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Copies of the Tax Working Group's report - Source: NZPA / Ross Setford -
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The following are some of the main recommendations from the Tax Working Group report entitled A Tax System for New Zealand's Future released on Wednesday
- The company, top personal and trust tax rates be aligned;
- The company tax rate needs to be competitive with other country's rates, particularly Australia's;
- The top personal tax rates should be reduced as part of an alignment strategy and to help growth;
- Increasing the goods and services tax to 15% would have merit on efficiency grounds but would require compensation for those on low incomes.
Options for broadening the tax base:
- A majority of the Tax Working Group supported taxing returns on residential rental property using the risk-free rate of return method;
- Most members supported the introduction of a low-rate land tax;
- The removal of a 20% depreciation loading on plant and equipment;
- Removing tax depreciation on buildings if they do not depreciate in value;
- Changing thin capitalisation rules for foreign owned companies;
- A comprehensive review of welfare policy and how it interacts with the tax system;
- Institutional arrangements to maintain the overall coherence and integrity of the tax system.
