Information on - AGM 2026
Most tradies will miss a tax payment at some point.
It might be because they’re busy on the tools, or because they haven’t been paid yet. But there are good ways—and bad ways—to handle that debt. Inland Revenue has shared three case studies.
Getting onto it quickly
This tradie has missed PAYE and GST payments from time to time over the past few years. But their tax agent spots the issue early and gets them sorted.
In March, they realised they’d missed their income tax payment and didn’t have the cash to pay it.
Instead of panicking, they contacted Inland Revenue and asked to pay it off over six monthly instalments.
Inland Revenue agreed the next day. As long as they stick to the plan, no further late payment penalties will be added.
Getting things back on track
This tradie started a business a few years ago. Everything went well for a couple of years, until they started to go through a divorce. Added to the emotional pressure, finances were getting hard, with legal fees, and the costs of living alone. And work was drying up.
For almost a year they ignored their tax agent and Inland Revenue. Penalties and interest continued to build.
Eventually they went onto Inland Revenue’s website, and set up an instalment arrangement. It was approved within a few days.
Though work picked up again, cashflow was still slow. Twice they had to speak with Inland Revenue to add new debt into the payment plan.
So far, they’ve managed to keep up with the agreed payments. If they continue, no further penalties will be added. However, the earlier penalties remain. They could have saved money—and stress—by getting in touch earlier.
Not paying attention to GST
This tradie also started a business a few years ago, and employed a few staff. Inland Revenue invited them to a seminar on how to manage tax, but they didn’t attend.
They were late paying their first GST bill. Then they were late filing their second GST return. And so on.
They set up a weekly instalment plan to pay off their debt. But they soon started missing payments.
Inland Revenue then began taking money directly from their bank account.
At that point, the tradie applied to close their company with the Companies Office. Inland Revenue stopped this, as they were still trading and had outstanding debt.
To their credit, they did then stick to a payment plan for some of their debt, and they consistently pay their employees’ PAYE.
However, they still file and pay GST late. With penalties and interest, their debt has now grown to a level that seems overwhelming.