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KiwiSaver membership hit two million, with almost one in three children and two-thirds of young adults signed-up by the end of the 2011-12 year, Revenue Minister Peter Dunne said today.

"Overall, membership grew by about 12 percent in this 12-month period," Mr Dunne said in releasing the fifth KiwiSaver evaluation annual report.

"The report shows that almost 29 per cent of children and nearly 67 per cent of 18 to 24 year olds were enrolled in KiwiSaver by the end of the 2011-12 year

Revenue Minister Peter Dunne has welcomed the Social Services Committee report to Parliament on the Child Support Amendment Bill, saying the Committee’s recommendation that the bill be passed, was “a step closer towards a fairer, more efficient scheme for the parents and children involved”.

Evading paying tax has just become significantly more difficult, Revenue Minister Peter Dunne said today in announcing that New Zealand has signed the multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters.

Mr Dunne said that signing the Convention was another important step for New Zealand in the fight against tax evasion.

The Government is calling for public feedback on proposed changes to royalties and the taxation of minerals.

Two papers – Reviewing the Royalties Regime for Minerals and Taxation of Specified Mineral Mining – have now been released for public consultation. The royalties paper sets out proposals related to Government revenue from minerals, not oil and gas. The tax paper also excludes oil and gas from its proposals, as well as coal.

"Minerals are important to New Zealand’s economy," Mr Heatley said.

New Zealand and Papua New Guinea have signed a double tax agreement, Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully and Revenue Minister Peter Dunne announced today.

Mr Dunne said that the new double tax agreement signed by Mr McCully and PNG’s Foreign Minister Rimbink Pato in the PNG capital, Port Moresby, last night will help reduce tax impediments for doing business between the two countries.

“Papua New Guinea is of increasing importance for New Zealand businesses. The scope to expand trade and economic ties is huge,” Mr McCully said. 

New Zealand will look to negotiate a FATCA tax information agreement with the United States, Revenue Minister Peter Dunne announced today.

The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) was enacted by the United States in 2010, and requires overseas financial institutions – for instance, New Zealand banks, life insurers or managed funds – to enter into agreements with the US's Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and US Treasury to provide details about the affairs of their United States clients.

Low-income working families who are eligible for the minimum family tax credit will receive a small increase from 1 April next year, Revenue Minister Peter Dunne announced today.

“The tax credit currently provides recipients an after-tax income of $22,568 a year. This will increase to $22,724 a year from 1 April 2013,” Mr Dunne said.

The minimum family tax credit provides a guaranteed minimum family income to families who are in work and helps support them in moving off a benefit and into paid employment.

Revenue Minister Peter Dunne has congratulated Inland Revenue for making it easier for customers to file GST returns online.

“We know a lot of businesses look after their own GST returns, and October is a peak period for small businesses, so it is great timing to launch the smarter service,” Mr Dunne said.
Customers no longer need a document lodgement number (DLN) when they file online and their details will be pre-populated into their online return. All they need to do is fill in their financial details. The smarter online service also:

Health Ministry statistics released today show that thousands of New Zealanders with depression are using The Journal – an online tool on the depression.org.nz website and aimed at managing mild to moderate depression, Associate Health Minister Peter Dunne said today, in marking Mental Health Day in Mental Health Week.

The Journal is fronted by former All Black Sir John Kirwan, who acts as an online personal coach to help people through a six-week e-therapy programme, Mr Dunne said.

Legal high manufacturers will face estimated $180,000 application fees plus $1 million to $2 million in testing costs for each product they want to sell, and up to eight years in prison for selling banned substances, Associate Health Minister Peter Dunne said today in announcing details of the permanent psychoactive substances regime.

Revenue Minister Peter Dunne today announced that New Zealand will be signing a multilateral convention on tax assistance later this month, as he dismissed claims that New Zealand is a tax haven for foreign trusts. 

“The key identifying characteristics of tax havens are secrecy and lack of transparency. Those are simply not factors here in New Zealand.

Revenue Minister Peter Dunne announced today that Cabinet had made its final decisions on the suggestions outlined in the April 2012 issues paper Recognising salary trade-offs as income.     

“We have listened to public submissions and the proposed new rules are now narrower than originally suggested, focusing predominantly on employer-provided car parks,” Mr Dunne said.

Specifically, Cabinet has agreed on the following changes: 

Claims by Labour’s David Clark about Inland Revenue’s computer system are “simply mischievous, ill-informed and downright ignorant”, Revenue Minister Peter Dunne said today.

“He is playing typical Opposition politics and adding one and one and quite deliberately getting five,” Mr Dunne said.

Dr Clark had claimed a recent privacy breach and temporary peak period telephone response issues were because of Inland Revenue’s computer system, which he said the Government was showing no urgency in upgrading.

Lease inducement payments by commercial landlords to tenants will be made taxable, but with some important changes as a result of the recent consultation process, Revenue Minister Peter Dunne announced today.

Changes to the initial proposal to tax lease inducement payments include:

Revenue Minister Peter Dunne said today that the Government will move swiftly to tighten the rules relating to financial arrangements.

Mr Dunne said the current rules have a loophole that can allow an unfair tax deduction for what are, in real terms, capital amounts.

“The rules allow taxpayers to elect to treat short-term agreements for the sale and purchase of property or services as financial arrangements to minimise compliance costs,” he said.

Associate Health Minister Peter Dunne today marked World Suicide Prevention Day, saying that it was an occasion to recommit to the battle against suicide.

“Today is a reminder of the challenge that we must continue to face up to if we are to keep bringing down the numbers,” Mr Dunne said.

“Every suicide is a tragedy and we need to work tirelessly from government to communities to individuals and families, to intervene and care and make a difference in people’s lives when they are vulnerable or hurting,” he said.

Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Minister Steven Joyce and Revenue Minister Peter Dunne today welcomed significant progress in reducing the cost of student loan lending.

“We are committed to interest-free student loans, and want a long–term affordable scheme for both students and taxpayers,” Mr Joyce says.

“When Labour took the interest off student loans, the write-off of student loans ballooned out to 48 cents in the dollar.

Provisional suicide statistics released by Chief Coroner Judge Neil MacLean for the year ending 30 June 2012 show an overall fall in the number of deaths, but demonstrate the need to keep focusing on Māori and youth suicide prevention, Associate Health Minister Peter Dunne said today.

“What these figures confirm is there are no quick or easy fixes. Suicide is as complex as it is tragic, and each death comes from many factors,” he said.

KiwiSaver has hit two million members, Revenue Minister Peter Dunne announced today.

“KiwiSaver continues to be a popular way for New Zealanders to save for their retirement and when you look at the initial hopes for the scheme, to hit this mark in just five years is amazing,” Mr Dunne said.

“It offers a ready-made way to save and New Zealanders have flocked to it. It is easy to join and members have flexibility about how they save with more than 40 schemes to choose from.”

Mr Dunne said KiwiSaver appealed to people across all age groups.

“The student loans scheme is a generous one by world standards and the Government is committed to its future, so it is important to improve the value, efficiency and fairness of the scheme and encourage personal responsibility for loan repayments” Revenue Minister Peter Dunne said today announcing the introduction of the Student Loan Scheme Amendment Bill (No. 2).

Mr Dunne said that the bill contained two important features.

New Zealand’s 2010 suicide statistics are 23.6 percent down on the peak of the late 1990s, with youth suicides down on the previous year, Associate Health Minister Peter Dunne said today.

A total of 522 people died by suicide in New Zealand in 2010, or 11.5 deaths per 100,000 people.  As a proportion of population, this is 23.6 percent below the peak of 577 in 1998, but up slightly on the 510 deaths in 2009, he said in releasing the 2010 suicide and self-harm hospitalisation data.

Associate Health Minister Peter Dunne is rolling over the Temporary Class Drug Notices on the first 16 banned synthetic cannabis substances, banning them for a further 12 months as their notices were due to expire this week.

The Notices were initially for 12 months, but Mr Dunne has begun rolling over the first of the 28 Notices on substances banned in the last year, with the other substances’ bans to be extended as they fall due over coming months.

Associate Health Minister Peter Dunne today announced the release of a Ministry of Health consultation document on services it proposes to purchase to prevent and minimise gambling harm over the next few years.

The Ministry proposes spending over $55 million in three-year period from 1 July 2013 to 30 June 2016, on:

A tax legislation supplementary order paper will benefit Canterbury earthquake victims still facing real and ongoing difficulties, Revenue Minister Peter Dunne said in releasing it today.

“It is nearly 18 months since the big earthquake in Christchurch, and this SOP is another way the Government is supporting the people of Christchurch by providing all the practical help we can,” Mr Dunne said.

The SOP to the Taxation (Annual Rates, Returns Filing and Remedial Matters) Bill addresses a range of issues including: