Last night more than 1 million people had completed their individual census form, two days out from census night, Stats NZ said today.
Stats NZ will publish a daily '2023 Census tally' from today.
"It is great to see so many people completing their census forms ahead of Census Day," Simon Mason, Deputy Government Statistician and Deputy Chief Executive Census and Collection Operations, said.
"Stats NZ recognises the public interest in the progress of the 2023 Census. Completed census forms have been flowing in since late February, with many people choosing to complete their forms early."
The aim is for the whole country, excluding areas affected by Cyclone Gabrielle whose response will come later, to complete their census forms by Census Day.
"Completing your census forms on time means fewer non-responding households will need to be visited after Census Day," Mason said.
"Now more than ever we want people to complete their census forms, so we can pivot in the coming weeks to support the people in areas impacted by Cyclone Gabrielle to be heard and counted.
"So please New Zealand, make sure you complete your census forms by census night!"
2023 Census tally
Stats NZ will publish the tally of completed Individual Forms for the 2023 Census. The tally will be a total number of online and paper forms as they are received.
The tally will be updated daily on the census website (www.census.govt.nz) at 9.00am.
The primary input to the daily tally is the number of online Individual Forms received through the census website. Stats NZ expects most of the population to have completed their census online. However, how people respond is the respondent's choice. As paper forms arrive from all over Aotearoa New Zealand, they will be added to the tally.
The tally of forms submitted by individuals does not directly translate to a response rate, which is the proportion of the population who usually live in New Zealand who completed the census. The response rate, which is an official measure for the census, will be determined by a separate post-enumeration survey which happens after the 2023 Census.
More information
More information on the 2023 Census is available at www.census.govt.nz and www.stats.govt.nz/2023-census.
