Can I access protectively marked material that is higher than my national security clearance level?

In normal circumstance people must only be given access to information, resources or locations up to their clearance level.

However, sometimes an emergency may give rise to an urgent operational need for a clearance holder to access protectively marked information or resources above their clearance level.

What does “emergency access” mean?

• access where an urgent and critical operational need for access to particular material is established and there is insufficient  time to complete vetting inquiries and grant a higher level clearance
• access only to specified material required for the particular emergency
• access for no longer than the duration of the emergency
• access governed by a very strict application of the need-to-know principle.

What can your organisation do?

• During an emergency, a clearance holder’s chief executive, or their delegate, has the authority to grant a clearance holder temporary supervised access to protectively marked information or resources one level above their current national security clearance level.
• Non-clearance holders must not be granted emergency access to material protectively marked CONFIDENTIAL or higher.

Organisations must not use emergency access to grant a clearance holder access:

• for administrative or management purposes (such as helping them gain a position)
• when they are on reassigned duties while waiting for a security vetting recommendation (including a reclassification)
• to protectively marked information or resources that carry an endorsement or compartmented marking.

More detail about emergency access to protectively marked information can be found in New Zealand Government Personnel Security Management Requirements -  National Security Clearances - Recruiting and managing their security clearance.

More information can be found on the following pages

• New Zealand Government Security Classification System
• Supply chain security

Page last modified: 20/06/2022