Taxes

Many employers in Aotearoa use the PAYE (pay as you earn) system, which means if you earn a wage or salary you'll get your taxes deducted directly. What you see in your payslip or bank account will already be taxed so you usually won't have to worry about paying your taxes yourself.

You’ll usually have to state your tax code when you sign your employment contract. You’ll need to work out the tax code for each source of income you receive. See the IR website for more information on your tax code.

If you're working for yourself, you are in business and considered self-employed. In this case, you'll have to let IR know and you'll fill in a different form to pay your taxes because you won't be taxed as you're paid. There are online resources for self-employed people such as Business NZ, IR, and the Citizens Advice Bureau.

Getting taxed on a second job doesn't mean you'll pay more tax, as you're still being taxed on your overall income over a year as if you were only working one job.

If you're paid regularly in cash, you should be upfront about your earnings. You’ll usually have to report to IR and pay taxes the same way self-employed people do.

Your Student Loan is a separate bill that must also be paid. The tax code you give your employer will tell them that you have a Student Loan, so they will take out an extra 12% to help pay your Student Loan. This is a different payment, but it is taken out of your income at the same time as tax. IR has a Student Loan repayment calculator if you want to find out more.