How much ACC levy do I pay in New Zealand?

The ACC earners' levy for 2026/27 is 1.75% of your liable earnings, charged on the first $156,641 you earn. On a $60,000 salary that is $1,050 a year, or about $20 a week, deducted through PAYE. Because the levy stops at the cap, the most anyone pays is $2,741.22, no matter how high their income.

The ACC earners' levy is the deduction that pays for cover if you are injured away from work, at home, on the road or out playing sport, as distinct from the levy your employer pays for workplace injuries. For the 2026/27 levy year the rate is 1.75% of your liable earnings, charged on every dollar you earn up to the earnings cap of $156,641. If you are an employee it comes straight out of your pay through PAYE alongside your income tax, so it is one reason your take-home pay sits below your gross salary. If you are self-employed you pay the same levy on your net earnings, usually alongside your provisional and terminal tax. Because the levy stops once your earnings pass the cap, you will never pay more than $2,741.22 in a year, no matter how high your income climbs. To see the exact levy and weekly cost at your own salary, use the ACC earners' levy by income calculator or the PAYE calculator linked below, both of which show the levy alongside your income tax and take-home pay. ACC reviews the rate and cap each year, so treat the figures here as a guide for the current levy year rather than a fixed rule.

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Indicative only, not financial advice. Uses current New Zealand rates for 2026/27. Last reviewed 2026-08-26. See also financial literacy NZ.