The Department of Conservation has confirmed that a group of Norwegians filmed shooting protected wildlife did not have a permit to hunt on the West Coast.
The department has been investigating the five men's activities since they put a video of themselves shooting kereru, or native pigeons, on the internet site YouTube.
The footage caused an outcry among hunters in New Zealand and Norway.
Police says four of the five men imported standard hunting rifles and were issued temporary firearms licences for up to a year.
But the department says its investigators have found no trace of the necessary permits for hunting on conservation land on the West Coast of the South Island.
