Tailored tax code in myIR: apply, STC and renew
A tailored tax code is an Inland Revenue deduction rate worked out for your own circumstances, so you pay closer to the right amount of tax during the year instead of a large bill or refund at 31 March. You apply for a tailored tax code in myIR, Inland Revenue sends you a certificate, and you enter STC on your Tax code declaration.
This guide is for the 2026/27 tax year (1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027). It is for someone with two PAYE jobs, a worker on a benefit or ACC who also earns wages, and a contractor whose flat schedular rate is too high for the expenses they carry.
What is a tailored tax code?
A tailored tax code is a tax deduction rate Inland Revenue works out to suit your individual circumstances. Inland Revenue’s apply for a tailored tax code page is plain: if you think you will get a large refund or debt at the end of the tax year, you apply so you pay the right amount of tax throughout the year. Businesses and organisations cannot apply for this kind of tailored tax code. It is for people, not companies.
Inland Revenue groups three tools together as tailored tax options: tailored tax codes, tailored tax rates, and certificates of exemption. They help you pay the right amount of tax if your circumstances mean you often have a large tax bill or refund. A tailored tax code covers salary or wages income. A tailored tax rate covers schedular payments on the WT tax code. Each option lasts up to one tax year, starting on the date Inland Revenue approves it and ending on 31 March.
The short version
Apply in myIR under Manage account, or send Inland Revenue an IR23BS form. Inland Revenue sends a letter and certificate within 10 working days. You enter STC on the Tax code declaration IR330 for salary or wages, or your tailored rate on IR330C for schedular payments, and you reapply every tax year.
Source: Inland Revenue apply for a tailored tax code and which tailored tax option is right for me. Employer wage records and payday filing sit on the PAYE and payslips hub. Which standard letter to write when you do not need a tailored code is the secondary tax code guide. This page stays on the tailored tax code and how to apply in myIR.
When a tailored tax code helps
Inland Revenue’s tailored tax options page lists when a tailored tax code or rate fits. You can use a tailored tax option if your income comes from salary or wages, schedular income, New Zealand Superannuation, Veteran’s Pension, a second job or other income over and above your main job, a benefit or ACC while you are working at the same time, an overseas pension that is taxable in New Zealand, or business losses from previous years now that you earn salary or wages.
Inland Revenue’s employees with tailored tax codes page frames the same list from the payroll side. A tailored tax code is useful when an employee has more than one job, is receiving a benefit or ACC and working at the same time, has business losses to carry forward from a previous year but is now earning a salary or wages, or is receiving an overseas pension taxable in New Zealand. The standard secondary tax codes still apply the top rate on your smaller source. A tailored code replaces that with a single rate set for your total picture.
Tailored tax code (STC)
For salary or wages, NZ Super, Veteran’s Pension, a benefit or ACC beside work, a second job, an overseas pension, or past business losses now on wages. You enter STC on the IR330 and show your certificate. Inland Revenue works out the rate.
Tailored tax rate (schedular)
For schedular payments on the WT tax code, for example a contractor with expenses that make the standard rate too high. You show the certificate and give the payer a completed IR330C, not an IR330.
How to apply for a tailored tax code in myIR
Inland Revenue’s live path is myIR. Follow these steps from the apply for a tailored tax code page. The wording in each card is Inland Revenue’s own, kept in plain New Zealand English.
Source: Inland Revenue apply for a tailored tax code and apply for a tailored tax rate for schedular payments. The dollar effect of a rate on your take home pay sits on the PAYE calculator once Inland Revenue tells you the rate to use.
No myIR? Inland Revenue: you can also complete a Tailored tax code or tailored tax rate application IR23BS form and send it in. The IR23BS notes give the postal address as Inland Revenue, PO Box 39010, Wellington Mail Centre, Lower Hutt 5045. Inland Revenue also publishes a short guide, Do you need a tailored tax code IR23G, to help you decide before you apply.
Tailored tax options at a glance
Three tailored options exist. Picking the right one matters because the form and the payer are different for each. This table maps them to Inland Revenue’s own descriptions.
| Option | Who it suits | How to apply and where it goes |
|---|---|---|
| Tailored tax code (STC) | Salary or wages, NZ Super, Veteran’s Pension, a benefit or ACC beside work, a second job, overseas pension, past business losses now on wages. | myIR Tailored tax code application, or IR23BS. Enter STC on IR330 and show the certificate to your employer or Work and Income. |
| Tailored tax rate | Schedular payments on the WT tax code, for example a contractor whose expenses make the standard rate too high. | myIR Tailored tax application, select Tailored tax rate, or IR23BS. Show the certificate and give the payer a completed IR330C. |
| Certificate of exemption | Schedular payment earners who do not want tax deducted. Not available to a contractor paid by a labour hire business. | myIR, or the IR332 form. Labour hire contractors cannot use this and may apply for a 0% tailored tax rate instead. |
Source: Inland Revenue tailored tax options, apply for a tailored tax rate for schedular payments, and the Tax rate notification for contractors IR330C (2024). Interest and dividends are not part of this: those payers deduct resident withholding tax, not a tailored code.
After you apply: certificate, STC, and renewing
Once Inland Revenue approves your application, the certificate does the talking. Inland Revenue’s IR330 note 10: if you have a tailored tax code certificate, enter STC as your tax code on page 1 of the Tax code declaration, and show your certificate to your employer. You can apply in myIR or download an IR23BS form, or call Inland Revenue on 0800 227 774. For schedular work, IR330C says if you have a tailored tax rate you enter it on page 1 and show your original tailored tax rate certificate to your payer.
A tailored code is tied to one payer. The IR23BS is blunt: you can use your tailored tax code or special rate of tax for one employer, and to use it for another employer you complete another application. Inland Revenue’s certificate is valid from the date it approves it until the end of the tax year, 31 March. When it is about to expire, Inland Revenue contacts you through myIR in time to reapply, and you then give your employer the new certificate. If you stop using a tailored tax code, you complete a new IR330 with a standard code.
Use case: two PAYE jobs, standard code stings
Situation: Hypothetical worker holds a main job and a regular second job, both PAYE, and the secondary code takes the top rate on the smaller pay. Tailored option: apply in myIR for a tailored tax code so one rate reflects total income. Action: once the certificate arrives, enter STC on the second employer’s IR330 and hand over the certificate. Inland Revenue can approve it for one employer at a time.
Use case: NZ Super plus wages
Situation: Hypothetical superannuitant gets NZ Super and part time wages, and the mix keeps producing a year end bill. Tailored option: apply in myIR, giving the New Zealand Superannuation number from Work and Income. Action: Inland Revenue lets Work and Income know the tailored code for the NZ Super side. Work and Income: if you do not renew or change a tailored tax code before the end of the financial year, your rate defaults to 45% on 1 April.
Trap: student loan, rental losses, and the 45% default
A tailored tax code is not a lever for everything. Inland Revenue’s IR23BS: you can no longer use a tailored tax code to change the amount of your student loan repayment deductions, and residential rental losses are generally ring fenced, so most cannot offset salary or wages. A tailored rate is based on your estimates and may not be the final amount you owe; Inland Revenue squares it up on your income tax assessment. And do not let it lapse: Work and Income says an unrenewed tailored code defaults to 45% on 1 April, and it is an offence to alter the certificate Inland Revenue issues.
What people get stuck on
On r/PersonalFinanceNZ a worker with two part time PAYE jobs and one schedular job got a letter saying Inland Revenue had told an employer to use STC at 36.6%, and asked how to change it back. The steer from the thread and from Inland Revenue’s about tax codes page lines up: contact Inland Revenue, not just the employer, because Inland Revenue may change an unsuitable code and will notify you, and you can talk to them if you disagree. MoneyHub’s tax code guide points the same way, treating a tailored tax code as the step when a large bill or refund keeps happening. The certificate itself must not be altered, so the fix is a fresh application or a myIR message, not editing the paper.
Frequently asked questions
How do I apply for a tailored tax code in myIR?
Log in to myIR, go to your income tax account, click More, then click Tailored tax code application under Manage account. Apply for the right tax year, complete the form, and submit. Inland Revenue sends a letter and certificate within 10 working days. You can also complete the IR23BS form and post it.
What is the STC tax code?
STC is the tax code you enter on the Tax code declaration IR330 page 1 once Inland Revenue approves a tailored tax code. IR330 note 10: enter STC as your tax code and show your certificate to your employer. A tailored tax code is a deduction rate worked out to suit your circumstances.
Do I need to reapply for a tailored tax code every year?
Yes. A tailored tax option lasts up to one tax year. It starts on the date Inland Revenue approves it and ends on 31 March. Inland Revenue reminds you through myIR or a letter in early February. For NZ Super or Veteran’s Pension, Work and Income says if you do not renew or change it your tax rate defaults to 45% on 1 April.
Can a tailored tax code change my student loan repayments?
No. Inland Revenue’s IR23BS form: you can no longer use a tailored tax code to change the amount of your student loan repayment deductions. Residential rental losses are also generally ring fenced, so most cannot be used to lower tax on salary or wages.