Officials seek feedback on GST priority reforms

As New Zealand’s GST turns 40, Inland Revenue has published Current GST Issues – Officials’ Issues Paper (22 May 2026), inviting submissions by 29 June 2026. Rather than sweeping reform, the paper targets pockets of uncertainty across eight chapters and 56 specific questions. [taxpolicy….rd.govt.nz], [taxpolicy….rd.govt.nz]

Deloitte NZ notes the paper reads as “a mix of some good ideas, some unhelpful proposed solutions and a number of issues that most taxpayers will have had no idea even existed”. Key themes include: reworking the dwelling/commercial dwelling boundary (student accommodation, farm stays, Māori housing including papakāinga); zero-rating surplus residential electricity exported to the grid; narrowing the resident definition for cross-border services; a two-track error-correction framework; and modernising GST group registration and pre-registration input tax deductions. [deloitte.com], [cpaaustralia.com.au]

The submission most anticipated by the events sector is on Chapter 8 – Business Event Services to Non-Resident Businesses. BusinessNZ argues that not zero-rating conference registration fees and ancillary supplies leaves New Zealand structurally disadvantaged against Australia and Singapore, which already zero-rate such services, and calls for the 2020 proposal (shelved during COVID) to be enacted without further delay. [businessnz.org.nz]

For multinationals, the practical takeaway is to track drafting of any subsequent bill — particularly on cross-border services, GST groups and pre-registration input tax — as this consultation will directly shape the next GST amendment package.