A number of external reviews this year are helping to identify where our stakeholders think we are doing well and where we can improve.
Performance Improvement Review
IR took part in a Performance Improvement Review pilot run by the Public Service Commission Te Kawa Mataaho. The review is future focused and a way of assessing an agency’s capability to respond to future opportunities and challenges.
The independent review completed by 2 external reviewers concluded that "IR is a high performing organisation, well placed to meet the increasing expectations of New Zealanders". The reviewers talked to a number of our people and external stakeholders to get their perspectives. You can read the reviewers report on the Public Service Commission’s website at
Binding Rulings
We surveyed customers who use our Binding Rulings service, which is discussed on the page below, and 94% told us they were satisfied or very satisfied with the service. More than 90% said they were satisfied or very satisfied with the clear explanation of the reason for the ruling, the timeframe for receiving the ruling and with the value for money of the service.
Making tax simpler collecting revenue efficiently
CA ANZ and TMNZ survey
Every year, Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CA ANZ) and Tax Management New Zealand (TMNZ) survey their members about the services IR provides to them. Key findings from the 2023 survey showed that most members now use our digital services and are more positive about their experiences. Satisfaction with IR increased, and there was a big increase in our rating for being helpful. Self-service instalment plans were highly rated and seen to be successful.
Areas where members thought we could improve were our response times, with over half saying they waited 6 or more days for a response, and the increased costs of complying with trust disclosure rules that were introduced in 2021, with a third saying we could provide more guidance on trust disclosures.
IR is undertaking a post-implementation review of the increased disclosure rules to determine whether changes can be made to improve future disclosures and reduce compliance costs. The review includes interviews with tax and accounting practitioners, surveying trustees and analysing data from the second year of disclosures. The review will identify whether changes should be made to the 2025 trust tax returns.