As of 4 October 2026, the tax choice at the 7 November 2026 New Zealand general election is unusually stark. The basic divide is between parties that largely keep the existing income-tax system and fund services through spending restraint/growth, and parties that shift more taxation toward property, land, wealth and high incomes. New Zealand Parliament dissolved ahead of tight November vote

One important caveat: these are proposed policies, not current law, and coalition negotiations could substantially change them.

At a glance: who pays more or less?

Party	Who would generally pay less?	Who would generally pay more?	Main way public services are funded
National	No broad new income-tax increase; keeps current tax settings	No new tax promised	Spending discipline, economic growth, existing revenue
ACT	Taxpayers generally; no new tax proposed	No major new tax proposed	Smaller government, savings and reprioritisation
Labour	People whose only income is wages: broadly no income-tax change; users of health services benefit	People selling taxable investment/commercial property	28% targeted capital-gains tax, plus existing revenue
Greens	Most low/middle-income earners	High earners, very wealthy people, large corporations, some landlords	Wealth/inheritance/company/bank taxes plus income-tax changes
Te Pāti Māori	Most people, especially low/moderate earners	Wealthy people, property sellers, corporations and high earners	Wealth/company/property taxes
NZ First	Low-income earners, families with children, some SMEs	Mainly no major new tax burden proposed	Existing revenue, enforcement and economic growth
Opportunity	Many workers through the Citizen's Income, depending on land ownership	Landowners, particularly valuable urban land	1.75% land-value tax + redesigned income/benefit system

1. National: little change to your tax bill

National has committed to “no new taxes”. It isn't proposing a new income-tax cut in this campaign; rather, the pitch is that keeping taxes down lets people retain more of their existing income. No new taxes under National | National Party

Its public-service funding model is therefore principally:

• grow the economy and tax base;
• control government spending;
• maintain its budget-responsibility rules;
• return the books to surplus, with National targeting 2028/29. 2026 Election Policy | National Party

National says this can coexist with more hospitals, classrooms, roads and healthcare. Critics' central question is whether sufficiently tight spending control is compatible with maintaining or expanding frontline services.

Who gains? People who value avoiding additional taxes, particularly higher earners and businesses that might otherwise face new taxes.

Who doesn't get a special tax break? There isn't a new broad personal-income-tax reduction in the 2026 platform.

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2. ACT: no new taxes, with services funded by a smaller state

ACT is even more explicit about the mechanism: no new taxes + substantial spending restraint. It says its previous government work has identified about $14 billion of savings, and proposes further reductions in bureaucracy and government functions. ACT New Zealand

ACT has not published a new personal income-tax scale for this election, so claims that it has committed to particular new tax brackets shouldn't be treated as current policy. NZ Election 2026 Tax Calculator — Your Tax Under Each Party | TakeHomePay

Its philosophy is essentially:

keep the existing tax base, reduce waste and the size of government, and use the savings to improve priority services and eventually the fiscal position.

ACT says the resulting smaller government should still concentrate resources on things such as health, education, policing and infrastructure. ACT New Zealand

Who pays more? There isn't a major new tax targeted at a particular income or wealth group.

The trade-off: the financial contribution is less through tax and more through what government stops doing or does more cheaply.

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3. Labour: target investment-property gains, not ordinary wages

Labour's central tax change is a 28% capital-gains tax on gains made after 1 July 2027 when taxable residential investment or commercial property is sold. The family home, farms, KiwiSaver, shares, businesses and inheritances are exempt. Labour says nine in ten New Zealanders won't pay it. Capital Gains Tax to Level the Playing Field for Businesses, Create Jobs and Fix New Zealand's Health System

So:

• Salary of $60k, $100k or $150k: no new Labour income-tax rate.
• Family-home owner: no CGT on the home.
• KiwiSaver investor: exempt.
• Investor selling a taxable rental: potentially pays substantially more.
• Commercial property owner selling at a gain: potentially pays more.

The distinctive part is where the revenue goes: Labour promises to put every dollar raised by the CGT into healthcare. That includes three free GP visits a year, free prescriptions, maternity scans and cervical screening. Capital Gains Tax to Level the Playing Field for Businesses, Create Jobs and Fix New Zealand's Health System

Labour's broader fiscal plan says it will provide $15.5 billion of additional health funding over the forecast period and reverse planned public-service cuts, while aiming to return to an operating surplus in 2028/29. Labour's Fiscal Plan 2026 - NZ Labour

In plain English: Labour is asking property investors to pay more in exchange for expanding publicly funded healthcare, rather than putting a general income-tax increase on workers.

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4. Greens: tax most ordinary earners less, but substantially tax wealth and high incomes

The Greens have the most explicitly progressive income-tax plan.

They propose:

• first $10,000 of income tax-free;
• a 45% marginal rate above $160,000;
• a 2.5% annual wealth tax on net assets above $10 million;
• 33% tax on gifts/inheritances above $1 million, with family homes and farms exempt;
• 33% company tax for companies with turnover above $30m;
• a bank levy;
• stronger taxation of certain offshore payments;
• reversal of landlord interest-deductibility and bright-line changes. A tax system for all of us - Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand

The distribution is quite clear. Green modelling says people on $10k, $40k, $70k, $90k and $150k would all be better off on their wage income, while someone on $170k would be about $20 a week worse off, $200k about $66 worse off, and $300k about $181 worse off. What are the Greens' tax plans - and who would have to pay?

Those figures don't include the wealth, inheritance or property-related taxes.

So the Greens' model is:
less income tax for most people → more tax on high incomes, accumulated wealth, inheritances and large companies → substantially more government revenue for public services and redistribution.

The Greens estimate their overall tax package would raise around $5 billion a year, before behavioural effects. Election tax policies, part one | Tax Alert - July 2026 | Deloitte New Zealand

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5. Te Pāti Māori: large tax cut for ordinary incomes, funded heavily by wealth/property taxes

Te Pāti Māori's Kiwi Tax Plan is one of the biggest redistributions.

Income tax would be:

• $0–$30,000: 0%
• $30k–$60k: 15%
• $60k–$90k: 33%
• $90k–$180k: 39%
• $180k–$300k: 42%
• $300k+: 48%. Tax Tips: 2026 General Election - Tax Policy Update

The party says around 4.2 million people would receive an average tax benefit of roughly $4,000 a year. NZ Election 2026: Every Party's Tax Policy Compared

But it would simultaneously introduce:

• wealth tax beginning at $2m;
• 33% company tax;
• 5% tax on profits transferred offshore;
• land-banking tax;
• vacant-house tax;
• 5% stamp duty on residential sales, with an exemption for qualifying first-home buyers;
• a targeted Kai Credit for people earning $60,000 or less. Tax Tips: 2026 General Election - Tax Policy Update

The party estimates its package would raise roughly $20bn, against about $16bn of expenditure, leaving around $4bn. Te Pāti Māori’s tax plan: $30k tax-free, a new stamp duty, and a ‘kai credit’ | The Spinoff

Who pays more? High-wealth households, higher-income earners, companies, some property sellers and owners of vacant/land-banked property.

Who pays less? Most wage earners, particularly people below $60k, and people eligible for the Kai Credit.

This is a much bigger restructuring than Labour's targeted CGT.

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6. New Zealand First: lower taxes at the bottom and for some businesses

NZ First has a more incremental approach.

Its tax proposals include:

• a $14,000 tax-free threshold;
• tax relief intended to offset compulsory KiwiSaver contributions;
• reducing company tax to 20% for SMEs with turnover below $30m;
• a $5,000-a-year Kiwi Kids Grant for each of the first three children, for their first three years. NZFirst Announces Policy to Encourage Kiwis To Have More Kids - New Zealand First

It opposes a wealth tax and comprehensive capital-gains tax. Election 2026: Will parties’ tax policies support public health and equity? | PHCC

The important funding philosophy is therefore different from the Greens/TPM: don't substantially broaden taxation of wealth; instead rely on the existing tax base, economic activity and better enforcement.

NZ First specifically says it wants stronger IRD enforcement against tax evasion and multinational e-commerce companies. Election 2026: Will parties’ tax policies support public health and equity? | PHCC

Its family policy is also effectively a transfer from government revenue to families with young children, rather than a tax cut alone.

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7. Opportunity: tax land instead of work

Opportunity (formerly TOP) proposes the most radical change to the tax system.

Its central idea is:

tax land heavily → tax income differently → give everyone a Citizen's Income.

It proposes:

• income tax of 28% up to $50k;
• 34% from $50k–$200k;
• 39% above $200k;
• a tax-free Citizen's Income of $19,400 per adult per year;
• a 1.75% annual tax on urban land value, with a lower 0.5% rate for rural land. Tax Tips: 2026 General Election - Tax Policy Update

This produces some counterintuitive results.

For example, 1News calculated that someone earning $60,000 would pay more income tax under Opportunity, but after receiving the $19,400 Citizen's Income would be about $13,000 better off overall. What are the Opportunity party's land tax and 'citizen's income'?

But a homeowner or landowner can be substantially worse off because the land tax is based on the value of the land, not their income.

Opportunity says the Citizen's Income replaces most existing benefits, with additional top-ups for groups such as parents and superannuitants. Tax Reset - Opportunity Party

So its philosophy is particularly clear:

stop taxing work so heavily; tax land instead; redistribute part of the proceeds as a universal income.

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The big picture

There are really three different answers to “how do we pay for public services?”

A. National + ACT: grow and cut

Keep taxes broadly where they are, grow the economy, reduce waste and government spending, and use a stronger fiscal position to fund priorities.

B. Labour + Greens + Te Pāti Māori: shift who pays

Collect more from property gains, wealth, high incomes and/or large corporations, then use the money to expand or protect public services.

There are important differences within this group: Labour's tax change is relatively narrow, while the Greens and especially Te Pāti Māori propose much broader changes. Tax Tips: 2026 General Election - Tax Policy Update

C. Opportunity: redesign the tax-and-benefit system

Move the tax burden from earned income to land, then return a large portion through a universal Citizen's Income.

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One important catch: “paying less tax” isn't the same as “having more money”

This matters particularly for National/ACT versus the Greens/TPM/Opportunity.

A person can receive an income-tax cut but lose some or all of it through:

• higher KiwiSaver contributions,
• wealth/property taxes,
• changes to benefits,
• changes in public services,
• or other taxes.

Conversely, someone can face a new tax but come out ahead through free healthcare, lower transport costs, benefits or tax credits.

So the fairest way to compare these plans is to look at both taxes paid and government services/transfers received, rather than just the PAYE rate.

Bottom line: if you're a typical wage earner with little wealth, the Greens and Te Pāti Māori offer the clearest direct tax reductions; Labour largely leaves your income tax alone but taxes investment-property gains to fund healthcare; National and ACT offer no new-tax approach; NZ First targets lower-income workers and families; and Opportunity offers potentially large gains to people with income but little land, while putting a major new tax on landowners. Tax Tips: 2026 General Election - Tax Policy Update

If you tell me a household income (e.g. $60k, $100k, $150k, $250k), whether you own your home/rental property, and whether you have children, I can turn this into a concrete “you would pay/get back approximately $X under each party” comparison.