Your first job

What you need to do

The first thing you need to do is to find out whether you need to pay income tax.

However if you do need to pay tax, there are some things you need to do, including:

• get an IRD number
• choose your tax code so you pay the right amount of tax on the money you earn - you can use our decision tree to help you choose the correct code
• fill out a Tax code declaration (IR330) for your employer.

While it's your responsibility to choose the correct tax code, if you choose the wrong one, we'll write to your employer, requesting them to change it to the correct code.

If you disagree with this change, you can call us on 0800 227 774.

What your employer will do

Your employer will work out how much to take out of your pay, but if you want to, you can calculate the amount yourself, by using the appropriate tax rates. 

If you are 18 or over, you'll automatically be enrolled in KiwiSaver. Your employer will deduct KiwiSaver contributions, starting with your first pay. You then have the next eight weeks to decide if KiwiSaver is right for you.

If you're under 18 and want to join KiwiSaver, you'll need to opt in directly with a scheme provider.

At the end of the year

The income year ends on 31 March, so at the beginning of April there are some other things you need to do:

• check to see if you need to file a tax return
• check to see if you're eligible for a tax credit (formerly rebate).

In May, the summary of earnings information is available, so you can:

• check to see if you're eligible for a refund
• request a personal tax summary, if you're eligible for a refund.

Information:
If you decide that you don't want to deal with us directly, you can always nominate a person to deal with your tax affairs for you.

How will this affect you?

Check out Real lives to see:

• Melanie's story - she's about to start college and has found her first part-time job
• John's story - he's still at school, and needs to claim a tax credit for his part-time job.