Onboarding Christmas Casuals in New Zealand: Tax, KiwiSaver and Pay
Christmas casuals start in a rush. You hire twenty people in a fortnight, some of them start on a Saturday, and every one of them needs an employment agreement, a tax code and a right to work check before their first shift, not after it.
This post covers what the rules say for summer staff in New Zealand over 2026/27: casual or fixed-term, the written agreement, the IR330 and secondary tax, KiwiSaver, right to work, minimum wage, holiday pay, the four public holidays, trial periods and school-age workers. Then it shows how to get the paperwork in from one link per person. The full list for any new employee is in our new employee onboarding checklist for New Zealand.
Casual or fixed-term
Decide this before you write the agreement, because it changes holiday pay, KiwiSaver and public holidays.
| Type | What it means |
|---|---|
| Casual | They work when it suits both of you. There is no guarantee or expectation of regular or ongoing work. |
| Fixed-term | The job ends on a set date or event. There must be a genuine reason based on reasonable grounds, and the reason and how the job ends must be recorded in the employment agreement. |
Employment New Zealand gives seasonal work as an example of a genuine reason for a fixed term. It also says a fixed term can't be used in place of a trial period. A "casual" who works the same roster every week for months looks less like a casual, so match the label to how you will actually roster them.
The written employment agreement
Every employee must have a written employment agreement, casuals and two-week temps included. Before they start, you give them a copy of the intended agreement and time to read it and get independent advice. Employment New Zealand's Employment Agreement Builder helps you write one.
For a Christmas hire, the agreement is also where several of the rules below have to live: the reason for a fixed term, a trial period, pay-as-you-go holiday pay, and whether they must work a public holiday.
Tax: the IR330 and secondary tax
Each employee gives you a completed IR330 tax code declaration with their IRD number and tax code. If they don't, you deduct PAYE at the non-notified rate of 45% plus the ACC earners' levy, using the code ND.
Many Christmas casuals are students or people with a day job. Inland Revenue says a person has only one main income, their highest. Everything else is secondary income and takes a secondary tax code, worked out with the flowchart on pages 2 and 3 of the IR330. Choosing the code is the employee's job. Getting the form before the first pay run is yours.
KiwiSaver
Every new employee who is eligible must be automatically enrolled, if they are 18 or over, under 65 and not already a member. Existing members give you a KS2 with their contribution rate. Inland Revenue lists three groups you don't have to enrol, though each can still opt in:
- Temporary employees employed for 28 days or fewer. The 28 days is the period of employment, not the days worked. A job from 1 December to 31 January is longer than that, so they are enrolled. If you extend someone past 28 days, you enrol them on day 29.
- Casual employees engaged on an irregular and intermittent basis who get holiday pay with their wages.
- Casual agricultural workers employed day to day for fewer than 3 months.
From 1 April 2026 the default contribution rate is 3.5% for both employee and employer, and 16 and 17 year olds who meet the other requirements get employer contributions too. The rate goes to 4% on 1 April 2028.
Right to work
It is an offence to employ someone who isn't entitled to work in New Zealand, and there is no exception for a six-week job. For anyone from overseas, check their visa before they start, through VisaView or by looking at their documents, and keep a copy of the check. Working holiday visa holders are a common Christmas hire, so check their conditions too. Who needs what is in our guide to right to work checks in New Zealand.
Minimum wage rates now in force
These are the minimum wage rates from 1 April 2026, before tax. The next change is due on 1 April 2027, after the season.
| Rate | Per hour | Who it applies to |
|---|---|---|
| Adult | $23.95 | Employees 16 and over who don't qualify for one of the rates below |
| Starting-out | $19.16 | 16 and 17 year olds in their first 6 months with you, plus some 16 to 19 year olds in industry training or coming off a benefit |
| Training | $19.16 | Employees 20 and over whose agreement requires at least 60 credits a year of industry training |
The starting-out and training rates don't apply to anyone who supervises or trains other workers. There is no minimum wage for employees under 16. Collect each casual's date of birth: you need it for the rate, and for anyone 19 or under you must record their age in your wage and time records.
Holiday pay for casual and short-term staff
The Holidays Act 2003 still applies this summer. The Employment Leave Act passed in 2026, but Employment New Zealand says it replaces the Holidays Act in August 2028, and the current rules apply until then.
Pay-as-you-go 8%
You can pay annual holiday pay with each pay, at no less than 8% of gross earnings, only if:
- the work is so irregular that giving 4 weeks of annual holidays is impracticable, or
- they are on a genuine fixed-term agreement of less than 12 months.
A "casual" label on its own doesn't qualify. The employee must agree to it in their employment agreement, and the payment must be an identifiable amount of their pay. Showing it separately on the payslip is good practice.
When they leave
If you don't pay as you go, someone who leaves before 12 months gets an annual holiday payment of 8% of their gross earnings in their final pay, less anything already paid for holidays.
Public holidays over the 2026/27 summer
Four public holidays fall in the season. Two of them land on a Saturday this time, so they can be Mondayised.
| Holiday | Date | Mondayised date |
|---|---|---|
| Christmas Day | Friday 25 December 2026 | None |
| Boxing Day | Saturday 26 December 2026 | Monday 28 December 2026 |
| New Year's Day | Friday 1 January 2027 | None |
| Day after New Year's Day | Saturday 2 January 2027 | Monday 4 January 2027 |
The Mondayisation test is per employee. If they would otherwise have worked that Saturday, the holiday stays on the Saturday. If not, it moves to the Monday for them. For irregular rosters, you and the employee agree in good faith, looking at past rosters and what was scheduled.
On the day itself, the rules are:
- They work it: at least time and a half for the hours worked.
- It is an otherwise working day for them and they work it: time and a half plus an alternative holiday (a paid day off later).
- It is an otherwise working day and they don't work: a paid day off.
- It isn't an otherwise working day and they don't work: nothing.
You can only require someone to work a public holiday if it is an otherwise working day for them and their employment agreement says they must. Alternative holidays still owed when the job ends are paid out in the final pay.
Trial periods for short stints
A trial period can last up to 90 calendar days and is open to employers of any size. It must be in the employment agreement, and the employee must sign before they start work, or it isn't valid. It can't be used for someone who has worked for you before, so a returning casual from last summer can't have one. A fixed term isn't a substitute for a trial.
School-age workers
There is no general minimum working age, but there are limits by age:
- 15 and under, still at school: only outside school hours, and never between 10pm and 6am, so late closing shifts are out even in the school holidays.
- Under 15: WorkSafe says they can't be in areas involving manufacturing, construction, logging or hazardous substances, can't work with machinery, and can't drive a vehicle or ride on one towing something.
- 17 and under: can't work in a restricted area of licensed premises, such as a bar, or in gambling areas.
Someone 17 or under can sign an employment agreement, but make sure they understand it and suggest they talk it through with a parent or guardian.
This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change, so check Employment New Zealand, Inland Revenue and Immigration New Zealand for your situation.
What WorkZerk does and doesn't do
- Each casual fills everything in on their phone from a private link, with no account or password.
- The Staff onboarding (New Zealand) pack asks for the IR330, their IRD number, a KS2 for existing KiwiSaver members, bank details, proof of the right to work, a work visa for anyone on one, an emergency contact and a Police vetting consent form for roles that need one.
- The IR330, IRD number, KS2, bank account number, right to work documents, work visa and Police vetting consent form are marked sensitive: stored encrypted and viewable only by admins.
- They can sign the employment agreement in their portal before the first shift, which is when a trial period has to be signed.
- Automatic reminders chase anyone who hasn't finished.
- The Requests screen shows who has finished, who is part way and who hasn't started, so you know who you can roster.
- When the season ends, closing the portal keeps every document and takes everyone off your usage.
What it does not do: WorkZerk is not payroll or rostering. It doesn't file employment information with Inland Revenue, pick tax codes, enrol anyone in KiwiSaver, or work out holiday pay, public holiday pay or alternative holidays. It doesn't run a VisaView check either. A photo of a visa is not the check.
Setting it up in WorkZerk
1. Turn on two-factor authentication
Asking people to upload documents needs two-factor authentication on your account. Set it up under Account, then Two-factor authentication (opens in WorkZerk in a new tab).
2. Create a portal for the season
Open Portals (opens in WorkZerk in a new tab) and click New portal. Name it something your casuals will recognise, such as "Summer casuals 2026".
3. Add the New Zealand staff pack
On the portal's Requests panel, pick Staff onboarding (New Zealand) from the pack picker under Templates: New Zealand. It asks for:
- Tax code declaration (IR330), required, with a link to Inland Revenue's form.
- IRD number, required.
- KiwiSaver deduction form (KS2), optional, for people already in KiwiSaver.
- Account name and Account number for their pay.
- Proof of your right to work, such as a New Zealand or Australian passport, a New Zealand birth certificate, or a visa.
- Work visa, optional, for anyone in New Zealand on a visa, with the date it ends as its expiry date.
- Emergency contact.
- Police vetting consent form, optional, for roles that need a Police vet.
Untick anything this intake doesn't need before you add it. See starter request packs.
The pack doesn't ask for a date of birth. Click + Insert and add a Fields request with a Date field for it, so you can set the right minimum wage rate and spot school-age workers.
4. Add the employment agreement
If the agreement is a PDF, add a Sign PDF request so each casual signs it in their portal. Put the end date and the reason for a fixed term in it, plus any trial period, pay-as-you-go holiday pay and public holiday clause. Send links early enough for them to read it and get advice before they sign.
5. Get your people in
Pick whichever fits:
- You have a list. Use Import people from CSV on the portal to put everyone on it at once, then Email their invites to queue a batch. See importing contacts from a CSV and batched invite emails.
- You are still hiring. Turn on the portal's self-registration link and put it in the job ad or the offer email. Anyone who opens it enters their name and email and is emailed their own link.
6. Let the reminders chase
The Outstanding requests reminder in Automations (opens in WorkZerk in a new tab) is on from the start and emails anyone who hasn't finished after 7 days. Christmas hiring doesn't have 7 days to spare, so shorten it. Remind everyone not finished on the Requests screen chases the whole portal at once. See onboarding that runs itself.
7. Review, approve and check who is ready
Open Requests (opens in WorkZerk in a new tab). Uploads wait under Needs review: check each one, approve it, and copy what payroll needs into your payroll software. Run the VisaView check for anyone on a visa before you approve their right to work and Work visa uploads. The Waiting on section splits the portal into Finished, In progress and Not started, and By person lists exactly what each one still owes. See Reviewing uploads.
8. Close the portal after the season
When the season is over, open the portal's settings and close it. Their links stop working, the self-registration form stops taking sign-ups, and automated emails to them stop. Every document stays on file. See portal lifecycle.
Closing also takes everyone off your usage. Your plan includes 25 active people, and anyone above that is charged by the day, only while they hold a live link on an open portal.
Next November, reopen the same portal. The same links come back to life, so returning casuals don't need a new invite. Remember that they can't go on a trial period the second time.
Getting started
Start a free WorkZerk trial at workzerk.com, then work through the steps above before your first casual starts. If you get stuck, the getting started guide walks through a first portal end to end, or email us at [email protected].