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Tax Administration Act 1994

Commissioner and department - Functions and powers of Commissioner

13B: Use of electronic signatures for tax administration purposes

You could also call this:

"Signing tax documents electronically"

Illustration for Tax Administration Act 1994

You can give information to the Commissioner using an electronic signature. You must meet the criteria and requirements set out in the guidelines and the provisions of Part 4 of the Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017. The Commissioner makes guidelines that set out the criteria and technical requirements for using a valid electronic signature. You can use a valid electronic signature on documents provided to the Commissioner. The Commissioner accepts information under an electronic signature in certain circumstances. When the Commissioner receives a document with your electronic signature, they treat it as signed by you. The Commissioner's guidelines are secondary legislation, which means they have to be published in a certain way, as set out in Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019. You are treated as complying with the guidelines and section 228 of the Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017 when you use an electronic signature. The guidelines help you understand how to use electronic signatures correctly.

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This page was last updated on

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM6866161.

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Part 2Commissioner and department
Functions and powers of Commissioner

13BUse of electronic signatures for tax administration purposes

  1. Subject to meeting the criteria and requirements set out in the guidelines referred to in subsection (2) and the provisions of Part 4 of the Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017, a person may give information to the Commissioner under an electronic signature.

  2. The Commissioner must make guidelines that set out the criteria and technical requirements for—

  3. the use of a valid electronic signature on documents provided to the Commissioner:
    1. the nature of, and circumstances in which, the Commissioner accepts information under an electronic signature.

      1. When the Commissioner receives a document bearing the electronic signature of a person, unless there are reasonable grounds to suppose otherwise,—

      2. the document is treated as signed by the person; and
        1. the person is treated as complying with both the guidelines referred to in subsection (2) and section 228 of the Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017.

          1. Guidelines under subsection (2) are secondary legislation (see Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019 for publication requirements).

          Notes
          • Section 13B: inserted, on , by section 78 of the Taxation (Transformation: First Phase Simplification and Other Measures) Act 2016 (2016 No 27).
          • Section 13B(1): amended, on , by section 347 of the Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017 (2017 No 5).
          • Section 13B(2): amended, on , by section 3 of the Secondary Legislation Act 2021 (2021 No 7).
          • Section 13B(3)(b): amended, on , by section 347 of the Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017 (2017 No 5).
          • Section 13B(4): inserted, on , by section 3 of the Secondary Legislation Act 2021 (2021 No 7).