ACC Levy for the Self-Employed in NZ: Rates, Invoices and Paying

Short answer: Self-employed people in New Zealand pay three ACC levies on their liable earnings: the earners’ levy for non-work injuries, the work levy, set by your industry’s classification unit, and the Working Safer levy. The earners’ levy is $1.67 per $100 including GST for 2025–26 and $1.75 for 2026–27, on earnings up to $152,790 and $156,641. ACC invoices you after you file your IR3, usually around September, and you can pay in full within 30 days or by direct debit instalments.

ACC levies are separate from income tax and are billed by ACC, not Inland Revenue. Inland Revenue passes your IR3 details to ACC, which works out the levy and sends the invoice. ACC levy years match the tax year, running 1 April to 31 March: the 2025–26 levy year is the 2026 tax year, and 2026–27 is the 2027 tax year. This page covers sole traders on ACC’s standard CoverPlus cover. For income tax and GST alongside it, see self-employed taxes in NZ, and for the return ACC takes its figures from, the IR3 explained. The New Zealand guides hub has the rest of the series.

What is the ACC levy and who pays it?

The ACC levy funds New Zealand’s no-fault accident cover. People in work pay the earners’ levy: employees through PAYE, self-employed people on an invoice sent directly by ACC.

As a self-employed person you are covered from the day you start, and your invoice includes three levies, as ACC’s guide to your CoverPlus invoice explains:

Levy	What it pays for	How it is set
Earners’ levy	Non-work injuries	Flat rate per $100 of liable earnings, the same for everyone
Work levy	Work injuries	Rate per $100 that depends on your classification unit (CU), meaning your industry’s injury risk
Working Safer levy	WorkSafe New Zealand’s work	Flat rate per $100

Your CU comes from the business industry classification (BIC) code you give Inland Revenue. If your invoice shows the wrong industry, fix it with ACC, because a roofer and a bookkeeper pay very different work levies.

What are the ACC levy rates for 2026?

The earners’ levy is set by regulation several years ahead. Inland Revenue publishes the ACC earners’ levy rates including GST:

Levy year	Earners’ levy (incl GST)	Maximum liable earnings	Maximum earners’ levy
2025–26 (1 Apr 2025 – 31 Mar 2026)	$1.67 per $100	$152,790	$2,551.59
2026–27 (1 Apr 2026 – 31 Mar 2027)	$1.75 per $100	$156,641	$2,741.22
2027–28 (1 Apr 2027 – 31 Mar 2028)	$1.83 per $100	$160,244	$2,932.47

ACC’s own documents show the same levy excluding GST, which is how it appears on a self-employed invoice, with GST added at the end. The ACC Levy Guidebook 2026/27 gives the earners’ levy as $1.52 per $100 excluding GST and the Working Safer levy as $0.08 per $100. For 2025–26, ACC gives the earners’ levy as $1.45 per $100 excluding GST. $1.52 plus 15% GST is, once rounded, the $1.75 in Inland Revenue’s table.

Work levy rates are listed by CU in the levy guidebook for each year (2025/26, 2026/27). Look up your CU there rather than relying on an industry average.

How is the ACC levy calculated for self-employed people?

Each levy is your liable earnings divided by 100, multiplied by the rate, with GST added on top. ACC’s calculating your levies page explains the method.

Liable earnings are taken from the income you declared on your IR3: broadly your self-employed income, including schedular payments and active partnership income, minus your business expenses. Expenses reduce your ACC levy as well as your income tax.

Two limits apply:

• Maximum. Earnings above the cap ($152,790 for 2025–26, $156,641 for 2026–27) are not levied.
• Minimum, if you work full-time. ACC treats you as full-time if you work more than 30 hours a week on average over the year, from all sources. If you are full-time and earn less than the minimum, $49,365 for 2025–26 and $50,501 for 2026–27, you are levied as if you had earned the minimum. Part-time workers are levied on actual earnings.

Worked example (2026–27 levy year). You are a full-time sole trader with $70,000 of liable earnings.

Line	Calculation	Amount
Earners’ levy	700 × $1.52	$1,064.00
Working Safer levy	700 × $0.08	$56.00
GST on those two levies	15% × $1,120	$168.00
Subtotal		$1,288.00
Work levy	700 × your CU rate, plus GST	from the guidebook

If the same person had earned only $35,000 while working full-time, the earners’ levy would be charged on the $50,501 minimum: 505.01 × $1.52 = $767.62 before GST, rather than $532 on actual earnings. If you genuinely work part-time, make sure ACC has you recorded that way.

ACC’s online CoverPlus levy calculator does this sum for your CU if you want an estimate before the invoice arrives.

When will ACC send my levy invoice?

ACC invoices self-employed people after you file your tax return, using the actual earnings in it. CoverPlus invoices are issued around September each year, once Inland Revenue has passed your IR3 figures across.

Two consequences catch people out:

• Your first invoice usually arrives in your second year. A new business’s first invoice is triggered by its first tax return, so a sole trader who started in April 2025 and files the 2026 IR3 in mid-2026 gets an invoice for the 2025–26 levy year around September 2026, on top of income tax due 7 February 2027 (7 April 2027 with a tax agent) and the first provisional tax instalment.
• The invoice is for a year that has already ended. Since ACC moved self-employed people onto actual earnings, the invoice reflects what you earned, not a forecast. Put money aside as you earn it.

If you file your IR3 late, or through a tax agent with an extension, the invoice comes later.

How do I pay my ACC levy?

You pay within 30 days of the issue date on the invoice, unless you set up a payment plan. ACC’s ways to pay your levy invoice page lists the options:

• MyACC for Business, ACC’s online account, where you can pay, see invoices and set up instalments
• Credit or debit card
• Internet banking
• Direct debit, paying in full on the due date or spreading the levy over 3, 6 or 10 monthly instalments
• In person at any Westpac ATM

Instalment plans carry interest at a single annualised rate, and ACC has an estimator for what a plan will cost. If a levy or instalment is not paid by its due date, late payment interest applies, and unpaid balances can be referred to a debt collection agency. If you cannot pay on time, contact ACC before the due date.

What is the difference between CoverPlus and CoverPlus Extra?

CoverPlus is the default cover for self-employed people: levies are based on your actual liable earnings, and so is any weekly compensation if you are injured and cannot work.

CoverPlus Extra (CPX) is optional. You agree a level of cover in advance, and your levies and any weekly compensation are based on that agreed amount rather than on your fluctuating earnings. CPX levies are invoiced in advance: first when you accept the offer, then annually in April. It can suit someone whose taxable profit is low after expenses but who wants cover closer to what they actually live on. ACC’s CoverPlus Extra page explains the conditions.

Is the ACC levy tax deductible?

Yes. ACC levies you pay as a self-employed person, and any interest ACC charges on them, are a business expense. Inland Revenue’s IR3 guide tells you to include them in your schedule of business income, alongside your other business expenses. Because ACC works out liable earnings after expenses, a deductible expense lowers the earnings figure ACC levies as well as your income tax.

Keeping your earnings record, and where does Keel fit?

ACC takes your liable earnings from your IR3, so the levy is only as accurate as the income and expenses behind that return. Undercounted expenses mean a higher income tax bill and a higher ACC levy.

Keel: Invoice Maker & Receipts, an iPhone app by Ilura Technology OÜ, keeps those records. You create quotes that become invoices in one tap, send PDF invoices, capture receipts and expenses, log business mileage, and keep each under its job and customer. “Who owes you” lists unpaid invoices and prepares reminder drafts you review and send yourself. Records stay on your iPhone: no account, no bank connection, no cloud sync, and the App Store privacy label reads “Data Not Collected”.

Keel does not calculate ACC levies or income tax, file your IR3, or connect to ACC or Inland Revenue. It is free with no invoice limit (free invoices carry a small “Made with Keel” footer), and Keel Lifetime is a one-time purchase of $249.99 USD (the App Store shows your local price) that adds custom branding, signature, premium templates and accountant-ready exports and reports. Keel on the App Store.

Frequently asked questions

How much is the ACC levy for self-employed people in NZ? It is the sum of three levies on your liable earnings. The earners’ levy is $1.75 per $100 including GST for 2026–27 ($1.67 for 2025–26). The Working Safer levy is $0.08 per $100 before GST. The work levy depends on your industry’s classification unit and is listed in ACC’s levy guidebook, so totals vary widely between trades.

What is the ACC earners’ levy? The earners’ levy pays for the cost of injuries that happen outside work. Employees pay it through PAYE; self-employed people pay it on their ACC invoice. It is a flat rate on liable earnings up to an annual maximum: $1.75 per $100 including GST on up to $156,641 for 2026–27, a maximum of $2,741.22.

When does ACC send the levy invoice to self-employed people? After you file your tax return, because ACC uses the earnings on your IR3. CoverPlus invoices are issued around September each year. A new business usually receives its first invoice in its second year, after filing its first return, so the first bill covers a year of earnings that has already passed.

Can I pay my ACC levy in instalments? Yes. You can set up direct debit through MyACC for Business and pay in full on the due date or spread the levy over three, six or ten monthly instalments. Instalment plans carry interest at an annualised rate. Otherwise the invoice is due within 30 days of its issue date, and late payment interest applies after that.

Is the ACC levy tax deductible for sole traders? Yes. ACC levies paid for your self-employment, and any interest ACC charges on them, are a deductible business expense. Inland Revenue’s IR3 guide tells you to include them with the other expenses in your schedule of business income, so they reduce your taxable profit like any other business cost.

Why is my ACC levy higher than my actual income suggests? If ACC records you as working full-time, more than 30 hours a week on average, and your liable earnings are below the minimum, $50,501 for 2026–27, you are levied on the minimum rather than your actual earnings. If you actually work part-time, update your details with ACC so it levies you on what you really earned.

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This article is general information, not tax advice. Consult a qualified New Zealand tax professional.