People in the Tauranga area, including Māori, will be receiving a phone call from Stats NZ in the next 10 days as it runs a census practice run.
The 2023 post-enumeration survey began on May 16 and will run to June 3.
But Stats NZ says this practice run, which will cover areas where many Māori live, is not linked to the 2018 census problems.
That census saw considerable difficulties including greatly undercounting Māori.
The census is essential for Māori (and other New Zealanders) to participate in as it tells the government the population of Māori in New Zealand, so it can plan and allocate funding to the areas needed, such as education and health
The purpose of this survey is to find out if the last census count was correct by checking independently. Stats NZ will check for issues such as whether people were missed in the census or miscounted.
The government agency will offer a face-to-face or phone call interview that will take 10 minutes to complete.
The field test is an assurance process and will survey 500 households.
Stats NZ says the test is a "rudimentary trial and nothing worth noting about".