A Moneybren tool

NZ SELF-EMPLOYED TAX CALCULATOR

Contracting, freelancing or running a side hustle in New Zealand? Here’s your real take-home after income tax, ACC and student loan — plus the GST and provisional tax surprises, defused early.

Your numbers

$
Your income after business expenses — what you’ll be taxed on.
$
Total sales before expenses — used for the GST check.
%
Work + earner levies combined — varies a lot by industry. Check your ACC invoice.
Your take-home is about
$0

Where it goes

Provisional tax heads-up

The fine print, honestly. Income tax uses the current brackets (10.5% to $15,600, 17.5% to $53,500, 30% to $78,100, 33% to $180,000, 39% above). ACC invoices self-employed people directly — work levy rates vary enormously by industry classification, so edit that field to match your invoice; levies apply up to the $156,641 earnings cap. If your residual tax tops $5,000 you’re into provisional tax next year — three instalments through the year instead of one bill at the end, shown above so it never ambushes you. No KiwiSaver is deducted automatically when you’re self-employed: nobody is saving for your retirement unless you do it deliberately (and $1,042.86/yr still collects the government’s $260.72).

How to use this calculator

Enter your expected profit (income minus expenses) and turnover. The calculator shows income tax by bracket, ACC levies, optional student loan, your real take-home — and warns you about GST registration and provisional tax before IRD does.

If you’re comparing contracting against a salary, run the same number through the PAYE calculator and compare take-homes side by side.

This is a tool only, and none of the information it produces is financial advice. Its accuracy is not guaranteed. Always check your own figures and get advice from your own financial professionals before making decisions.

A worked example

Say your side hustle or business nets you $80,000 in profit for the year.

Nobody’s deducting anything for you now – no employer, no PAYE. The tax on $80,000 works out around $16,750 in income tax, plus ACC levies, and if you’re registered for GST there’s that to hand over too. The calculator estimates the lot so you know what you’re really keeping.

The rough rule that keeps self-employed people out of trouble: set aside about 30% of every dollar you earn for tax, the moment it lands. Put your profit in above to see your actual number.

Quick note: these are the 2026/27 tax figures and the GST threshold as it stands today – both can change, so treat this as an example of the method and check ird.govt.nz for the current numbers.

What most people get wrong about self-employed tax

When you work for yourself, tax stops being invisible. As an employee it’s whisked away before you ever see it. Self-employed, that whole burden lands on you – and if you’ve spent the money by tax time, you’re in trouble.

Two things ambush people. First, provisional tax: once your tax bill gets big enough, IRD makes you pay next year’s tax in advance, in instalments. So in a good year you can effectively get hit with a year and a half of tax at once. Second, GST: cross $60,000 of turnover and you have to register, which means adding 15% to your prices and passing it to IRD – it was never your money.

The flip side is the bit employees don’t get: you can claim legitimate business expenses, which lowers the profit you’re taxed on. The move is simple but iron-clad – open a separate account, fire 30% of every payment into it the day it arrives, and never touch it. Treat the taxman’s share as never having been yours.

This calculator and page are general information only and not financial advice. Everyone’s circumstances will vary – always do your own research and consult your own financial professionals before making decisions.