The marine park covers an area of 475,465 km2 (183,578 sq mi) and is assigned IUCN category IV.

[5] In early 2023, the federal government announced that the park would triple in size, adding an extra 385,000 km2 (149,000 sq mi) of protected water to the existing 162,000 km2 (63,000 sq mi) of marine park.

[7] The Macquarie Island Marine Park has been assigned IUCN protected area category IV.

However, within the marine park there are three protection zones, each zone has an IUCN category and related rules for managing activities to ensure the protection of marine habitats and species.

[3] The following table is a summary of the zoning rules within the Macquarie Island Marine Park:[3] [1]