Rideshare and Delivery Driver Tax Calculator NZ 2026/27

How this calculator works

The calculator works out your kilometre-rate vehicle deduction, applying the IRD Tier One rate of $1.20/km to the business share of the first 14,000 km of your vehicle's total travel for the year (business and private combined), then the lower Tier Two rate of 37 cents/km to the business share beyond that. It deducts the business-use share of your phone cost too. Fares minus both deductions gives your taxable driving profit. It then finds the extra income tax that profit creates by comparing tax on your combined income with tax on any other income alone, adds the 1.75% ACC earner's levy, and separately checks your GST position: the 8.5% flat-rate credit if you're unregistered, or zero-rated income with input GST claims once you register.

Worked example

Priya drives for Uber part time. Her fares for the year total $28,000, the GST-exclusive value Uber calculates GST from, well under the $60,000 threshold, so she isn't GST-registered. Her car covers 18,000 km for the year and her logbook shows 70% is driving work. The first 14,000 km of total travel falls in Tier One: 14,000 × 70% = 9,800 business km at $1.20, worth $11,760.00. The remaining 4,000 km falls in Tier Two: 4,000 × 70% = 2,800 business km at 37 cents, worth $1,036.00, for a total vehicle claim of $12,796.00. Her $1,320 annual phone plan is 50% business use, a further $660.00 deduction. Subtracting both from $28,000 leaves a taxable driving profit of $14,544.00.

With no other income, all of that sits in the 10.5% bracket: $14,544 × 10.5% = $1,527.12 of income tax, plus the 1.75% ACC earner's levy of $254.52. She should set aside $1,781.64, leaving $12,762.36 from driving after tax and ACC. Separately, because she's unregistered, Uber's 15% GST on her fares ($4,200.00) splits into $1,820.00 paid to Inland Revenue and a $2,380.00 flat-rate credit paid straight to Priya, hers to keep.

GST on your driving income: the flat-rate credit

Ride-sharing and food or beverage delivery are "listed services" under Inland Revenue's platform economy rules. Since 1 April 2024, the marketplace you drive or deliver for must collect 15% GST on these services whether or not you're personally registered. If you're unregistered, which covers most part-time and casual drivers, the marketplace pays 6.5% of that to Inland Revenue and passes the remaining 8.5% back to you as a flat-rate credit, recognising the GST built into costs like fuel that you can't otherwise claim. You file no GST returns while unregistered, and can choose whether to include the credit as income in your IR3.

If you're GST-registered

Registration becomes compulsory once your turnover passes, or is expected to pass, $60,000 in any rolling 12-month period (21 days to register once you know you'll cross it); voluntary registration below that is allowed. Once registered and you've told the marketplace, your fares become zero-rated, so no GST is charged on them, and you lose the 8.5% credit but regain the ability to claim GST on genuine costs other than the vehicle, which the kilometre-rate method already covers. For example, Tama's fares reach $82,000, so he registers; his fares are zero-rated, and if his GST-inclusive phone and incidental costs (excluding the vehicle) total $2,300, he claims back $2,300 × 3 ÷ 23 = $300.00 through his GST return, a refund since there's no output GST to offset it against.

Income tax on your driving profit

Your driving profit is added to any other income and taxed at New Zealand's ordinary 2026/27 rates: 10.5% up to $15,600, 17.5% to $53,500, 30% to $78,100, 33% to $180,000, and 39% above that. There's no special lower rate for gig income; if you already have a salary, your driving profit stacks on top and is taxed at your marginal rate. You declare it each year in an IR3 after 31 March.

Claiming your vehicle costs: the kilometre-rate method

Most drivers use the IRD kilometre-rate method rather than tracking actual running costs. For the 2025-2026 income year, the standard petrol/diesel Tier One rate is $1.20/km, applied to the business share of the first 14,000 km of the vehicle's total travel (business and private combined), and the Tier Two rate of 37 cents/km applies to the business share beyond that. The rate bundles in fuel, depreciation, insurance and servicing, so none are claimed separately, and no GST adjustment is needed regardless of your GST status. The alternative is the actual-cost method with a logbook-based business-use percentage; pick one method and use it consistently.

Claiming your phone and other costs

Your phone and data plan is usually mixed-use, so only the business-use share is deductible, based on a reasonable estimate of how much is genuinely for driving or delivery work. If you're GST-registered, claim the GST-exclusive cost as your income tax deduction and recover the GST separately through your GST return, which is what this calculator does; if unregistered, the full GST-inclusive cost is your real expense, since you can't claim the GST back at all.

ACC levies for self-employed drivers

Self-employed drivers pay ACC through an annual invoice rather than PAYE: a flat 1.75% earner's levy on liable income for 2026/27, up to $156,641 across all income sources ($2,741.22 maximum), plus a work levy set by your industry classification unit (not included here, since it varies by driving or delivery type) and a small Working Safer levy.

Provisional tax

Provisional tax simply pays next year's income tax in instalments rather than one lump sum, and applies once your residual income tax exceeds $5,000 in a year. For a standard 31 March balance date the instalments fall on 28 August, 15 January and 7 May, with terminal tax generally due 7 February (7 April through a tax agent). This typically catches up with drivers moving from casual to full-time income.

What this calculator assumes

• 2026/27 income tax brackets and the 1.75% ACC earner's levy, capped at $156,641 of combined liable earnings.
• The standard petrol/diesel IRD kilometre rate for 2025-2026: $1.20 Tier One, 37 cents Tier Two, split at 14,000 km of total travel. Diesel, hybrid and electric vehicles have slightly different published rates.
• The 15% GST, 6.5%/8.5% marketplace split (since 1 April 2024), and the $60,000 rolling 12-month GST registration threshold.
• No self-employed ACC work levy, student loan repayments, or KiwiSaver contributions, which may also apply to you.
• Results are indicative and rounded for display; confirm your actual position with Inland Revenue or a tax agent.

Who this calculator is for

Built for anyone driving or delivering through a New Zealand platform: Uber, Ola, Zoomy and DiDi drivers, and Uber Eats, DoorDash and Delivereasy couriers, whether platform income is your only income or sits alongside a main job. It suits someone starting out who wants to know what to set aside from their first payment, and an established driver checking their position against the $60,000 GST threshold or the $5,000 provisional tax trigger.

Related calculators

• Side Hustle Income Tax Calculator: the same marginal-rate approach for any extra income alongside a main job.
• GST Registration Threshold Calculator: track your rolling 12-month turnover against the $60,000 line.
• IRD Kilometre Rate Calculator: a dedicated Tier One/Tier Two vehicle claim calculator.
• Provisional Tax Calculator: check your instalments once your driving profit grows.
• GST Calculator: add, remove or extract 15% GST from any amount.

Official NZ sources

This calculator is built from primary New Zealand sources. Always confirm current figures against the official source for your situation:

• Inland Revenue (IRD): GST for the sharing and gig economy, including the flat-rate credit
• Inland Revenue (IRD): registering for GST and the $60,000 turnover threshold
• Inland Revenue (IRD): kilometre rates for self-employed people and close companies
• ACC: how ACC levies work for the self-employed
• Calculate.co.nz Learning Center: Gig Driver Money Guide and Platform Economy GST guide