Inland Revenue Department (New Zealand)
Agency overview | |
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Formed | 1878 |
Jurisdiction | New Zealand |
Headquarters | 55 Featherston Street Pipitea Wellington 6012 |
Employees | 5,500+ (2015) |
Annual budget | $6,338.7 million (2015-16)[1] |
Minister responsible |
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Agency executive |
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Website | ird |
Inland Revenue (IRD; former known name: Inland Revenue Department) (Māori: Te Tari Taake) is the public service department of New Zealand charged with advising the government on tax policy, collecting and disbursing payments for social support programmes, and collecting tax.
The Department administers the following social support programmes - Working for Families (tax credits), Paid Parental Leave (payment), Child Support (collection and payment), Student Loan debt (collection), and KiwiSaver.
Inland Revenue employs over 5,500 full-time equivalent staff in 17 cities and towns across New Zealand.[2]
The Department's Māori name, Te Tari Taake, is an older spelling of Te Tari Tāke, meaning The Department [of] Tax. Despite long vowels in Māori now being expressed with macrons over the vowel rather than double vowels, the Department continues to use the double vowel due to the resemblance of the word tāke to the English word take.[3]
History
Inland Revenue started out as the Land Tax Department in 1878. The Department was renamed the Land and Income Tax Department in 1892 with the central office set up in Wellington.
Only in 1952, when the organisation joined with the Stamp Duties Department, was the organisation known as the Inland Revenue Department.
In 2013–14, Inland Revenue collected $56.2 billion in tax revenue, which was more than 80% of the money the government used to pay for services that all New Zealanders benefited from, including healthcare, education, and law and order. Other services included housing and community development, environmental protection, defence, transport, social security and welfare, and heritage, cultre and recreation.[4]
Inland Revenue's Transformation
Inland Revenue's Business Transformation is an organisation-wide effort to design a modern revenue system for New Zealand that meets New Zealanders' changing expectations and Government priorities.
The new tax system will radically improve how business, customers and other parties interact and transact with Inland Revenue in the future. Inland Revenue's business transformation doesn’t only relate to the transformation and modernisation of their IT systems, it also includes all of their processes, platforms, policies and service delivery.[5]
Acts and regulations administered
Inland Revenue administers several acts (including the Tax Administration Act 1994, the Income Tax Act 2007, the Child Support Act 1991) and many regulations.[6]
Legislation administered by Inland Revenue includes:[7]
- Child Support Act 1991
- Estate and Gift Duties Act 1968
- Gaming Duties Act 1971
- Goods and Services Tax Act 1985
- Income Tax Act 2007
- Stamp and Cheque Duties Act 1971
- Student Loan Scheme Act 1992
- Tax Administration Act 1994
- Taxation Review Authorities Act 1994
- Unclaimed Money Act 1971
- parts of the KiwiSaver Act 2006
- parts of the Parental Leave and Employment Protection (Paid Parental Leave) Act 1987
List of Ministers
The Minister of Inland Revenue is the political office of Minister for the department of Inland Revenue. Since 2013, the position has been held by Todd McClay.
Past ministers include:
- 1999-2005 Michael Cullen (Minister of Revenue)[8]
- 2005-2013 Peter Dunne (Minister of Revenue)[9]
- 2013- Todd McClay (Minister of Revenue)[10]
See also
References
- ^ "Total Appropriations for Each Vote -- Budget 2015". New Zealand Treasury. Retrieved 28 July 2015.
- ^ "About IR". Inland Revenue. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
- ^ Goldsmith, Paul (13 July 2012). "Taxes - Tax, ideology and international comparisons". Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 14 June 2013.
- ^ "Annual Report 2014, page 11" (PDF). Inland Revenue. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
- ^ "About business transformation". Inland Revenue. Retrieved 28 July 2015.
- ^ "Legislation and regulations (Who we are)". Retrieved 6 September 2011.
- ^ "Nature and scope of IR functions from Statement of Intent 2011-14". Retrieved 6 September 2011.
- ^ "Hon Dr Michael Cullen". New Zealand Parliament. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
- ^ "Hon Peter Dunne". Beehive New Zealand Government. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
- ^ "Hon Todd McClay". Beehive New Zealand Government. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
External links
- Official website
- Policy Advice Division of Inland Revenue
- What's Tax? - New Zealand government website on tax