Who's involved?

The design of the KiwiSaver initiative was an interagency project involving the Treasury, Inland Revenue, the Ministry of Economic Development and Housing New Zealand Corporation.

The ongoing administration of KiwiSaver is the joint responsibility of Government agencies and scheme providers. Employers also play a key role.

KiwiSaver scheme providers

KiwiSaver scheme providers have the primary relationship with members.

A list of providers with registered KiwiSaver schemes is now available. The official register of KiwiSaver schemes is held by the Government Actuary.

Organisations wanting to provide KiwiSaver schemes must meet specific criteria. An organisation must be certified by Inland Revenue before they can register a KiwiSaver scheme with the Government Actuary.

KiwiSaver schemes are governed by trust deeds and regulated like other superannuation schemes. Scheme providers must meet certain minimum ongoing requirements and disclose information to help people make an informed choice.

Employers

For most people, KiwiSaver is a work-based savings plan, so employers play an important role. Employers:

• give new employees and other staff who are interested an Employee information pack (KS3)
• pass their employees' details to Inland Revenue to enable them to be enrolled
• deduct KiwiSaver contributions from employees' gross salary or wages
• make a contribution to their employee's KiwiSaver account or complying fund - set at 2% of gross salary or wages from 1 April 2009
• can choose a KiwiSaver scheme (criteria apply) for employees who don't want to select their own
• act on a new employee's request if they choose to opt out within the two to eight week opt-out timeframe
• stop deductions if Inland Revenue or their employee gives them the required notice.

Government

Under the KiwiSaver initiative the Government:

• contributes $1,000 (tax-free) to each member's savings when they join for the first time
• pays an annual member tax credit of up to $1,042.86 to members who are 18 or over
• funds the first home deposit subsidy through Housing New Zealand for people who meet their criteria
• exempts employer contributions to members' KiwiSaver accounts from employer superannuation contribution tax (ESCT), up to the amount of compulsory employer contribution required
• pays a payroll subsidy of $2 per employee per pay period to employers with up to five employees who use an approved payroll provider.

The Government has appointed six "default" KiwiSaver scheme providers for members who don't choose their own scheme. The default providers are:

• AMP Services (NZ) Limited
• ASB Group Investments Limited
• AXA New Zealand (National Mutual Corporate Superannuation Services Limited)
• ING (NZ) Limited
• Mercers (NZ) Limited
• TOWER Employee Benefits Limited.

These default providers were selected using an open, competitive tender process managed by the Ministry of Economic Development.

There is no Crown guarantee of KiwiSaver schemes or investment products of KiwiSaver schemes. Every investment statement relating to a KiwiSaver scheme must contain a statement to that effect.

Inland Revenue

We administer members' contributions mainly through the "pay as you earn" (PAYE) tax system. Our main responsibilities under KiwiSaver are to:

• receive member and employer contributions
• transfer contributions to the right KiwiSaver scheme provider for investment
• give employers information packs to pass on to employees
• allocate people who don't make a choice to default schemes
• administer requests for opt-outs and contributions holidays
• provide information to the public.

The Government Actuary

The Government Actuary is responsible for registering and regulating KiwiSaver schemes. The Government Actuary is part of the Ministry of Economic Development's Insurance and Superannuation Unit (ISU). The ISU supervises the management of registered superannuation schemes, monitoring and encouraging compliance with the Superannuation Schemes Act 1989 and other legislation.

Ministry of Economic Development

The Ministry of Economic Development coordinated the tender process for appointing default KiwiSaver providers. The Ministry also administers the regulatory framework for KiwiSaver in a similar manner to other registered superannuation schemes.

The Treasury

The Treasury consulted with various stakeholders about the development of the KiwiSaver Act.

Housing New Zealand Corporation

Housing New Zealand provided policy advice on the KiwiSaver first home deposit subsidy. Housing New Zealand is also responsible for setting the subsidy's caps for house price and income, and processing first home deposit subsidy applications.

The Retirement Commission

The Retirement Commission is associated with KiwiSaver through its financial education programme.

The Commission helps New Zealanders prepare for their retirement, by offering free and independent financial information through the Sorted website. Sorted offers easy-to-use online tools to help New Zealanders work out if KiwiSaver is right for them.

Date published: 24 Mar 2009

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