Before your belongings can be cleared through customs, you will need to fill out a form that includes a bunch of questions about what you're importing. One of the things they want to know is whether anything is new or for resale. If you have items like that, you will likely have to pay GST on them. However, if you can reasonably / justifyably claim that they're used, then no GST should be payable.
The moving company we used kept an eye out for things that might have been an issue for customs, as well as MAF items, while they were carrying our stuff from the container into a moving van (based on how the items were labeled, or on what they could see from the outside; the movers didn't open any boxes). Customs also requires an itemized inventory, and if anything is labeled as "new", it's more likely to be reviewed for possible GST.
I think customs has something like a NZ$400 threshold for new items. If the total value is less than that, I believe no GST is payable.
I remember hearing somewhere that they watch for items like transformers that are clearly intended for use in NZ, and aren't usable in their country of origin.
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