No, New Zealand does not have a general capital gains tax. But several rules tax particular gains, and when they apply the gain is treated as ordinary income and taxed at your marginal rate, from 10.5% to 39%. The main ones are the 2-year bright-line test for residential property, the intention test for land bought to resell, the rules for property dealers, developers and builders, and the rules for crypto, share trading and foreign shares. Labour campaigned on a broader capital gains tax at the 2026 election; that is a proposal, not law. Rules checked 10 November 2026.
The short answer
This guide is general information, not tax advice. It is the starting point for this site: each section links to a fuller guide or a calculator.
There is no separate capital gains tax and no capital gains tax rate in New Zealand. Selling your family home, a rental you have owned for years with no plan to sell, or New Zealand shares held for the long term is usually tax free.
What New Zealand does have is a set of rules in the Income Tax Act 2007 that treat some gains as income. If one applies, you add the net gain to your other income for the year and pay tax at your marginal rate, the same as on salary. There is no discount for how long you held the asset and no inflation adjustment.
What is taxed: the rules at a glance
| Rule | What it catches | Time limit |
|---|---|---|
| Bright-line test (s CB 6A) | Residential property sold within 2 years, unless an exclusion or rollover relief applies | 2 years, for sales from 1 July 2024 |
| Intention test (s CB 6) | Any land bought with a firm purpose or intention of selling it | None |
| Dealers, developers, builders (ss CB 7 to CB 13) | Land bought for, or connected to, a business of dealing, developing, dividing or building | Often 10 years |
| Crypto | Crypto acquired mainly to sell or exchange, which Inland Revenue says is most crypto | None |
| Shares | Shares bought mainly to sell, share dealing, or profit-making schemes | None |
| FIF rules | Foreign shares costing more than $50,000 in total: usually 5% of opening value taxed each year | Annual |
The order matters. For land, the intention and dealer rules are checked first, and the bright-line test applies only if none of them do. Our Is my gain taxable? checker follows the same order for property, shares and crypto.
The bright-line test for residential property
The bright-line test taxes the profit on residential property sold within 2 years. Your intention does not matter. The clock runs from the date the title is registered to you, usually settlement, to the date you sign a binding agreement to sell. Our guide to the bright-line dates explains the non-standard cases, and our end date finder tells you the first day a sale falls outside the period.
The period has changed several times. It started at 2 years on 1 October 2015, became 5 years for property acquired from 29 March 2018, and 10 years for most property acquired from 27 March 2021. It went back to 2 years for sales from 1 July 2024. Our bright-line history sets out which period applies to older sales, and our new builds guide covers the 5-year new build period that used to apply.
The main exclusions and reliefs:
- Main home. Excluded if more than 50% of the land was your main home for more than 50% of the period. See our main home exclusion guide, our main home test calculator, and the guide to renting part of your home.
- Inherited property. Not taxed under the bright-line test when inherited or when the beneficiary later sells. See inherited property.
- Rollover relief. Some transfers to associated people, family trusts and partners carry the original start date and cost. See rollover relief for trusts and partners and selling after separation.
- Farmland and business premises. Excluded from the test.
Dividing land has its own traps; see subdividing land. The test also applies to New Zealand tax residents selling residential property overseas, and non-residents can have withholding tax deducted at settlement; see selling from overseas. If you rent the property out, our selling a rental guide covers the overlap with rental income.
How a taxable gain is taxed
A taxable gain is not taxed at a special rate. It is added to your other income and taxed at your marginal rates for the year. Our guide to how the gain is taxed explains the bracket split and the IR833 form.
Say you earn $70,000 in 2026/27 and make a $100,000 bright-line profit after costs. Using this site's engine:
| 2026/27, other income $70,000 | Amount |
|---|---|
| Bright-line profit | $100,000 |
| $8,100 taxed at 30% (income up to $78,100) | $2,430.00 |
| $91,900 taxed at 33% (income from $78,100 to $180,000) | $30,327.00 |
| Extra income tax | $32,757.00 |
The profit is the sale price less the purchase price, purchase and sale costs, and capital improvements. Some holding costs can be deducted too; see deductible costs. A bright-line loss cannot reduce tax on your salary: it is ring-fenced to land income, as our ring-fenced losses guide explains. To run your own figures, use our bright-line calculator.
Land bought to resell, and dealers
If you buy any land with a firm intention or purpose of selling it, the profit is taxed whenever you sell, with no time limit. Selling need not be your main reason. Inland Revenue's QB 25/08 (9 May 2025) calls the idea that land held over 10 years is safe "a common misconception". Our intention test guide covers how Inland Revenue judges intention and its five examples.
People in the business of dealing in land, developing or dividing it, or building, face further rules. Land bought for such a business is taxed on sale, and land they sell within 10 years of buying it, or of finishing improvements, can be taxed too, as can land in development or subdivision schemes.
Crypto, shares and foreign shares
Crypto. Inland Revenue treats crypto as property and says that in most cases the amounts from selling, trading or exchanging it are taxable. The test is your main purpose when you acquired it; how long you hold does not matter. See our crypto tax guide.
Shares. Gains on shares are taxed only if you bought them for the dominant or main purpose of selling, deal in shares, or hold them in a profit-making scheme. Most long-term investors pay tax on dividends but not on gains.
Foreign shares. If your foreign shares cost more than $50,000 in total, the FIF rules usually apply instead, and most people are taxed each year on 5% of the opening market value under the fair dividend rate method. Many ASX listed shares are exempt. Our shares and FIF guide covers both, including a proposed change to the threshold that is not yet law.
How New Zealand compares
The Tax Working Group's final report of 21 February 2019 noted that, unlike most other developed countries, New Zealand does not generally tax income in the form of capital gains, apart from specified exceptions. The group recommended a broader tax on capital gains; on 17 April 2019 the then Government announced it would not introduce one. The exceptions described in this guide, chiefly the bright-line test and the intention and dealer rules, remain the way New Zealand taxes gains today.
The 2026 election and capital gains tax
Not law. Labour's capital gains tax is a campaign proposal.
Labour campaigned on a flat 28% tax on gains made after 1 July 2027 on residential and commercial property, with the family home and farms excluded and the revenue going to health. National, ACT and NZ First oppose a capital gains tax. The Greens propose a 10-year bright-line test instead (reported), and other parties propose different property taxes.
The election on 7 November 2026 has produced preliminary results only. Official results are due 27 November 2026 and no government has been formed. On the preliminary count, the three parties opposed hold 67 of 131 seats. Our guide to Labour's proposal explains it neutrally, and our election 2026 page compares the parties and models a sale under the proposal beside current law.
Tools on this site
- Bright-line calculator: whether a residential sale is caught, and the tax at your marginal rate.
- Main home test: the area and time tests for the main home exclusion.
- Is my gain taxable?: a step by step checker for property, shares and crypto.
- Bright-line end date: the first day a sale falls outside the period.
- Election 2026: the parties' positions, and Labour's proposal modelled beside current law.
Every tax figure on this site comes from the same engine, using Inland Revenue's 2026/27 rates and tested against Inland Revenue's own worked examples.
Questions people ask
Does New Zealand have a capital gains tax?
Not a general one. Some gains are taxed as ordinary income at your marginal rate, mainly under the 2-year bright-line test, the intention test, the dealer rules, and the rules for crypto, share trading and foreign shares.
Do I pay tax when I sell my family home?
Usually not. The main home exclusion keeps most family home sales out of the bright-line test, and the residential exclusion keeps them out of the intention test, unless you have a regular pattern of buying and selling.
Is a rental property taxed if I sell after 2 years?
Not under the bright-line test, if the sale agreement is signed 2 years or more after title registration. But the intention test can still tax it, with no time limit, if you bought it with a firm plan to sell.
What rate are taxable gains taxed at?
Your marginal income tax rate, from 10.5% to 39% in 2026/27. The gain is added to your other income for the year.
Sources
- IRD: IR1229 Bright-line property tax (March 2026)
- IRD: The bright-line property rule (updated 1 April 2026)
- IRD: QB 25/08, Land acquired for a purpose or with an intention of disposal (9 May 2025)
- IRD: Buying and selling cryptoassets
- IRD: Share investments
- IRD: Tax rates for individuals
- Tax Working Group: Future of Tax, Final Report Volume I (21 February 2019)
- Prime Minister: Govt will not implement a capital gains tax (17 April 2019)
- Labour: Capital Gains Tax (proposal, accessed 10 November 2026)
Rules as at 10 November 2026. A guide, not tax advice. Spotted something out of date? Email crucibleinvestmentsltd@gmail.com.