Rail one — pay the employee. The Wages Protection Act 1983 makes wages payable in money by default (s 7). You can pay by bank deposit, cheque, postal order or money order instead, but only with the worker's written consent or on their written request (s 9). You must pay the entire amount without deduction (s 4) except for lawful, agreed or statutory deductions.
Rail two — pay Inland Revenue. The deductions — PAYE, KiwiSaver (employee and employer), ESCT, student loan and child support — remit together in one payment to your EMP account. Standard employers pay monthly, by the 20th of the following month; employers with gross annual PAYE and ESCT of $500,000 or more pay twice monthly (the 20th and the 5th).
The point to hold on to: paying is not filing. The payday Employment Information return goes through the gateway / myIR; the money goes through your bank. Inland Revenue confirms the gateway cannot take deduction payments.
Two payment rails, one payday
When you run a New Zealand pay cycle, money leaves in two directions. The larger share goes to your employees as net wages; the rest — everything you withheld on their behalf, plus your own employer contributions — goes to Inland Revenue. These are different payments, to different recipients, under different rules, on different clocks. And both are distinct again from the data you file: the payday Employment Information (EI) return, covered in the New Zealand payroll lodgement timeline, is a report, not a payment. Confusing the payment rails with each other, or with the filing rail, is one of the easiest ways to end up compliant on paper but late with the cash. Take them one at a time.
Rail one: paying employees their net wages
What an employer may do with wages is not left to habit — it is set by the Wages Protection Act 1983. The starting rule is cash. Section 7 states: "Subject to sections 8 to 10, an employer shall pay the wages of every worker in money only." And "money" is defined narrowly — "any New Zealand coin or New Zealand banknotes, or combination of both, the tender of which in respect of the payment of those wages is legal tender." On its face, the Act's default is that you hand over legal tender.
That default is displaced the moment the worker agrees to something else. Section 9 lets an employer, "with the written consent of a worker" or "on the written request of a worker," pay by "postal order, money order, specified cheque, or lodgement at a financial institution to the credit of an account standing in the name of that worker or in the name of that worker and some other person or persons jointly." That last option — lodgement to the credit of the worker's account — is the statutory basis for paying wages into a bank account. The consent is not permanent: under s 9(2) a worker may vary or withdraw it by written notice, and the employer must then "commence paying that worker in money, or in some other manner in accordance with subsection (1)" — within 2 weeks where practicable.
In everyday practice, essentially every New Zealand employer pays net wages by bulk bank direct credit: a batch payment file, one line per employee, lodged with the employer's bank for the pay date. That is not a separate legal regime — it is precisely the s 9 "lodgement at a financial institution to the credit of an account" method. So it is lawful because the worker consented to it in writing, not because direct credit is required. The takeaway for setup: capture and keep each employee's written consent (or request) to be paid into their nominated account — the bank rail is the mechanism, the Act is the authority.
What counts as a lawful deduction
Net wages are what is left after deductions, so the Act also polices what you may take out. Section 4 sets the baseline: an employer "shall, when any wages become payable to a worker, pay the entire amount of those wages to that worker without deduction." Deductions are the exception, and they come in two kinds. The first is deductions the worker has agreed to: s 5 allows an employer to make deductions "for a lawful purpose" either "with the written consent of the worker (including consent in a general deductions clause in the worker's employment agreement)" or "on the written request of the worker" — and where a general deductions clause is used, the employer "must not make a specific deduction ... without first consulting the worker." Section 5A adds a guard: "An employer must not make a deduction under section 5 ... if the deduction is unreasonable." The second kind is deductions required or authorised by statute — PAYE, KiwiSaver, student loan repayments and child support — which come out because tax and social legislation says they must, not because the worker opted in. One more boundary: s 12 provides that "No employer shall impose any requirement on any worker as to any place or manner in which or any person with whom that worker shall expend wages received by that worker." You withhold what the law and the agreement permit, pay the rest, and leave the spending to the employee.
Rail two: paying Inland Revenue the deductions
The amounts you withheld are not yours; they are on their way to Inland Revenue, and they travel as a single remittance. Inland Revenue's guidance is that for the EMP (employment activities) account type "you can make a single payment for: pay as you earn, child support deductions, KiwiSaver deductions, KiwiSaver contributions, student loan deductions, Employer Superannuation Contribution." In other words PAYE, KiwiSaver employee deductions, KiwiSaver employer contributions, ESCT, student loan and child support all settle together into your EMP account. (The ACC earners' levy is not a line here — it is collected inside the PAYE you deducted; ACC bills you separately for the other levies, as set out in PAYE & KiwiSaver, explained.)
The timing is monthly for most employers. Inland Revenue's Employer's guide (IR335) states: "If your gross annual PAYE and ESCT is less than $500,000, pay deductions to us monthly. The due date is the 20th of the following month. You can choose to pay more often." So a payment covering everything you deducted across a calendar month is due on the 20th of the next month — with an explicit safety valve: "If the due date is a Saturday, Sunday, or a public holiday, you can make your payment on the next working day without penalty." As for how the money is carried, Inland Revenue lists the options plainly — you can pay by "internet banking, credit or debit card, direct debit" — with internet banking's "Pay Tax" / "Pay IRD" function and a myIR direct debit being the usual routes for an employer.
Large employers: twice monthly
Above a threshold the money rail speeds up. The IR335 rule is: "If your gross annual PAYE and ESCT is $500,000 or more in the previous tax year (1 April to 31 March), you're required to pay deductions twice monthly." The two due dates split the month: amounts on wages paid between the 1st and 15th are due "20th of the same month"; amounts on wages paid between the 16th and the end of the month are due "5th of the following month" — with the one carve-out that the "16th and 31st of December only" period is due "15th January" rather than 5 January. A definitional trap worth flagging: for measuring yourself against the $500,000 line, "Gross annual PAYE is the total PAYE, including any ESCT, but excluding ACC earners' levy, student loan repayments, KiwiSaver and child support deductions" — so the earners' levy that sits inside PAYE is stripped back out for the threshold test.
The single most common mix-up on the money rail is assuming that filing the payday return also settles the money. It does not. Inland Revenue is explicit: "There's currently no ability for employee deductions payment through our gateway or file upload services." The Employment Information return goes through the gateway / myIR (or paper) and reports; the payment goes through your bank to the EMP account and pays. Two rails, two deadlines, two ways to be late.
Two clocks: how paying interacts with payday filing
The same payday arms both the filing obligation and the paying obligation, but on very different calendars. On the filing side, electronic filers lodge the Employment Information return within 2 working days of each payday (paper filers within 10) — the tight, per-pay rhythm detailed in the lodgement timeline. On the paying side, the deductions for the whole month are not due until the 20th of the following month (or twice monthly for large employers). So a single pay run can leave you with a return due this week and a payment not due for weeks — independent deadlines, and satisfying one says nothing about the other. Note too that the $500,000 twice-monthly payment threshold is a different number from the $50,000 electronic-filing threshold and the $500,000 test is measured on gross annual PAYE and ESCT for the previous tax year; the filing thresholds are covered separately in the lodgement timeline.
What your payroll system automates
Most of this is mechanical once the rules are encoded, which is where a payroll system earns its place. A well-built system takes the finished pay run and, on the employee rail, produces the bank direct-credit file — one line per worker, to the account each has consented to be paid into — so the s 9 method is applied consistently and the net amounts reconcile to the calculation. On the Inland Revenue rail, it sums the month's PAYE, KiwiSaver employee and employer amounts, ESCT, student loan and child support into the single EMP-account figure, tracks whether you sit under or over the $500,000 twice-monthly threshold, and schedules the payment against the correct due date — the 20th, or the 20th and 5th — rolling a weekend or public-holiday date to the next working day. What software does not do is change the law: the written consents, the deduction authorities and the due dates are yours to get right, and your payroll system should make the correct behaviour the default rather than a manual step.
Quick answers
How must I pay my employees their wages in New Zealand?
The default rule in the Wages Protection Act 1983 is that wages are paid in money: section 7 says an employer must pay the wages of every worker in money only, and money is defined as New Zealand coin or banknotes that are legal tender. You may pay by another method — postal order, money order, specified cheque, or lodgement at a financial institution to the credit of an account in the worker's name (a bank deposit or direct credit) — but only with the worker's written consent or on the worker's written request under section 9. In practice almost every New Zealand employer pays net wages by bank direct credit, which is exactly this section 9 route, so the written consent or request that authorises it should be on file. A worker can vary or withdraw that consent in writing, and the employer must then return to paying in money, or to another agreed method, within 2 weeks where practicable.
Can I make deductions from an employee's wages?
Only where the law allows it. Section 4 of the Wages Protection Act 1983 sets the default: when wages become payable, the employer must pay the entire amount to the worker without deduction. The exceptions are a lawful deduction the worker has agreed to — section 5 permits deductions for a lawful purpose with the worker's written consent (including a general deductions clause in the employment agreement, which the employer must consult on before applying) or on the worker's written request — and deductions required or authorised by statute, such as PAYE, KiwiSaver, student loan and child support. Section 5A adds that a deduction made under section 5 must not be unreasonable. Separately, section 12 makes clear you cannot dictate how a worker spends their wages. So PAYE and the other statutory amounts come out because the law requires them; anything else needs the worker's written consent or request.
When do I pay Inland Revenue the PAYE and other amounts I have deducted?
For most employers the deductions are due monthly. Inland Revenue's Employer's guide (IR335) states: if your gross annual PAYE and ESCT is less than $500,000, pay deductions monthly, and the due date is the 20th of the following month. You can choose to pay more often. Large employers — gross annual PAYE and ESCT of $500,000 or more in the previous tax year (1 April to 31 March) — pay twice monthly instead: amounts on wages paid between the 1st and 15th are due by the 20th of the same month, and amounts on wages paid between the 16th and the end of the month by the 5th of the following month, except that the 16 to 31 December period is due on 15 January rather than 5 January. If a due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday you can pay on the next working day without penalty.
Which deductions get paid to Inland Revenue, and in how many payments?
They go to a single Inland Revenue account and can be settled in one payment. Inland Revenue says that for the EMP (employment activities) account type you can make a single payment for pay as you earn, child support deductions, KiwiSaver deductions, KiwiSaver contributions, student loan deductions and Employer Superannuation Contribution. In other words PAYE, KiwiSaver employee deductions, KiwiSaver employer contributions, ESCT, student loan and child support all remit together to your EMP account. The ACC earners' levy is not a separate remittance line — it is collected inside the PAYE amount you deducted from the employee, so you do not pay it across to ACC yourself; ACC invoices you separately for the other levies.
Is paying Inland Revenue the same as filing my payday return?
No. Filing and paying are separate rails. The payday Employment Information return travels through Inland Revenue's gateway services, myIR file upload or on-screen entry (or paper) and reports what you deducted; the money travels separately, through your bank, to your EMP account. Inland Revenue is explicit that there is currently no ability for employee deductions payment through its gateway or file upload services. So a single payday arms two independent obligations: file the Employment Information return within 2 working days of payday if you file electronically (10 working days on paper), and pay the deductions by the 20th of the following month, or twice monthly if you are a large employer. Meeting one tells you nothing about the other.
How do New Zealand employers actually move the money to employees?
As a matter of practice, not statute, New Zealand employers pay net wages by bulk bank direct credit — a batch payment file, one line per employee, lodged with the employer's bank for the pay date. That practice sits inside the Wages Protection Act 1983: paying to the credit of an account in the worker's name is the section 9 method, so it is lawful because the worker has given written consent or made a written request for it, not because direct credit is mandated. Statute fixes what is lawful and what must reach the worker; the bank rail is how the payment is carried. Keep the two ideas separate: the Act governs the obligation, the bank file is the mechanism.
One pay run, both payment rails: the direct-credit file for employees, the single EMP-account figure for Inland Revenue
Ledra Pay's New Zealand country pack takes the finished run and produces both payments off it. On the employee rail it assembles the bank direct-credit file line by line to the accounts each worker is paid into; on the Inland Revenue rail it totals PAYE, KiwiSaver, ESCT, student loan and child support into the single EMP-account amount, tracks the $500,000 twice-monthly threshold, and schedules the payment for the 20th (or the 20th and 5th) with weekend and public-holiday dates rolled to the next working day — paying kept firmly distinct from filing, with a receipt on every write.
See NZ coverage →Government sources
- New Zealand Legislation — Wages Protection Act 1983 (verified 11 July 2026): s 4 "an employer shall, when any wages become payable to a worker, pay the entire amount of those wages to that worker without deduction"; s 5 deductions with the worker's written consent (including a general deductions clause) or on written request, and s 5(1A) consultation duty; s 5A a s 5 deduction "must not ... [be] unreasonable"; s 7 "an employer shall pay the wages of every worker in money only"; the definition of "money" ("New Zealand coin or New Zealand banknotes ... legal tender"); s 9 payment "by postal order, money order, specified cheque, or lodgement at a financial institution to the credit of an account" only "with the written consent" or "on the written request" of the worker, and s 9(2) withdrawal of consent; s 12 "No employer shall impose any requirement on any worker as to any place or manner in which ... that worker shall expend wages".
- Inland Revenue — Paying deductions to Inland Revenue (verified 11 July 2026): small/medium employers pay "monthly, by the 20th of the following month"; large employers "twice a month" with the 1st–15th → 20th and 16th–end → 5th schedule and the "16-31 December pay by 15 January" carve-out; the EMP (employment activities) account single payment covering "pay as you earn, child support deductions, KiwiSaver deductions, KiwiSaver contributions, student loan deductions, Employer Superannuation Contribution"; payment methods "internet banking, credit or debit card, direct debit".
- Inland Revenue — IR335 Employer's guide (June 2026 edition, as served at the cited URL, PDF) (verified 10 July 2026 in the P3-NZ record, re-relied on 11 July 2026): "If your gross annual PAYE and ESCT is less than $500,000, pay deductions to us monthly. The due date is the 20th of the following month. You can choose to pay more often."; "If your gross annual PAYE and ESCT is $500,000 or more in the previous tax year (1 April to 31 March), you're required to pay deductions twice monthly." with the 20th / 5th table and the December carve-out; "Gross annual PAYE is the total PAYE, including any ESCT, but excluding ACC earners' levy, student loan repayments, KiwiSaver and child support deductions."; "If the due date is a Saturday, Sunday, or a public holiday, you can make your payment on the next working day without penalty."
- Inland Revenue (Digital service providers) — Payday filing (verified 10 July 2026 in the P3-NZ record): "There's currently no ability for employee deductions payment through our gateway or file upload services" — establishing that the filing rail carries no payment capability.
- Inland Revenue — Ways of paying (verified 10 July 2026 in the P3-NZ record): the "Pay Tax" / "Pay IRD" internet-banking functions and myIR direct debit as the routes for paying Inland Revenue.
- New Zealand Legislation — Tax Administration Act 1994 (verified 10 July 2026 in the P3-NZ record): s 23E electronic filing "within 2 working days after payday"; s 23F non-electronic "within 10 working days after payday" — the filing clock contrasted with the payment clock on this page.
Related
The filing rail in order — Employment Information within 2 working days, then paying Inland Revenue by the 20th; the two clocks side by side.
The per-payday EI return in full — every field, the four filing channels, and how the report differs from the payment.
How the amounts you deduct and then remit are calculated — PAYE, ESCT, the KiwiSaver rate ladder and the earners' levy inside PAYE.