When you open your first payroll

to be paid on or after 01 April 2026 

Processing of these updates for all active employees will take longer than normal, so please take care when opening your first pay in April and give yourself plenty time to review the information.

Do not try and reopen the pay if it is taking a long time.

1. New 2026-2027 tax tables will be applied.
   
2. ACC levy is increased to 1.75%.
   
3. KiwiSaver minimum employee and compulsory employer contribution rates to 3.5% will be calculated for all active employees that currently have 3% with the new rates being updated on Personal Details and Timesheet Template pages automatically. 
4. When adding new employees, if your Organisation defaults for KiwiSaver are currently 3%, this will be updated automatically to 3.5%.
   
5. Employee deductions for Temporary Rate Reductions, will not change. Employer contributions will be updated automatically to 3.5%.
   
6. ESCT (Employer Super Contribution Tax) % rates will recalculated and updated automatically at the same time.
7. Employees and employers that are contributing more than 3% will not change.
   
8. You should not open your April pay until to intend to process and pay it.
   

As per IR rules, the payment date (when the money is in the bank accounts) dictates the tax and KiwiSaver calculations, not the paid up to date or when the employees worked. 

Inland Revenue - KiwiSaver Changes 

Before 01 April 2026 (now) 

1. Review all your active employees - check the 'last paid to' dates and make them inactive if required
   Reports > HR > Staff - Detailed Table > Paid to date
2. Review your employee KiwiSaver information - if you have 16 or 17 year-olds working for you, they will qualify for employer KiwiSaver contributions from 01 April. 
   Reports > HR > Staff - Detailed Table
3. Review your Organisation Defaults.
   Setup > Organisation > Defaults > New Person Default Values
4. Check your Future Payrolls to plan when is the best time to open your April pay.
   Dashboard > Future Payrolls.
5. Process any Temporary Rate Reductions for employees staying on 3%. 
   Person > Personal Details > KiwiSaver Status > Review your contributions
6. Review Pay Rates - Minimum wage increases to $23.95 per hour (from $23.50) and starting out and training rates increase to $19.16 per hour.
   Reports > HR > Staff - Pay Rates.

For more information here Tax changes 2026-2027