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Pātaka Whenua has different types of searches available to help you find what you need – Near Match Search and Exact Match Search.

Near Match Search – this search will bring back search results on words that are close to the word you searched. It provides results based on near or likely match.  

For example: if you are not sure of the spelling of someone’s name, if you search Henri Smith, it will bring back results for Henry Smith and Hēnare Smith.

Exact Match Search – this search will bring back results that match exactly the terms you have searched only.  

This search is helpful if you know exactly what you are looking for as you will only get a few results. 

For example: if you know the exact block ID or block name you are searching for such as Mahanga 1B.

Switching between the search types

On the top right of the search screen, you will see the following toggle:

If you want to switch from the Near Match Search screen to the Exact Match Search screen, you can click on the green toggle. 

When you are on the Near Match Search screen it will look like this:

You can click on the white toggle to take you back to the Near Match Search screen. 

  • Search using keywords

    Use the keywords that best match what you are trying to find. You can type more than one keyword to help narrow down your results.  

    Search fields



    For example: if you search Christoper Crbb in the Owner Name field it will bring back results for Christopher Maraku Cribb. 

    If you know that Christopher's block is, for example, Ruamata, but aren’t sure how his name is spelt, you can enter Christoper Crbb into the Owner Name search field and Ruamata into the Land Block Name search field to narrow the results. 

    Sorting/filtering your results

    Your search results will be sorted by how closely they match your search terms. As the search results will include items that are a near match to your search terms it may mean there are hundreds of options. 

    To help find what you are looking for you can use the filter symbol at the top of each search result column.

    You can filter all the search results columns.

    For example: if you search for Christoper Cribb it will bring back results that include the name Chris, Christoph and other similar names. You can use the Owner Name filter to find Christopher Maraku Cribb. 

    Search tips using the ownership Exact Match Search screen

    You can find help when searching on the Exact Match Search screen in the Search for ownership guide here.

  • Search using keywords

    Use the keywords that best match what you are trying to find. You can type more than one keyword to help narrow down your results.  

    For example: if you know the block name, such as Mahanga 1B you can enter that and the words ‘Minute’ or ‘Order’.  

    Acronyms

    Common acronyms or abbreviations will automatically be returned in Near Match Search. 

    For example: if you search for a document using the acronym TRW, the search will bring back results where documents are recorded as either TRW and Tairāwhiti.  

    Search fields - Must include, must not include 

    You can use the Must include, Must not include boxes to further refine your search before you get the results.






    For example: if you are searching for succession orders for a deceased parent but only have their name and section, you could put the name of your parent in the Search keywords section and in Must include the authority 118/93. 

    Note: ‘authority’ is another word for ‘section’, as in, a ‘section’ of the Te Ture Whenua Māori Act 1993. In this case, it is section 118. 

    Sorting/filtering your results

    Your search results will be sorted by closest match to your search terms. As the search results will include items that are a near match to your search terms it may mean there are hundreds of options. 

    To help find what you are looking for you can use the filter symbol at the top of each search result column.

    You can filter all the search results columns. 

    For example: if you know the authority you want, you can filter the results by clicking 118/93 in the Authority column filter and you will only see these results.

    Search tips using the document Exact Match Search screen

    You can find help when searching on the Exact Match Search screen in the Search for document guide here.