Tax Administration Act 1994

Remission, relief, and refunds

174A: Partial refunds of GST

You could also call this:

"Getting a refund for overpaid GST"

Illustration for Tax Administration Act 1994

You can get a refund of overpaid GST from the Commissioner. The Commissioner can refund GST you overpaid for one or more GST return periods. You might still have other GST to pay for that period. You will only get a refund if the Commissioner thinks it is safe to give you the money back. You must also be doing what you are supposed to do under the Goods and Services Tax Act 1985. You cannot be breaking any other tax rules in a major way. After the refund, you must have paid at least the amount of GST that is still being looked at. The Commissioner looks at your GST return period or periods to decide if you can get a refund. You must be following the rules and paying your GST as required by the Goods and Services Tax Act 1985. The Commissioner checks if you are complying with all your tax obligations before giving you a refund.

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This page was last updated on 28 November 2025

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM358328.

174AA: Power of Commissioner in respect of small amounts of refunds or tax payable, or

"The Commissioner can ignore small tax debts or refunds of $20 or less."

175: Small amounts of additional tax, etc, not to be charged, or

"You don't have to pay tiny amounts of extra tax."

Part 11Remission, relief, and refunds

174APartial refunds of GST

The Commissioner may refund overpaid GST that a person pays—
for a GST return period; or
for more than 1 GST return period, if the return periods are the subject of one notice of proposed adjustment,—

The Commissioner must not refund overpaid GST under subsection (1) unless—
the Commissioner considers there is no risk to the revenue in making the refund; and
the person generally complies with all return and payment obligations under the Goods and Services Tax Act 1985; and
the person is not in breach in any material respect of any of the taxpayer's other tax obligations; and
after the refund is made, the person will have paid or be credited as having paid GST for the GST return period or periods in an amount at least equal to the GST that remains the subject of the notice of proposed adjustment or assessment or assessments referred to in subsection (1).

Notes

Section 174A: inserted, on 26 July 1996, by section 53 of the Tax Administration Amendment Act (No 2) 1996 (1996 No 56).