Listing intermediary rules deal with situations when more than 1 person is involved in the supply of accommodation through an online marketplace from 1 April 2024.
Overview - listing intermediaries
A listing intermediary is a GST-registered person who lists short-stay and visitor accommodation on an online marketplace on behalf of the accommodation host. Common examples are property managers and agents.
You are only considered a listing intermediary if you have entered into an agreement with a marketplace operator to list or advertise accommodation provided by a host. The agreement must be in your name (or trading name).
If you have not entered into an agreement with the marketplace operator, you are not a listing intermediary. You must provide the marketplace operator with relevant information about the host, including the host’s GST registration status and bank account information.
If you are a listing intermediary, you:
- need to administer the flat-rate credit scheme
- may need to help larger accommodation hosts opt-out
- may be able to agree with the marketplace you will be responsible for the GST.
Collecting and paying GST on supplies
In most cases the marketplace operator will collect and pay GST of 15% on accommodation (and any closely connected services) supplied through their marketplace. This includes any services you may supply to the guest for a fee through the marketplace, such as cleaning or providing fresh linen.
You must treat these supplies of accommodation and any closely connected services as zero-rated in your GST return.
You are not required to provide taxable supply information to the marketplace operator for these supplies.
In certain circumstances, you and the marketplace operator can enter into an agreement stating that you will collect and pay GST of 15% on the supplies. To be able to enter into an agreement, you must:
- be a New Zealand tax resident
- list the accommodation provided by the host on more than one online marketplace
- use an electronic system that automatically manages guests’ bookings. Common examples include Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) that send information between your system and the online marketplace, or property management software you use to manage the bookings.
The marketplace operator will remain responsible for providing the guest with taxable supply information.
Administering the flat-rate credit scheme
If you are a listing intermediary, you will need to administer the flat-rate credit scheme for non-GST-registered hosts. This includes:
- passing on a flat-rate credit of 8.5% of the value of the supply to the non-GST-registered accommodation host
- providing regular statements to the accommodation host, showing the flat-rate credits passed on
- claiming a credit adjustment for the flat-rate credits in your GST return.
Calculating flat-rate credits
Calculate flat-rate credits based on the accommodation and any closely connected services provided by the host. This means you do not include the value of any services you provide to the guest that you charge a fee for (such as cleaning or providing fresh linen).
Opt-out for large accommodation hosts
Some hosts can choose to opt out of marketplace GST rules, so they remain responsible for collecting and paying GST and issuing taxable supply information themselves.
Hosts choosing to opt-out
If you deal with the marketplace operator on behalf of a host who meets the opt-out rules and wants to opt out, you may need to do 1 of the following:
- notify the marketplace operator that the host is opting out
- liaise with the host and marketplace operator so they can enter into an opt-out agreement.
Only hosts can opt out using these rules. For example, if you list more than 2,000 nights of accommodation on an online marketplace for your hosts, you cannot get an opt-out agreement with the marketplace operator to become liable for GST because you list more than 2,000 nights of taxable accommodation.
You also cannot group your hosts together to apply for an opt-out agreement on their behalf, so that they still collect and pay GST and issue taxable supply information.
Hosts can only opt out if they individually meet the criteria for opting out.
Listing intermediary responsible for GST on supplies of accommodation
If you have agreed with a marketplace operator that you will collect and pay GST of 15% on supplies of accommodation, the host needs to do 1 of the following:
- notify you they are opting out (if they make more than $500,000 of supplies in a 12-month period and want to opt out to collect and pay GST and issue taxable supply information)
- enter into an opt-out agreement with you (if they are opting out because they meet the 2,000 nights threshold).