Business owners in Christchurch wanting access to the badly-damaged red zone must register on a website first.
Applications will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
The website is: www.recovercanterbury.co.nz.
From 14 March, the zone will be opened grid by grid for those businesses and property owners who have not been granted access.
Commercial building owners can email buildingrecoveryoffice@ccc.govt.nz for information on the placard status of their building.
No access is permitted to buildings with a red placard.
A plan for retrieving cars from the CBD will be released soon.