Disclaimer
Last updated August 2026. Payrise NZ provides general information about New Zealand pay and tax. It is not tax advice, legal advice or financial advice, and no client or advisory relationship is created by using it.
What our numbers are
Every result on this site is a mathematical estimate built from published Inland Revenue income tax bands, the ACC earners' levy rate, the student loan repayment rate and threshold, and standard KiwiSaver contribution rates. Given the same inputs, the maths is deterministic and repeatable — but your inputs are only ever an approximation of a real employment situation.
Six reasons your payslip may differ
Your pay changed part-way through the year
PAYE is deducted each pay period as if you earn that amount all year. If you get a rise in month seven, your year-to-date tax will not match a full-year estimate until the following tax year settles.
You are on a different tax code
Our calculators assume an M or M SL code unless you tell them otherwise. Codes like ME, secondary codes (SB, S, SH, ST, SA) or a special tax code change the outcome materially.
Extra deductions we cannot see
Child support, IRD arrears deductions, union fees, payroll giving, health insurance and salary sacrifice all come out of the same payslip and are not part of a tax estimate.
KiwiSaver quirks
Savings suspensions, contributions above the employee rate, employer contributions above 3% and ESCT tier changes all shift the net figure.
Pay period rounding and 53-week years
Payroll systems round each period to the cent and some years contain 27 fortnightly or 53 weekly pays. Multiply a payslip by 52 and you will rarely land exactly on the annual figure.
ACC earnings cap
The ACC earners' levy stops applying above the annual liable earnings maximum, so very high earners pay proportionally less levy than a flat rate suggests.
Who to check with instead
- Inland Revenue for tax codes, PAYE, student loan balances and end-of-year assessments — ird.govt.nz.
- Your payroll team for anything specific to your employment agreement or a payslip line you do not recognise.
- Employment New Zealand for minimum wage, holiday pay and leave entitlements — employment.govt.nz.
- A chartered accountant or authorised financial adviser before making a decision with real financial consequences.
Found a mistake?
We would genuinely like to know. If a rate looks out of date or a result looks wrong, email help@payrisenz.app with the inputs you used and we will check the calculation and publish a correction if needed.
Check the underlying rates yourself
These pages set out the exact brackets, thresholds and codes behind every estimate on the site.