Every new tax proposed for the 2026 election, and who would pay it

What is actually being proposed

Labour proposes one new tax: 28% on the profit from selling an investment property, from 1 July 2027, with the money ring-fenced for health. The family home, farms, KiwiSaver, shares and businesses are excluded. Our capital gains tax guide covers it in full.

The Greens propose three: a yearly wealth tax, a tax on large inheritances and gifts, and a higher company rate for the biggest corporates. They say the revenue would pay for an income tax cut for 96% of people.

Te Pāti Māori wants the wealthiest to pay more through a tax on accumulated wealth.

Opportunity, which is not in Parliament and is not scored in our quiz, proposes a yearly tax on the value of land.

The wealth tax

A wealth tax is charged each year on what you own, not on what you earn. It is payable whether or not those assets made any money that year.

The Greens' version is 2.5% a year on net assets above $10 million, with the family home exempt. Net assets means what you own minus what you owe. The tax applies only to the amount over the threshold, so someone with $12 million pays 2.5% of $2 million, which is $50,000 a year.

Te Pāti Māori's most recent detailed plan started lower, at 2% on net wealth above $2 million, rising to 8% above $10 million.

Supporters say income tax misses most of the wealth at the very top, because it grows as assets rise in value and is never paid out as wages. Opponents point to people who are rich on paper and short of cash, such as farmers and business founders, and to how hard it is to value private assets every year.

The inheritance tax

New Zealand has no inheritance tax today. The Greens propose a 33% tax on assets or gifts a person receives above $1 million.

The case for it is that a large inheritance is income the receiver did nothing to earn, and it is currently taxed at nothing while wages are taxed from the first dollar. The case against is that the money was already taxed when it was earned, and that families with a farm or a business may have to sell part of it to pay the bill.

The land value tax

Opportunity proposes a 1.75% yearly tax on the value of land only, not the buildings on it, with a lower 0.5% rate for rural land. Retirees could defer it so that it is paid from their estate.

It is paired with a Citizen's Income of up to $370 a week paid to almost all adults. The argument for taxing land is that it cannot be moved offshore or hidden, and that taxing it pushes owners to use it. The argument against is that it lands on homeowners whose land has risen in value while their income has not.

Who rules new taxes out

National is campaigning on no new taxes and a return to surplus by 2028/29 through spending restraint and growth.

ACT calls itself the party of no new taxes, and wants a faster path to surplus through spending cuts and flatter income tax rates.

NZ First has no new taxes in its platform and wants company tax cut to 20% for smaller firms. It has not formally ruled every new tax out.

Labour has ruled out a wealth tax this term, choosing the narrower capital gains tax instead.

The argument underneath

The government is running a deficit. Every party agrees it has to close. They split on whether to do that by spending less or by taxing more, and if by taxing, whom.

Four of the 37 questions in the NZVoteCheck quiz are on exactly this. You can also read where every party stands on tax, each position with its source, or start from the home page.