This calculator estimates your In-Work Tax Credit (IWTC), one of the payments in New Zealand's Working for Families scheme, and checks whether you qualify. The In-Work Tax Credit rewards working families with dependent children: it is paid by Inland Revenue on top of wages, and it is the part of Working for Families that you lose if you move onto a main benefit, which is why it is sometimes called the work incentive. To get it you must have at least one dependent child, you must not be receiving a main benefit or student allowance, and you must meet the work-hours test, which is 20 hours a week for a sole parent or 30 hours a week between you for a couple. For the 2026/27 year the In-Work Tax Credit is worth up to $97.50 a week for a family with up to three children, plus an extra $15 a week for each additional child. Like the rest of Working for Families, it reduces as family income rises: above the abatement threshold of $42,700 a year, your combined Family Tax Credit and In-Work Tax Credit reduce by 27 cents in every dollar. The Family Tax Credit abates first, so your In-Work Tax Credit is only trimmed once your income is high enough to use up the Family Tax Credit. Enter your number of children, the hours worked, your family income and whether you are on a benefit, and the calculator shows your estimated In-Work Tax Credit each week and each year, after abatement. It is a guide only; Inland Revenue makes the final assessment, so apply or update your details through myIR.
Estimate only. Abatement is applied to your Family Tax Credit first, then the In-Work Tax Credit. Inland Revenue makes the final assessment.
Eligibility is checked first: you need at least one child, you must not be on a main benefit or student allowance, and you must work at least 20 hours a week as a sole parent or 30 hours a week combined as a couple. The full In-Work Tax Credit is $97.50 a week for up to three children, plus $15 a week for each child beyond three. Your Family Tax Credit ($144 a week for the first child and $117 for each other child) and In-Work Tax Credit are added, then reduced by 27 percent of family income above $42,700. Because the Family Tax Credit reduces first, the In-Work Tax Credit only falls once that abatement is larger than your Family Tax Credit.
A couple with two children works 35 hours a week between them and earns $55,000, and is not on a benefit. They pass the hours test, so the full In-Work Tax Credit is $97.50 a week, or $5,070 a year. Their Family Tax Credit is about $13,572 a year. Income is $12,300 over the $42,700 threshold, so abatement is 27 percent of that, about $3,321. That is less than the Family Tax Credit, so the In-Work Tax Credit is not reduced and stays at $97.50 a week.
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