and Being a participant guides. This guide provides information on: becoming a user of the Register understanding accounts and Account Holders understanding and managing roles. Contact us You can get more information through the Environmental Protection Authority website at or by ing us at info@emissionsregister.govt.nz. You can also phone 0800 CLIMATE ( ) or Or send a letter to: Private Bag Wellington 6140 Disclaimer All reasonable effort has been made to ensure that the information provided in this publication is accurate, up to date, and otherwise adequate in all respects. Nevertheless, this information is made available strictly on the basis that the Environmental Protection Authority disclaims any and all responsibility for any inaccuracy, error, omission, lateness, deficiency or flaw in, or in relation to, the information; and fully excludes any and all liability of any kind to any person or entity that chooses to rely upon the information. In the event of any uncertainty, please obtain independent legal advice before undertaking any action. Unless stated otherwise, any legislative reference is a reference to the Climate Change Response Act 2002 (the Act).

3 3 Introduction What is the New Zealand Emissions Trading Register? The New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme was created to help New Zealand reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to meet its obligations under the Kyoto Protocol. The New Zealand Emissions Trading Register is the national registry for these emission units. The Register acts like a bank, but it holds emission units instead of money. Anyone who wants to own or trade emissions units in New Zealand must have an account in the Register. It holds all the emission units in New Zealand, including those owned by the Crown. Reasons to register as a user You should register as a user if you want to take any part in the Emissions Trading Scheme. This may be because you want to: open an account for yourself or your business do something on behalf of someone else. If you have registered as a user previously, you do not need to do this again. You do not need to register as a user if you are searching for public information. How do I register? Register (all users) 1. Create a RealMe account, or log in with your existing RealMe account. RealMe is a government service that lets you easily and securely prove your identity online. You can follow the link on the public front page of the Register to go to the RealMe website. 2. Once you have logged in with your RealMe login, you can follow the prompts to register as a user of the New Zealand Emissions Trading Register at What s next? There are two paths you can take after you register as a user. You can open an account for yourself or your business get your invite code and be assigned to a role on behalf of someone else.

4 4 Open an account (for me) You can make an application to Open an account for a new Account Holder. The link to start this application is on your landing page in the Register. Before you start, be prepared to provide details about the Account Holder(s), contact details, and any activities you are registering as a participant. To open an additional account for an existing Account Holder, navigate to the Account Holder, then Accounts and transactions and select Open account from the left-hand menu. You will complete these forms online; however, if any owners of the Account Holder are not online users of the Register, you will have to upload a signed copy of their forms for them. Get assigned to my role (for someone else s account) To be assigned a role on behalf of a Participant, select my details on the home page when you first log in. Scroll to the bottom of the page to System details for your invite code. Provide this code to the Account Holder. When your role is approved, the next time you log in you ll be able to access everything you need for your new role.

5 5 Accounts and Account Holders What is an Account Holder? An Account Holder owns and is legally responsible for an account and any units in the account. It may be one person, or several, or a business or other entity. All Participants in the ETS must be Account Holders. View Account Holder If you are linked to only one Account Holder, you will be directed straight to My tasks for this Account Holder when you log in. If you have roles for several different Account Holders, you should select the relevant Account Holder from the list at the right on your home page. Once you select an Account Holder, you can choose from the left-hand navigation: Users and Account Holders lets you manage the roles for this Account Holder. Accounts and transactions lets you view and manage your accounts. ETS activities is where you can view emissions returns, apply for an industrial allocation and start other ETS activities, as well as view and manage ETS Reporters and other related information. Communications to view copies of formal letters sent by the Register. Reports to see information about the Account Holder. Alerts to view notices about the Register

6 6 What is an account? Accounts hold units, and you need to have one if you want to receive, hold, transfer and/or surrender units. An Account Holder can have more than one account. View your account To view an account, select Accounts and transactions from the left-hand menu, then select the relevant account from the table. This summary screen displays your account details, unit details, transaction history, any security interests, and the account s history. Once you have selected an account, you can use the left-hand menu to view and manage its Account Operators and security interests, prepare a transaction, view reports, or make an application to close the account.

7 7 My tasks When you log in, or select the Account Holder you want to work with, you ll be redirected to your My tasks screen. This is the nerve centre of your access in the Register, where you can view and manage your applications. This screen helps you manage your tasks and fulfil your obligations, for example by alerting you to upcoming surrender obligations or protecting the integrity of your accounts by asking you to approve a role change. The due date for each task is listed alongside the task, so you can be sure to stay on top of what you need to do. If other people also have permission to carry out a pending task, you will all be able to view the task in your own work queue until one of you claims the task.

8 8 Roles who does what? Account Holders are responsible for all their obligations as an Account Holder, and for their accounts. However, they may appoint other people to carry out some or all of their duties in the Register. Account Holders themselves may or may not be online users of the Register. There are mandatory and optional roles in the Register, which Account Holders can do themselves, or assign to other people. Every account in the Register must have at least one Account Operator. This role operates the account and receives notices from the Register, and may prepare and approve transactions. If the Account Holder is a participant (i.e. registers an activity), they must also appoint an ETS Reporter. The ETS Reporter is responsible for reporting the participant s emissions data.

9 9 When assigning users to these roles, you can choose whether one person can submit alone, or you can appoint two or more people for extra security: full role: one or more users who may prepare and approve emissions data and transactions alone, or split role: Preparers, who are only able to prepare returns; and Approvers, who can prepare and approve. Account Holders may appoint an Authorised Person to sign declarations on their behalf. This role is particularly useful for trusts, otherwise all trustees would have to sign as the Account Holder. Account Holders may also appoint a Power of Attorney to act with the full authority of the Account Holder. You must supply the relevant court order with any application to appoint a Power of Attorney.

10 10 Assigning roles Before you apply to open an account or set up an Account Holder, make sure everyone who will have an online role has registered as a user This is because you will need each person s invite code to assign them to a role. The invite code is needed to assign each person to their role. All users can find their unique invite code on their My details page.

11 11 Reporting Two kinds of reports can be found in the Register. Users can find reports related to their own accounts and Account Holders in the Reports section of the left-hand menu under the relevant Account Holder. The easiest way to access transaction reports is to navigate to the relevant Account Holder, select the account, and you can then view and export transaction details. You can also select reports from the left-hand menu to view available reports for your account/s. On the public landing page of the Register (before you log in) there is a link to Public information and reports. You can click here to search for publicly-available information such as all open accounts, or the Annual Emissions Trading Scheme Reports. Notifications and communications The EPA will send formal communications about activities and emission returns to the communications page for each Account Holder. We ll send generic information about accounts and reminders by or in our newsletters. Browsers This Register will work best with the latest version of the following browsers: Internet Explorer version 11 Link to download: Google Chrome Link to download: Mozilla Firefox Link to download: Safari Link to download: If you are not using the latest version of these browsers, we advise that you upgrade your browser before becoming a Register user. If you use an older browser, or a browser that is not on our supported list, you may notice that some functions and features do not work or display perfectly.