Payday filing is a new government requirement that changes the way you submit your employee payroll information to the Inland Revenue Department (IRD). Currently employers file employee earnings and PAYE information to the IRD each month, no matter how frequently they pay their employees. Under Payday filing you need to report this information to the IRD every time you pay your employees.

When does payday filing start?

Payday filing is mandatory for all employers from 1 April 2019.

Payday filing has been voluntary from 1 April 2018, and switches to mandatory from 1 April 2019. It’s a good idea to start thinking about how you’ll make Payday filing part of your payroll processes before this becomes a requirement.

What do I need to submit?

Each time you finish a pay run you need to send a report of the employee payroll information to the IRD. Your report will include the following information for each employee:

  • Pay period, pay cycle (weekly monthly etc) and payday date
  • The employee’s full name, IRD number and tax code
  • The employee’s total gross earnings
  • The amount of PAYE, including tax on scheduler payments
  • Child support or student loan deductions if applicable
  • KiwiSaver deductions
  • KiwiSaver employer contributions if applicable
  • Employer Superannuation Contribution Tax (ESCT)
  • Start and finish dates if an employee starts or stops working for you during the pay period
  • What is payday filing

How do I submit my Payday filing report?

If you pay less than $50,000 in PAYE & ECST you can submit online or on paper.

There are four ways you can file:

  1. Direct from your payroll software provider
  2. File export from your payroll software provider and upload in myIR
  3. On-screen in myIR
  4. Mail a paper report to the IRD

If you are filing via paper, you must submit employment information to Inland Revenue within 10 working days of paying your staff (or within 2 for online filing). If you pay more than $50,000 in PAYE & ECST you must submit online.

There are three ways you can file online:

  1. Direct from your payroll software provider
  2. File export from your payroll software provider and upload in myIR
  3. On-screen in myIR.

If you are filing online, you must submit employment information to Inland Revenue within 2 working days of paying your staff.

Why has Payday filing been introduced?

In 2018, the New Zealand Government passed Payday filing legislation to streamline the payroll process by aligning payroll reporting requirements with your normal pay cycle. Payday filing replaces your Employer Monthly Schedule (IR348) if you file online or your Employer Schedule (IR348) if you’re a paper filer.

Payday filing also makes it easier to spot and correct mistakes as soon as they’re made and ensures the Government receives up-to-date information for calculating yours and your employees tax and entitlements.

Reckon has been working closely with the IRD and will be Payday filing ready by 1 April 2019. We’re providing a simple, easy way to meet your tax requirements via an export/import file upload in the following products:

  • Accounts Hosted
  • Reckon Accounts 2019 version onwards

Simply complete a pay run as normal, export a file out of your software and log into myIR and upload the file. If you’re using an earlier version of Reckon Accounts, you won’t have access to the export file functionality. However, you can still enter your payroll figures manually into the myIR portal. We’ll keep you posted with more information as the 1 April 2019 start date approaches.

Check out Accounts Hosted for easy Payday Filing.