IRD debt: thirty straight answers

Often, yes. We consider businesses that owe IRD case by case. Property-secured business loans run from $20,000 to $5,000,000, and unsecured or cash-flow options for trading businesses are typically $5,000 to $500,000. Business purposes only.

We will. Owing IRD is the reason most people contact us. What matters is whether the business is viable, whether returns are filed, how the loan would be repaid, and any property security.

Compare the total dollar cost over the same period and the risk. An arrangement avoids loan costs but interest continues and it can be cancelled if a payment slips. A loan has a known total cost and ends IRD's enforcement once paid. Our arrangement vs loan cost check compares them without rates.

Bad credit and existing IRD debt are considered case by case. Property security usually carries more weight than a credit score. Being upfront about defaults speeds things up.

Funding is possible in as little as 24 hours for property-secured loans once documents are signed. It depends on the property, the title and paperwork, so it's never a promise.

No. There's no credit check when you first enquire. A credit check only happens if you decide to apply.

No. Every loan is priced on the business's circumstances. We give you the total cost in dollars so you can compare it with what IRD would add.

Yes. A deduction notice under section 157 of the Tax Administration Act requires your bank to pay IRD from your account. No court order is needed, and it can't be challenged through the disputes process.

Pay the debt in full, or agree a formal instalment arrangement and keep to it. IRD says it won't issue a deduction notice while you keep to an arrangement.

A formal demand under section 289 of the Companies Act. A company generally has 15 working days to pay, settle or apply to set it aside, and a set-aside application is generally due within 10 working days. Get legal advice immediately.

Generally yes, until the court makes a liquidation order. Paying the debt in full, plus any costs, can bring the application to an end. Your lawyer handles the court side.

Shareholders have 10 working days after the application is served to appoint a liquidator themselves. After that, IRD's consent is needed. Use that window to check whether the debt can be paid first.

It can, from 1 April 2026, if GST, PAYE or income tax debt is over $150,000 and 90 days overdue, or unpaid for more than 12 months and 30% or more of assessable income. A 30-day Notice of Intent comes first. It applies to companies only.

Don't rely on it. Notices go to the company in myIR or by post. Keep your own myIR access and contact details current, and check the account regularly.

It may well be. If you're unsure, hang up and call IRD back on a number from ird.govt.nz. A genuine contact won't ask for passwords or login details.

Yes. Use-of-money interest continues on the unpaid balance. Late payment penalties stop from the day the arrangement starts, as long as you keep to it.

IRD can cancel it, and if it's cancelled for default, penalties can be charged back as if it never existed. Call IRD before a payment is missed if you can.

IRD's relief form asks companies whether they tried getting a loan to pay the debt, because IRD aims to collect the most it reasonably can. Looking into funding is part of doing it properly.

No. Serious hardship relief is for individuals. Companies can ask for relief or instalment support, but company tax is written off only on narrow grounds, such as being irrecoverable.

Only in limited cases: where it's irrecoverable, where recovery would be an inefficient use of IRD's resources, or after liquidation. A write-off can also extinguish carried-forward tax losses.

Pooling lets you buy date-stamped income tax so it counts as paid earlier. IRD's pilot for overdue 2022–23 and 2023–24 income tax closed to new contracts on 1 October 2026. Pooling doesn't cover GST or PAYE.

PAYE is the company's obligation, but IRD says a director who decides the company won't pay deductions may be prosecuted. The maximum sentence for non-payment is up to five years' imprisonment.

The company's tax debt generally goes with the company. Personal guarantees survive, a liquidator can pursue overdrawn current accounts, and director conduct is investigated.

No reputable source publishes reliable averages. The liquidator's fees and expenses are paid first from company assets. Ask any licensed practitioner for a written estimate and how fees are calculated.

Search the insolvency practitioners register on the Companies Office website. Complaints, including about overcharging, go to NZICA.

Generally not for five years if you were a director of the failed company, unless an exception applies, such as court leave or a successor company notice. Breaches carry serious penalties.

For a 31 March balance date, 7 February of the following year without a tax agent, or 7 April with a tax agent who has an extension of time.

Under the standard and estimation methods, usually 28 August, 15 January and 7 May.

IRD calculates it daily on unpaid tax; it doesn't compound and isn't included in penalty calculations. Interest paid on underpayments is deductible for business purposes. Check IRD's website for the current rate.

Your tax debt is personal. Options include an instalment arrangement, hardship relief if paying would leave you unable to meet basic living costs, a business loan where there's property or steady income, and for smaller unsecured debts, a Debt Repayment Order or No Asset Procedure.