Top New Zealand referee Glen Jackson announced on Friday he was giving up the job just months after being overlooked for a role at the Rugby World Cup.

After 25 years as both a stand-out flyhalf in New Zealand and England during his playing days and then overseeing 32 Tests, Jackson said the time was right to "move on to something different but hopefully still be involved with rugby."

The 44-year-old earlier admitted it was "tough" when his name was missing from the list of referees for the World Cup last year and that he was reconsidering his future.

"My goals have changed a bit after missing out," the five-time New Zealand referee-of-the-year said at the time.

Jackson played for the New Zealand Maori and had 60 Super Rugby games with the Chiefs before heading to the United Kingdom, where he played 159 matches for the Saracens and won the coveted Golden Boot for the most points scored in the 2006-07 season.

His playing career ended in 2010 and he was fast-tracked to refereeing at Super Rugby level a year later, overseeing his first Test - England against Fiji at Twickenham - in 2012.