Revenue Minister Simon Watts has today announced a refreshed Tax and Social Policy Work Programme which sharpens the focus on growing the economy by making New Zealand a more attractive place for capital, talent, and small business investment.
"The initial work programme we released last year focused on boosting productivity, bringing in much-needed capital and skills, and streamlining international tax settings. Our refreshed work programme builds on this momentum," Mr Watts says.
"The refreshed work programme is about removing regulatory barriers and delivering a stable, predictable tax environment that directly supports growth and opportunity."
The refreshed work programme has four pillars:
- Attracting and retaining capital and talent
- Supporting small businesses
- Simplifying the tax system and improving integrity
- Improvements to social policy
To encourage critical investment in infrastructure, targeted consultation begins today on refined thin-capitalisation proposals.
"We are removing barriers that currently discourage large-scale infrastructure investment. We are also progressing reforms to the Foreign Investment Fund (FIF) regime and financial arrangement rules to both retain and attract talent here. These changes will help ensure our settings are modern, competitive, and do not inadvertently discourage productive investment," Mr Watts says.
"The Government is also committed to making life easier for small businesses. This will include continuing work on simplification of the Fringe Benefit Tax subject to fiscal considerations. We will also be consulting on improvements to the GST regime.
"We are also working with intermediaries to reduce compliance costs and make tax treatment simpler and fairer. Inland Revenue is currently exploring a more flexible approach to income‑tax payments for sole traders and small businesses, and plans to consult on this in the first part of next year.
"We continue to focus on simplifying the tax system and improving integrity. This includes our ongoing policy work looking at the taxation of charities and not-for-profits, Inland Revenue's compliance programme and the Government's ongoing commitment to ensuring that tax legislation remains up to date and fit for purpose.
"We're getting on with targeted, practical reforms. This means listening to stakeholders, removing barriers, and delivering a stable, predictable tax environment that supports growth and opportunity for every New Zealander.
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