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The general public and business agree they're being taxed too much, says business lobby group Business New Zealand.
An NBR-Phillips Fox poll indicates 62% of New Zealanders feel they are overtaxed.
Business New Zealand chief executive Phil O'Reilly says this is consistent with the thinking of most people in business.
"Our members say too much tax is taken from them, and it's affecting their ability to invest and grow," O'Reilly says.
"New Zealand businesses don't want their hard-earned dollars taken from them and used for low value schemes, like so called business advice services, grants and talkfests.
"They just want a tax cut so they can pay their workers properly, invest in plant and be more competitive."
O'Reilly says there has been a 45% increase in government revenue in the last five years, taken directly from households and businesses.
"It's no wonder there's agreement between the general public and the business sector on the need for tax relief."
The National Business Review reports the poll has New Zealanders evenly split on 47% over whether the tax they pay is fair, a significant shift over two years.
In April 2003, 54% said they considered their level of taxation was fair while 38% said they considered it unfair.
Voters were asked if they thought the amount of tax they paid was "too high", "about right", or "too low."
The "too high" category is up 11 points over two years to 62%.
NBR says the poll sits alongside Treasury figures that show personal income tax collected has risen 40% since Labour took office, from $16.5 billion to $23.2 billion.
Corporate tax has risen 57% from $4.9 billion to $7.7 billion.
Add a 16% increase in GST collected, up from $8.8 billion to $10.3 billion and the total annual tax collected gone from $34 billion in the year it took office to $45.7 billion, a 34% across the board increase, NBR says.
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