The proposed changes are likely to be included in a tax bill for consideration by Parliament in 2017.

• Employer monthly schedules will no longer need to be lodged. Instead, from 1 April 2019, PAYE information will be filed on a payday basis (2 days after the payroll date – to allow for any corrections before lodgement).
• The Government is not proposing to change the dates by which PAYE and related deductions have to be paid to Inland Revenue. However it will be possible to make these payments on a payday basis. A good idea really as it can be organised at the same time that gross payments are made to staff.
• To improve the workability of the rules minor changes would be made from 1 April 2018 to the PAYE rules for holiday pay paid in advance and to align when rate changes come into effect.
• The payroll subsidy, which subsidises employers to outsource their PAYE obligations to listed payroll intermediaries will cease from 1 April 2018.

Further details including a copy of the Minister of Revenue (Hon. Michael Woodhouse’s) speech to the NZ Payroll practitioners Conference regarding these changes can be found here.