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NZ tax policy 2026: where every party stands

Capital gains tax is the defining economic argument of this election, and the parties split further than the usual left–right line on state ownership and the superannuation age. Here is every position, with the source for each.

Who pays tax and how much, how big the state should be, and who should own the banks, power companies and supermarkets. All positions last verified 13 August 2026.

Find your match in 5 minutesHow positions are sourced

New Zealand should tax the profit people make when they sell an investment property.

This is called a capital gains tax. Right now, most profit from selling a rental or investment property isn't taxed. Every proposal on the table excludes the family home.

  • ACT

    Strongly opposes

    Opposed. Campaigning explicitly as the party of 'no new taxes' and a faster path to surplus through spending cuts.

    ACT: Faster path to surplus, no new taxes

  • Greens

    Strongly supports

    Goes further, wants a 33% capital acquisitions tax on assets or gifts over $1 million, alongside an annual wealth tax.

    Green Party: A tax system for all of us

  • Labour

    Strongly supports

    Campaigning on a 28% tax on profit from selling investment property from 1 July 2027, with every dollar ring-fenced for health. Excludes the family home, farms, KiwiSaver, shares and businesses.

    Hipkins: Labour Congress 2026 speech

  • National

    Strongly opposes

    Opposed. Campaigning on keeping taxes low and returning to surplus by 2028/29 through spending restraint rather than new taxes.

    National: Budget 2026

  • NZ First

    Strongly opposes

    Opposed to new housing-related taxes, framing cost-of-living relief as the priority.

    NZ Herald: Peters on immigration

  • Te Pāti Māori

    Strongly supports

    Wants the wealthiest to 'pay their fair share', with revenue directed to housing, health, education and whānau support.

    Te Pāti Māori: Policy

What this means in practice

At the moment, if you buy a rental for $600,000 and sell it for $800,000, that $200,000 gain is usually not taxed at all, while someone earning $200,000 from wages pays tax on every dollar. A capital gains tax would tax the profit when the property is sold, not while you hold it. Every proposal on the table exempts the home you live in.

Supporters say

  • Someone making $200,000 selling a property should pay tax on it, just as someone earning $200,000 in wages does. Rent is already taxed as income; the profit on sale mostly isn't.
  • New Zealand is one of very few developed countries without one, and it's why so much money goes into houses rather than businesses.
  • It raises revenue from a small group without touching most people's income.

Opponents say

  • It's a tax on investment, and investment is what builds new houses and businesses in the first place.
  • It's complicated and expensive to administer, and creates incentives to just never sell.
  • Landlords will pass the cost to tenants as higher rent.

People who own more than $10 million in assets should pay a yearly tax on it.

A wealth tax charges a percentage each year on what someone owns rather than on what they earn, so it is payable whether or not those assets made any money that year. The Greens propose 2.5% a year on net assets (what you own minus what you owe) above $10m, with the family home exempt. The charge applies only to the amount above the threshold, so $12m of net assets is taxed on $2m, not on the full $12m.

  • ACT

    Strongly opposes

    Strongly opposed. Campaigning on flattening income tax rates and cutting spending instead.

    ACT: Faster path to surplus, no new taxes

  • Greens

    Strongly supports

    Core manifesto policy, 2.5% annual tax on net assets above $10m, projected to raise $3.8b in 2027/28, funding an income tax cut for 96% of people.

    RNZ: Greens propose wealth and inheritance taxes

  • Labour

    Opposes

    Has ruled out a wealth tax this term, choosing a narrower capital gains tax on investment property instead.

    Labour: Our Policies

  • National

    Strongly opposes

    Opposed to new taxes of any kind; campaigning on keeping tax low.

    National: Budget 2026

  • NZ First

    Opposes

    No published 2026 position on a wealth tax. Its platform contains no new capital taxes and relies on state ownership instead, but it has not explicitly ruled one out, so this is inferred from the policy it has published rather than a stated commitment.

    NZ First: Our Policy

  • Te Pāti Māori

    Strongly supports

    Supports taxing accumulated wealth. The 2026 platform commits to making the wealthiest 'pay their fair share'; its most recent detailed tax policy proposed 2% on net wealth above $2m rising to 8% above $10m.

    NZ Herald: Te Pāti Māori's wealth tax plan

What this means in practice

Income tax is charged on what you earn each year. A wealth tax is charged on what you own, a small percentage of your total assets, every year, above a threshold. The Greens propose 2.5% a year on net assets above $10 million, with the family home exempt. 'Net' means after subtracting debt.

Supporters say

  • The wealthiest New Zealanders pay a lower effective tax rate than a nurse, because their money grows as assets rather than income.
  • It funds services from a group small enough that almost nobody reading this would pay it.
  • Several European countries have run one successfully.

Opponents say

  • Wealthy people and their capital leave, so it raises less than forecast, several countries have repealed theirs.
  • Valuing private businesses, farms and shares every single year is expensive and easy to argue about.
  • It can force asset-rich, cash-poor people, like farmers, to sell things to pay a bill.

The government should fix its deficit and debt by spending less, not by taxing more.

The government is currently running a deficit. Parties broadly split between closing it by spending less or by taxing more.

  • ACT

    Strongly supports

    Its central pitch, consolidating 43 departments into 19 (folding Te Puni Kōkiri, the Ministry for Women and the Ministry for Pacific Peoples into a new Home Affairs department) and finding savings year after year with no new taxes.

    ACT: Faster path to surplus, no new taxes

  • Greens

    Strongly opposes

    Opposed. Proposes $8b over four years in new green investment and a Ministry of Green Works, funded by taxing wealth and large corporates.

    Green Party: Manifesto 2026

  • Labour

    Opposes

    Would rebuild public services and fund them through a targeted capital gains tax rather than cuts.

    Labour: Our Policies

  • National

    Supports

    Committed to surplus by 2028/29 and $6b less borrowing through restraint, but is also increasing health, education and police spending.

    National: Budget 2026

  • NZ First

    Mixed / no clear position

    Mixed, critical of bureaucracy, but campaigning on large new state spending including buying back BNZ and a $1b oil and gas survey.

    2026 NZ general election: party platforms

  • Te Pāti Māori

    Strongly opposes

    Opposed. Wants revenue from taxing wealth directed into housing, health, education and Māori-led institutions.

    Te Pāti Māori: Policy

What this means in practice

The government currently spends more than it collects. It can close that gap by spending less, taxing more, or growing the economy so tax revenue rises on its own. This question is about the first option versus the second.

Supporters say

  • Government has grown faster than the economy can pay for; debt costs money that could fund services.
  • Every dollar the state doesn't take is a dollar a business or household decides how to use.
  • Ministries can be merged and back-office roles cut without touching frontline services.

Opponents say

  • 'Back office' cuts usually reach the front line eventually, fewer staff processing consents, claims or hospital admissions.
  • Cutting during a downturn takes demand out of the economy and can make the deficit worse.
  • Some spending, early childhood, preventive health, saves more later than it costs now.

The government should buy back a major bank and break up the power companies and supermarkets.

NZ First campaigns on nationalising BNZ and merging it with Kiwibank, splitting the four big power 'gentailers', and breaking up the supermarket duopoly.

  • ACT

    Strongly opposes

    Strongly opposed, argues for less state involvement in markets, not more.

    ACT: Faster path to surplus, no new taxes

  • Greens

    Strongly supports

    Would force Foodstuffs and Woolworths to sell 120 stores and two distribution centres into public ownership to create 'KiwiMart', a state-owned chain mandated to prioritise affordability, alongside gentailer separation and a Crown renewable entity.

    Green Party: KiwiMart and breaking up the duopoly

  • Labour

    Mixed / no clear position

    Middle position, proposes a 'NZ Future Fund' to invest in domestic business, but has not committed to nationalising banks or splitting energy companies.

    Labour: Our Policies

  • National

    Strongly opposes

    Opposed to nationalisation, favouring competition and regulatory settings over state ownership.

    National: Budget 2026

  • NZ First

    Strongly supports

    Flagship policy, nationalise BNZ and merge with Kiwibank to form a Crown-owned 'National Bank of New Zealand', split the four gentailers, and split Foodstuffs into two cooperatives.

    RNZ: NZ First's bank takeover and KiwiSaver-from-birth plan

  • Te Pāti Māori

    Supports

    Favours public and Māori-led ownership of key assets and enterprise funds, though has not committed to specific nationalisations.

    Te Pāti Māori: Policy

What this means in practice

In several markets, banking, electricity, groceries, a small number of firms hold most of the market. This question asks whether the government should intervene structurally: buying a bank back into public ownership, or legally forcing companies to split into smaller competing pieces.

Supporters say

  • Concentrated markets let firms charge more than they could if they faced real competition.
  • Electricity and groceries are essentials, you can't opt out, so normal market discipline is weak.
  • A publicly owned bank competes on price rather than maximising profit for overseas shareholders.

Opponents say

  • Buying a bank costs billions that could fund hospitals or debt repayment.
  • Forced break-ups create years of uncertainty exactly when the energy sector needs to invest heavily.
  • Splitting companies doesn't automatically create competitors, you can end up with the same concentration in new packaging.

The age you can start getting NZ Super should rise above 65.

The pension currently starts at 65 and isn't income-tested. Its cost is rising fast. 58% of voters told an RNZ poll they want it kept at 65.

What this means in practice

NZ Super is paid to everyone from 65, regardless of income or assets. It isn't a fund you paid into, it's paid out of current taxes. As people live longer and the population ages, fewer working-age taxpayers support more retirees.

Supporters say

  • People live years longer than when 65 was set; the settings haven't kept up.
  • Without change, super crowds out spending on health, education and everything else.
  • Changes are always signalled decades ahead, so nobody near retirement is affected.

Opponents say

  • A universal pension at 65 is a promise people have planned their lives around.
  • It hits manual workers hardest, a builder's body may not last to 67 even if an office worker's does.
  • Māori and Pacific life expectancy is lower, so a higher age means a smaller share of those populations collect it at all.

Compare another sector

Housing & Renting

Rent rules, state house building, help for first-home buyers, and whether to loosen planning rules to build more.

Health & Education

Free doctor's visits, how schools teach and test, school choice, and whether Māori-led health services should return.

Climate, Energy & Environment

Emissions targets, oil and gas, farming's climate obligations, mining, and river water quality.

Law, Order & Justice

Sentencing, prisons, police numbers, gangs, and whether justice should lean toward punishment or prevention.

Te Tiriti, Rights & Immigration

The place of Te Tiriti o Waitangi in government, the Māori electorates, te reo Māori, and how many people should move here.

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