IR3 Children's exempt income

Read this information if for the tax year you:

• were 14 or under, or

• were 15, 16 or 17 and still attending school*, or

• turned 18 on or after 1 January in the previous tax year and continued to attend school*

* including a school for people with disabilities, but excluding tertiary institutions.

The following income is required to have tax taken out before you receive it:

• salary or wages

• schedular payments

• interest

• dividends, and

• Maori authority distributions.

If you only receive these types of income you will not need to file an IR3. However, if you are required to file an IR3 return this income needs to be included.

If you receive income that has not had tax taken out before you receive it, for example:

• worked as a self-employed person

• worked around the home of a neighbour or family friend, and that work was not part of a business that they carry on, or

• beneficiary income from a trust, such as a testamentary trust (a trust set up from an estate of a deceased person), that is not listed above as requiring to have tax taken out

and your total income from these sources is less than $2,340 for the tax year, this income is exempt from tax and is not included in your return. You are not required to file a return just because you earn this type of income. If you earn $2,340 or more, the exemption does not apply and you will need to file a return and pay tax on all the income, not just the amount that exceeds the exemption.

If you have to file a return but Inland Revenue hasn’t sent you an IR3, you must request and file it by 7 July 2020, unless you have an extension of time or a non-standard balance date.

Call 0800 257 773 to request an IR3 return. Remember to have your IRD number with you.