Hon Bill English
Minister of Finance
Hon Peter Dunne
Minister of Revenue
Wednesday, 9 June 2010
The Government is seeking public feedback on proposed changes to simplify
the tax system and make it easier for people to manage their tax affairs,
Finance Minister Bill English and Revenue Minister Peter Dunne said today.
The discussion document Making Tax Easier and an accompanying online
forum include ways of simplifying PAYE and income tax returns for individuals
and employers, Mr English says.
“Budget 2010 introduced a major rebalancing of the tax system away from
consumption towards saving and investment that will better support New
Zealand’s long-term economic growth.
“The Government is now looking to reform the way our tax system is
administered to make it easier and more certain for taxpayers to manage their
tax obligations.
The proposed changes also set out how people could self-manage most of
their tax and social assistance entitlements such as Working for Families,
using their own secure area on Inland Revenue’s website, Mr Dunne says.
“This would be done much like internet banking, making the whole process
easier, faster and more certain for taxpayers,” he says.
“At the same time, the Government wants to ensure that the tax
administration system operates efficiently and delivers value for money.
“The online consultation forum proposes several ways this might be achieved.
The main idea is to shift Inland Revenue’s current emphasis away from paperbased
systems towards greater use of customer-focused online technologies.
“To further simplify and reduce the number of interactions that individuals
must have with Inland Revenue, a new approach is being proposed, which for
some people would mean PAYE would be treated as a final tax.
“More timely and correct information would mean that tax is deducted at the
right tax code each pay-day, so there would be a reduced need for an end-of year
square-up,” Mr Dunne says.
“This would give people greater confidence that the amount of tax they pay
throughout the year is correct, with no unexpected tax bills arising at the end
of the year.”
For businesses, including employers and the not-for-profit sector, PAYE tasks
such as filing an employer monthly schedule could be managed by software
that automatically communicates with Inland Revenue.
“Such a move towards electronic technologies would require all businesses to
eventually move to electronic filing, Mr English says. “The Government wants
to hear from employers and businesses on these proposals.”
Similarly, the Government wants to hear from the software development
industry on how strategic partnerships might be developed to create the tools
to help employers move to an electronic environment.
The closing date for comment on the proposals is 23 July 2010.
Have your say on the online forum at www.ird.govt.nz/makingtaxeasier or
read the full discussion document at www.taxpolicy.ird.govt.nz
Media contacts:
Mark Stewart: 021 243 6985
Grant Fleming: 021 277 9869