Skip to main content

Temporary office hours - Cyclone Gabrielle Our Gisborne office is open 9.00am to 1.00pm.

North Island flooding | Many of you have been affected by the flooding in the North Island and may need help keeping up with your tax obligations. Find out more

Inland Revenue Inland Revenue
  • About us
    • About us
    • IR careers
  • News
    • Media releases
    • Updates
    • Subscribe
    • Seminars
  • Related Websites
    • Tax Technical
    • Tax Policy
    • International
  • Contact us
    • Contact us
    • Media queries
    • Tax Technical queries
    • Tax Policy queries
  • English
Register myIR login
myIR login
Individuals and families Ngā tāngata me ngā whānau
  • IRD numbers Ngā tau IRD
  • Income tax for individuals Te tāke moni whiwhi mō ngā tāngata takitahi
  • File my individual tax return Te tuku i tētahi puka tāke takitahi
  • Support for families Ngā tautoko i ngā whānau
  • KiwiSaver Poua he Oranga
  • Student loans Student loans
  • Self-employed Mahi ā-kiri
  • More... Tāpiri atu…
Business and organisations Ngā pakihi me ngā whakahaere
  • Income tax Tāke moni whiwhi mō ngā pakihi
  • Employing staff Te tuku mahi ki ngā kaimahi
  • KiwiSaver for employers Te KiwiSaver mō ngā kaituku mahi
  • Goods and services tax (GST) Tāke mō ngā rawa me ngā ratonga
  • Non-profits and charities Ngā umanga kore-huamoni me ngā umanga aroha
  • International Tāwāhi
  • More... Tāpiri atu…
Intermediaries and others Ngā takawaenga me ētahi atu
  • Tax agents Ngā māngai tāke
  • Bookkeepers Te kaikaute
  • PAYE intermediaries Ngā takawaenga PAYE
  • Payroll bureaus Ngā tari utu ā-rārangi
  • Digital service providers Ngā kaiwhakarato pūmanawa rorohiko
  • More... Tāpiri atu…
About us
  • About us
  • IR careers
News
  • Media releases
  • Updates
  • Subscribe
  • Seminars
Related Websites
  • Tax Technical
  • Tax Policy
  • International
Contact us
  • Contact us
  • Media queries
  • Tax Technical queries
  • Tax Policy queries
English
Register
myIR login
Inland Revenue
Home
Individuals and families Ngā tāngata me ngā whānau
Popular pages Ngā wharangi rongonui
Cost of Living Payment Utu mō te utu oranga IRD numbers Ngā tau IRD File my individual tax return Te tuku i tētahi puka tāke takitahi Support for families Ngā tautoko i ngā whānau Managing my tax Te whakahaere i taku tāke
More individuals and families
Familes Ngā whānau
Working for Families Working for families Child support Te tautoko tamariki Paid parental leave Te utu tiaki pēpi
Property and Trusts Ngā wharangi rongonui
Trusts and estates Ngā rōpū kaitiaki me ngā rawa tuku iho Property Ngā rawa
Individuals Ngā tāngata
Income tax for individuals Te tāke moni whiwhi mō ngā tāngata takitahi Non-residents Ngā kainoho-tāwāhi Self-employed Mahi ā-kiri Kiwisaver for individuals Kiwisaver mā te tangata takitahi Student loans Ngā pūtea taurewa ākonga Cryptoassets for individuals Ngā rawa whiti-rangi mā te tangata takitahi Unclaimed money
Situations Ngā āhuatanga
I am going overseas Kei te haere ahau ki tāwāhi I received an income tax assessment I whiwhi i ahau tētahi aromatawai tāke moni whiwhi I'm struggling to file and pay my tax
More situations
Business and organisations Ngā pakihi me ngā whakahaere
Popular pages Ngā wharangi rongonui
Covid-19 Businesses and organisations KOWHEORI-19 Ngā pakihi me ngā whakahaere File a companies income tax return - IR4 Te tuku i tētahi puka tāke moni whiwhi kamupene - IR4 Not-for-profits and charities PAYE calculator to work out salary and wage deductions Property Ngā rawa IRD numbers Ngā tau IRD
More business and organisations
Income tax Te tāke moni whiwhi
Types of business income Ngā momo moni whiwhi pakihi Tax rates for businesses Ngā pāpātanga tāke mō te pakihi Balance dates Ngā rā mutunga tau pūtea
GST Tāke hokohoko (GST)
Charging GST Te uta i te tāke hokohoko Claiming GST Te kerēme tāke hokohoko
Employing staff Te tuku mahi ki ngā kaimahi
Register as an employer Te rēhita hei kaituku mahi Paying staff Utu kaimahi Payday filing Te tāpaetanga rā utu Deductions from income Ngā tangohanga mai i ngā moni whiwhi Kiwisaver for employers Te KiwiSaver mō ngā kaituku mahi
International Tāwāhi
International tax for business Te tāke aowhānui mō ngā pakihi
Situations Ngā āhuatanga
I am starting a new business Kei te tīmata au i tētahi pakihi hou I am going to employ someone Kei te tuku mahi ahau ki tētahi tangata My business is making a loss Kei te hapa taku pakihi
More situations
Intermediaries and others Ngā takawaenga me ētahi atu
Intermediaries Ngā takawaenga
Becoming an intermediary Te tū hei takawaenga Getting authority to act Te whiwhi whakamanatanga Executive office holders Ngā kaipupuri tūnga whakahaere Linking client accounts Te honohono pūkete kiritaki Nominated person Te tangata kua whakaingoatia Tax pooling Te whakarōpū tāke Gateway services
More intermediaries and others
Tax agents Ngā māngai tāke
Agents answers Ngā Whakautu Māngai Tax agent status Te tūnga māngai tāke Extension of time arrangements Te whakaroa i ngā whakaritenga wā Managing consolidated groups Te whakahaere rōpū tōpū Income tax for individual clients of tax agents Te tāke moni whiwhi mā ngā kiritaki takitahi a ngā takawaenga News updates for tax agents
More tax agents
Digital service providers Ngā kaiwhakarato ratonga matihiko
Getting started guide About the developer portal Mō te tomokanga kaiwhakawhanake Gateway services architecture Te hanganga ratonga tomokanga Services catalogue Te putumōhio ratonga
More digital service providers
Roles Ngā tūranga
Tax agents Ngā māngai tāke Bookkeepers Ngā kaikaute PAYE intermediaries Ngā takawaenga PAYE Payroll bureaus Ngā tari ripanga utu kaimahi Other representatives Ētahi atu māngai
Search tips

Te tūnga nōhanga tāke mō ngā kamupene Tax residency status for companies

Home
Home
  • International
    • International tax for business
      • Compliance Focus for Multinational Enterprises
      • Company tax residency
      • Tax information requirements for acquisitions of significant business assets
      • Non-resident businesses and GST
      • Paying non-resident contractors
      • Guidance on anti-bribery laws
      • Guidance on corporate tax governance
      • Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) disclosure
      • Transfer pricing
      • Australian-specific issues
      • International Questionnaire

This page has information about:

  • when a company is considered to be a New Zealand resident
  • the rules around permanent establishments
  • how to apply for an IRD number for your company
  • dual resident companies and determinations.

When a company is considered to be a New Zealand resident 

A company is resident in New Zealand if it meets any of the criteria in the following table. A detailed discussion of the rules can be found in IS 16/03 Tax residence published in Tax Information Bulletin Vol 28, No 10 (October 2016) from page 36.

Tax Information Bulletin - Vol 28 No 10 - October 2016


Criteria Description

It is incorporated in New Zealand

  • A company incorporated under the Companies Act 1993 is a tax resident in New Zealand.

It has its head office in New Zealand

  • The head office of a company is the office from which the business of the company is directed and carried out.
  • The focus of the test is the physical place of administration and management which is superior to all others.

It has its centre of management in New Zealand

  • This is the place from where the company as a whole is managed on a day-to-day basis.

Control by company directors is exercised in New Zealand

  • Those acting in their capacity as directors control the company here, whether decision-making is confined to New Zealand or not.

Rules around permanent establishments

Double tax agreements (DTAs) with other countries or territories generally provide that a non-resident company with a permanent establishment in New Zealand will be subject to New Zealand tax on income derived here.

The definition of a permanent establishment can vary across different DTAs, but often uses the criteria in the following table.

Criteria Description

A permanent establishment for a business is a fixed place where the business activity is wholly or partly carried on.

This includes:

  • a place of management
  • a branch
  • an office
  • a factory
  • a workshop
  • a mine, an oil or gas well, a quarry or any other place of extraction of natural resources
  • an agricultural, pastoral or forestry property
  • a building or construction site, installation or assembly project that lasts more than six months.

The company may also have a permanent establishment in other circumstances.

This includes:

  • carrying on supervisory activities in connection with a building or construction site, installation or assembly project for more than six months
  • carrying on activities which consist or, or which are connected with, the exploration for or exploitation of natural resources situated in New Zealand
  • using substantial equipment in New Zealand, for more than six months, for or under contract with the enterprise
  • performing any operations for the felling, removal or other exploitation of standing timber.

The company does not have a permanent establishment if it only uses facilities in New Zealand for certain activities.

These are:

  • storage, display or delivery of goods or merchandise
  • maintenance of goods or merchandise that are used for the storage, display or delivery of the company's merchandise
  • maintenance of goods or merchandise that belongs to the company but are used for processing by another entity
  • maintenance of a fixed place of business that is only used for purchasing goods or merchandise or collecting information for the company
  • maintenance of a fixed place of business that is used for any other activity of an introductory or supporting nature, such as advertising or scientific research.

Applying for an IRD number for your company

If your company is deemed to be a resident of New Zealand, you will need to apply for an IRD number by completing an IRD number application - resident non-individual form, IR596.

IRD number application - non-individual IR596 2020 (PDF 146KB) Download form
2022 IR596 (PDF 196KB) Download form

Dual resident companies and determinations

It is possible for a company to be resident in more than one country. This can lead to a number of undesirable outcomes such as potential double taxation and restrictions on maintaining an imputation credit account. We recommend companies carefully review their governance arrangements so that dual residence does not arise inadvertently.

On the other hand, dual resident companies can be used in tax avoidance arrangements. In order to address these concerns, Article 4(1) of the Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting requires non-individual taxpayers that are dual residents to apply to either competent authority for a determination of their residency for tax treaty purposes.

If there is no agreement, treaty benefits will be denied or only granted to the extent to which competent authorities can agree.

Inland Revenue and the Australian Taxation Office have agreed an administrative approach under which eligible taxpayers can self-determine their residence without the need to apply for a determination. This approach is designed to reduce compliance costs for eligible taxpayers. You can see the eligibility criteria on Tax Policy's site.

Australia and New Zealand's administrative approach to MLI Article 4(1) (Tax Policy)


Companies that are not eligible for the administrative approach will need to apply to a competent authority for a determination. See Tax Policy for details of how to do this if the application is made to the competent authority in New Zealand.

Competent Authority Determinations (Tax Policy)

    Moving between Inland Revenue sites

    picto--truck

    Heads up. We're taking you to our old site, where the page you asked for still lives

    Continue to old site
    Last updated: 28 Apr 2021
    Jump back to the top of the page top
    Inland Revenue Inland Revenue

    FOLLOW US

    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Youtube
    • LinkedIn
    • Subscribe

    CONTACT US

    • Contact Information
      • Contact us
      • Media queries
      • Tax Policy enquiries
      • Tax Technical enquiries
    • About us
    • Careers
    • International
    • About the site
    • Conditions of use
    • Privacy
    • Glossary
    • Accessibility
    • Copyright
    • MyIR Help
    © Copyright 2023 Inland Revenue
    New Zealand Government
    Shielded website