A Week in Review

TWG Completes Final Report

The Tax Working Group has now completed its Final Report, delivering it to the Government for sign-off before its contents are released to you and I.

It is expected that it will be three weeks (a scheduled media briefing on 21st Feb) before we get to see the Group’s conclusions, the key item most are waiting for, being the recommendations surrounding the introduction of a capital gains tax, and how it might operate in practice. 

Once the Report has been presented to Cabinet on the 18th February, the Government will then target an April 2019 deadline, upon which its full response to the Report will be published. 

The Government will look to pass the legislation implementing any policy changes before the end of the current Parliamentary term. However because the Government promised us all, that no new taxes would be introduced until post next year’s election, no new policy measures will come into force until 1st April 2021.

Consequently, with National adamant it would reverse any capital gains tax that was legislated for by Labour (and to some extent one could say retribution for Labour immediately quashing National’s proposed tax cuts as soon as they walked through the door victorious in the 2017 election), in essence the issue is likely to be decided by us the voters.

Watch for coverage of the final report in a future edition of AWIR therefore, and then expect the political games to begin, once the Government issues its response in April.

If you have any questions or would like a second opinion on any national or international tax issues, please contact me [email protected].