New Zealand
New Zealand: 4 company types, its taxes, banking and business environment, and what it is known for.
Forming a company
Company types in New Zealand
The 4 forms a founder can choose here, each with its own figures. Open one for its sources.
What it is known for
Where New Zealand is in the world’s top 10 on a measure anyone can check, the best rank first. Only the top is shown; a low rank is never stated.
- World’s1stWorld-leading exports Concentrated and sweetened milk and creamMilk and cream, concentrated or containing added sugar or other sweetening matterUS$6.2 bn · 28.3% of world exports of 160 exporters · 2024 CEPII BACI, January 2026 release See the top 10
- World’s1stWorld-leading exports Butter and dairy spreadsButter and other fats and oils derived from milk; dairy spreadsUS$2.9 bn · 22.7% of world exports of 141 exporters · 2024 CEPII BACI, January 2026 release See the top 10
- World’s2ndWorld-leading exports Meat of sheep or goats, fresh, chilled or frozenUS$2.2 bn · 24.5% of world exports of 123 exporters · 2024 CEPII BACI, January 2026 release See the top 10
A rank is among everything the source reports for that year, so it moves when the source adds or drops economies. Exports include goods passing through for re-export. Nothing here is a recommendation.
Doing business here
Business accounts
Providers whose own published list of countries names New Zealand. A listing means a company formed here may apply, not that it will be accepted.
Not in our records No provider's country list has been read for New Zealand.
EU listings
Two lists a bank checks when it opens an account for a company or its owner.
- EU high-risk third countries (AML)
- Not listed
- EU non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes
- Not listedOfficial EUR-Lex, 52026XG01465, Annex I as of 2026-02-17
Official sites
The authorities’ own sites for New Zealand: where to register, file and check.
Blocs and agreements
The trade arrangements New Zealand belongs to, as each arrangement’s own texts state them: since when, and what each covers. What a membership means for a business is for you to judge.
- Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership
- Free trade area · since 1 January 2022
Covers goods, services, investment.
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1 January 2022 Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, China, Japan, Lao PDR, New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand, Viet Nam
- Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership
- Free trade area · since 30 December 2018
Covers goods, services, investment, public procurement.
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any State or separate customs territory may accede to this Agreement, subject to such terms and conditions as may be agreed between the Parties and that State or separate customs territory.
- Australia–New Zealand Closer Economic Relations
- Free trade area with Australia · since 1 January 1983
Covers goods, services, investment.
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the entry into force on 1 January 1983 of the Australia New Zealand Closer Economic Relations Trade Agreement (ANZCERTA).
Regional and customs arrangements only, 36 of them; bilateral trade agreements are not yet in our records.
Tax
Company tax
Tax, and what the company owes the registry each year.
- Corporate income tax
- 28%
- Distributions
- Not in our records
- Audit
- Only large companies: some large New Zealand companies must file annual audited financial statements under the Companies Act 1993.Official The registry or ministry page as of 2026-10-10
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Some large New Zealand companies, and all large overseas companies, must file annual audited financial statements under the Companies Act 1993.
- Small-company relief
- Not in our records
- Annual obligations
- Not in our records
- Annual registry fee
- NZD 49.74Official The registry or ministry page as of 2026-10-10
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Company annual return $21 $21.74 $6 $1 $49.74 $57.20
VAT
The tax on what the company sells in New Zealand, and when it must register, as the tax authority states it.
- Standard rate
- Not in our recordsThe tax authority’s pages have not been read for New Zealand.
Tax calendar
When the main returns and payments fall due in New Zealand, tax year 2026 income year (1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026, standard balance date), as the tax authority states it.
- Corporate tax return
- 7 July · each year
income tax returns for untaxed income are due 7 July — 7 July 2026 for the 2026 income year — unless there is an extension of time or a non-standard balance date. A taxpayer with a tax agent and an extension of time has until 31 March of the following year. The rule takes 7 July. A due date on a weekend or public holiday moves to the next working day.
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Income tax returns for untaxed income were due 7 July 2026
- Corporate tax, final payment
- 7 February · each year
most taxpayers pay the tax they owe by 7 February the year after receiving the bill — 7 February 2027 for the 2026 income year — or 7 April where a tax agent has an extension of time. The rule takes 7 February. A due date on a weekend or public holiday moves to the next working day.
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Most people need to pay their tax by 7 February the year after receiving a bill.
- Corporate tax, instalments
- 28 August · each quarter
provisional tax is usually payable in three instalments during the year — 28 August, 15 January and 7 May — for a standard 31 March balance date and the standard or estimation option. The record takes the first instalment, 28 August; the frequency field is 'quarterly' because the schema offers no three-instalment value. Provisional tax is required where the residual income tax for the previous year exceeded $5,000. A due date on a weekend or public holiday moves to the next working day.
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Instalment Due date 1 28 August 2 15 January 3 7 May
- Personal income-tax return
- 7 July · each year
an individual who must file an IR3 for untaxed income sends the return by 7 July — 7 July 2026 for the 2026 income year — unless there is an extension of time or a non-standard balance date. Most salary and wage earners whose tax is fully withheld are not required to file. The rule takes 7 July. A due date on a weekend or public holiday moves to the next working day.
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Income tax returns for untaxed income were due 7 July 2026
- Personal income tax, final payment
- 7 February · each year
an individual pays the tax owing for the year by 7 February the year after receiving the bill — 7 February 2027 for the 2026 income year — or 7 April where a tax agent has an extension of time, after crediting PAYE and provisional tax. The rule takes 7 February. A due date on a weekend or public holiday moves to the next working day.
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Most people need to pay their tax by 7 February the year after receiving a bill.
- Personal income tax, instalments
- 28 August · each quarter
provisional tax is usually payable in three instalments during the year (28 August 2026, 15 January 2027, 7 May 2027) for a standard balance date and the standard or estimation option, where the previous year's residual income tax exceeded $5,000. The record takes the first instalment, 28 August; the frequency field is 'quarterly' because the schema offers no three-instalment value. A due date on a weekend or public holiday moves to the next working day.
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It is usually payable in 3 instalments during the year (28 August 2026, 15 January 2027, 7 May 2027)
- VAT return
- Day 28 of the following month · every two months
a GST return is due by the 28th of the month after the end of the taxable period; the period ending 31 March is due 7 May and the period ending 30 November is due 15 January. Two-monthly filing is the default for turnover up to $24 million; businesses above that (or that choose to) file monthly, and turnover under $500,000 may file six-monthly. The record takes the two-monthly standard case. A due date on a weekend or public holiday moves to the next working day.
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A GST return is due by the 28th of the month after the end of your taxable period.
- Payroll withholding
- Day 20 of the following month · each month
an employer pays the PAYE deducted from salaries by the 20th of the following month (the amount deducted between the 1st and 15th of a month is due on the 20th of that same month; the amount deducted from the 16th to the end is due on the 5th of the following month for large employers). Small employers pay monthly by the 20th of the following month. The record takes the monthly 20th. A due date on a weekend or public holiday moves to the next working day.
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20th of the month payment due for deductions made
Running the company
Running a company here
Not in our records The authorities’ pages on running a company have not been read for New Zealand yet.
Economy and trade
What it exports
Goods New Zealand exported, by product, as a share of its goods exports each year. Exports include goods passing through for re-export. A share describes New Zealand’s own trade; it does not compare places.
| Product (HS heading) | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | Value, 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milk and cream, concentrated or containing added sugar or other sweetening matter HS 0402 | 15.1% | 14.0% | 13.7% | US$6.2 bn |
| Butter and other fats and oils derived from milk; dairy spreads HS 0405 | 6.2% | 6.3% | 6.5% | US$2.9 bn |
| Other fruit, fresh HS 0810 | 3.9% | 3.7% | 5.6% | US$2.5 bn |
| Meat of bovine animals, frozen HS 0202 | 5.7% | 5.4% | 5.1% | US$2.3 bn |
| Meat of sheep or goats, fresh, chilled or frozen HS 0204 | 6.0% | 5.3% | 4.9% | US$2.2 bn |
| Wood in the rough, whether or not stripped of bark or sapwood, or roughly squared HS 4403 | 4.2% | 4.2% | 4.1% | US$1.8 bn |
| Cheese and curd HS 0406 | 3.5% | 4.2% | 3.8% | US$1.7 bn |
| Malt extract; food preparations of flour, groats, meal, starch or malt extract, not containing cocoa or containing less than 40 % by weight of cocoa calculated on a totally defatted basis, not elsewhere specified or included; food preparations of goods of headings 0401 to 0404, not containing cocoa or containing less than 5 % by weight of cocoa calculated on a totally defatted basis, not elsewhere specified or included HS 1901 | 3.0% | 3.2% | 3.3% | US$1.5 bn |
| Wine of fresh grapes, including fortified wines; grape must other than that of heading 2009 HS 2204 | 3.1% | 3.2% | 2.9% | US$1.3 bn |
| Milk and cream, not concentrated nor containing added sugar or other sweetening matter HS 0401 | 2.0% | 2.1% | 2.2% | US$984 m |
Total goods exports, 2024: US$45.2 bn. The ten largest headings are shown.