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Tax Refunds


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I've never filed a tax return until all these Tax Refund websites started popping up offering to do it for me (cos its too hard for me to do myself!)

I have a question though. According to Tax Refund.co.nz's calculations I keep ending up OWING money. Why???? It's not something I personally have control over, it comes out of my pay each fortnight! Is someone else stuffing up somewhere?! Over the last 5 years I owe a combined total of around $100! :evil:

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im an accountant, this happens all the time, small ammounts payable each year from individuals only earning wage income.

basically to do with the IRD rates which employers deduct your PAYE. Its not an error.

If you are an individual with only wage income you do not have to file a tax return, sometimes u may get a small refund, sometimes you may have to pay a small ammount. Dont file tax return if you are doing a voluntary tax return and it shows up you owe a small ammount of money, the IRD will not follow it up.

(of course there are many factors as to weather you have to file a return or not, dont feel like covering those reasons right now :P )

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im an accountant, this happens all the time, small ammounts payable each year from individuals only earning wage income.

basically to do with the IRD rates which employers deduct your PAYE. Its not an error.

If you are an individual with only wage income you do not have to file a tax return, sometimes u may get a small refund, sometimes you may have to pay a small ammount. Dont file tax return if you are doing a voluntary tax return and it shows up you owe a small ammount of money, the IRD will not follow it up.

(of course there are many factors as to weather you have to file a return or not, dont feel like covering those reasons right now :P )

But I'm on a salary. Does that make a difference?

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wage/salary basically same diff

its income that gets taxed at source.

Havnt worked with bonuses much but pretty certain that gets PAYE deducted from it, some bonuses are tax free (pretty hard to sum up everything quickly)

IRD will not follow up tiny ammounts owing by individuals. If you have not been sent a tax return to fill in from the IRD you do not have to file a tax return (if your just on wage/salary)

there are rules on IRD website weather you have to file a return or not.

since i left school i have worked out i owe silly ammounts under $20 per year and just dont bother fileing the return because:

a. i dont have to

b. im not gunna pay for something i dont have to pay for

c. i have not been asked by IRD to fill in a tax return, 99.9% sure they wont ask me to but if they do i can tell them i am on wage/salary only with no interest, dividends etc therefore not required to

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Be careful with these Tax thingies, some require that you appoint them as your tax agent with the IRD, and they will take a percentage of your refund, and all documentation that you receive from the IRD will go to them, and they may charge you a fee for handling that as well.

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yeah what zev said...

these companies are irritating, our clients see the ads on ird website etc and join up, effectivly changing their tax agent from us to tax refund company and mess up a heap of stuff ending up more of our time to link client back to our company as tax agent etc

working out your tax at end of year is simple and ird website has all calculators.

think most companies charge 12.5% or so of your refund and only charge if you get a refund. i do all my friends tax returns for free, takes a couple minutes and i charge em nothing

its something everyone should learn to do themselves i think

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I do my partners tax return online, we have to file one because he gets a % of the fish catch he is classed as self employed. I have mates that wanted to check if they were owed anything and fell into one of those tax refund sites. It's pretty silly really pay them 12.5% to do it when if you ring the IRD it's free, true you may end up owing but you can't escape forever. And if all has been done correctly you will be fine. Also they told them they would have an answer pretty promptly then it took them about 3 months.

I also offer to do my friends taxes, its something that seems difficult but isn't that bad. And with the kind of work they do often they get a little bit of money back, although some of them have been evading it for years (and ACC) and one day it will come back to haunt them.

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and do they pay a % of the money if you owe IRD? 8)

hehe nope - note in the small print on the tv ad, it states that they have a fee of 12.5% with a minimum of $12.50.

Watch out for those tax return websites - you may get a return, but you also authorise them to do your return next year and thereafter, and they'll take their fees/percentages from that too.

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hehe nope - note in the small print on the tv ad, it states that they have a fee of 12.5% with a minimum of $12.50.

Watch out for those tax return websites - you may get a return, but you also authorise them to do your return next year and thereafter, and they'll take their fees/percentages from that too.

Some of them do. the one I signed up with doesn't. They only do the years you ask them to.

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For the last 2 years, the IRD have just sent me out a letter saying they owe me money, so here is a cheque to cover it. I haven't had to do anything (and no I don't have a tax agent). I found that kinda weird, but others I know have had the same thing.

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