The island of Tokelau received the status of a British Protectorate and was formally brought under the protection of the High Commissioner for the Western Pacific in June 1889. Thus, the British monarch became its head of state. The administration of the island was transferred to the Dominion of New Zealand in 1926, of which the British monarch was also head of state. In 1947, the Dominion of New Zealand became the Realm of New Zealand.
King Charles III became head of state of Tokelau in his capacity of King in right of New Zealand when he acceded to the throne on 9 September 2022 (not 8 September as in the United Kingdom, due to a timezone difference). The administrator of the territory of Tokelau is a government official appointed by New Zealand's minister of foreign affairs to represent the New Zealand Government - not the monarch personally. |