Employer of Record (EOR) in New Zealand

Hire in New Zealand in days, with no entity and no exposure to getting your employment agreement’s notice and dismissal terms wrong. We place you with the right vetted EOR partner, at pricing you will not get going direct, and stay on your side for the life of the relationship.

  • Independent advice
  • Vetted partners
  • Operational in days

What an Employer of Record does for you in New Zealand

An Employer of Record is a company that legally employs your New Zealand staff on your behalf. You choose the person and direct their work day to day. The EOR is the legal employer on paper, which is what lets you build a team in New Zealand without forming your own company.

In practice the EOR partner takes on everything that needs a New Zealand legal entity and local expertise: a compliant written employment agreement under the Employment Relations Act 2000, payday-aligned payroll with PAYE, ACC Work Levy and Earners’ Levy, and KiwiSaver withholding, employer contributions and all statutory filings to Inland Revenue, statutory benefits and leave, and compliant onboarding and a lawfully justified, procedurally fair exit, since New Zealand has no minimum statutory notice or severance floor to fall back on if the agreement is silent. You get a working team in days. The EOR carries the legal and compliance weight; you carry the commercial relationship. The only question worth spending time on is which partner is genuinely strong in New Zealand, and that is the question we answer for you.

01

Legal employer, on paper

A compliant New Zealand employment agreement under the Employment Relations Act 2000, with all statutory terms correct from day one.

02

Compliant from day one

PAYE payroll, ACC Work Levy and Earners’ Levy, and KiwiSaver contributions, calculated and filed correctly with Inland Revenue every payday.

03

No entity required

Statutory benefits, annual leave, and a lawfully justified, procedurally fair exit under the Employment Relations Act 2000. You get a working team in days; the EOR carries the legal weight.

How it works: four steps to a compliant hire

From first call to a compliant New Zealand hire at work, usually in days.

01 — Scope & quote

We map the role, salary, and start date, and come back with a clear all-in monthly cost. No guesswork, no hidden extras.

02 — Compliant contract

Your employment agreement is drafted to New Zealand standards by the partner, and we sanity-check the terms and pricing before you sign. Compliant from day one.

03 — Onboard in days

A correct New Zealand employment agreement is issued under the Employment Relations Act 2000, with all statutory terms from day one. Your hire can start in days.

04 — Payroll & compliance run

PAYE, ACC levies, and KiwiSaver calculated and withheld, payslips issued, statutory filings made to Inland Revenue. You direct the work; the compliance just runs.

What EOR in New Zealand costs

Two parts: the statutory cost of employing someone, and the EOR partner fee. In New Zealand the statutory employer cost runs through the ACC Work Levy and a KiwiSaver contribution, rather than one combined payroll tax. We make both transparent before you commit, so there are no surprises.

Employer levies & KiwiSaver

The ACC Work Levy averages NZD 0.69 per $100 of liable earnings for 2026/27 but is rated to your specific industry classification, plus a minimum 3.5% KiwiSaver contribution, both capped at NZD 156,641 of liable earnings per employee. We confirm your actual classification and all-in cost before you commit.

Minimum wage (2026)

NZD 23.95 per hour for adult employees, effective from 1 April 2026, with no regional variation to track.

Income tax (employee)

Five-band progressive rate from 10.5% up to NZD 15,600 to 39% above NZD 180,000, with no tax-free threshold. Withheld at source every payday under PAYE. Borne by the employee, not added to your cost.

EOR partner fee

A transparent per-employee monthly fee. We benchmark across our vetted network, typically 15 to 25% below going direct, and renegotiate for you at renewal.

Why run it through Bradford Jacobs

We know which EOR partners are genuinely strong in New Zealand, by sector and by complexity. We place you with the right one, at pricing you will not get going direct, and stay on your side for the life of the relationship.

Independent, not a single provider

We are independent: we assess what you actually need, place you with the right vetted partner, secure pricing you will not get going direct, and stay on your side to escalate or renegotiate. You get advice, not a product pitch.

  • Independent advice
  • Vetted partners only
  • On your side at renewal

Pricing you can’t get direct

New Zealand’s ACC Work Levy is rated to your specific industry classification, not a flat percentage, which makes it easy to over- or under-quote a monthly cost without knowing your correct classification unit. We benchmark across our partner network for rates typically 15 to 25% below going direct, and renegotiate on your behalf at renewal. Most companies do not know how much room there is to negotiate. We do.

  • 15-25% below direct
  • Network benchmarking
  • Renegotiated for you

Straight to the top when it matters

When something needs resolving, and in global employment it sometimes does, you come to us. We escalate directly, past the helpdesk, to people who can actually move it.

  • Direct escalation
  • No support queues
  • Named account contact

Two decades across markets

Two decades placing and managing EOR arrangements across global markets, with the local knowledge of the Employment Relations Act 2000, the ACC/KiwiSaver split, and New Zealand’s justified-and-fair dismissal rules that keeps you compliant.

  • EOR specialists
  • ACC & KiwiSaver
  • Risk removed

Built for conversion to your own entity

Most companies use EOR for 12 to 24 months, then move to their own New Zealand Limited Company. We plan that crossover and manage the transition when the economics justify it.

  • EOR to entity path
  • Transition managed
  • Crossover planning

Why an EOR is the fastest compliant way into New Zealand

Two things slow foreign employers down in New Zealand: the resident-director requirement on incorporation, and the risk of getting the employment agreement’s notice and dismissal terms wrong when there is no statutory floor to fall back on. An EOR removes both.

Working time, leave & contracts

Compliance handled under the Employment Relations Act 2000. New Zealand employment law requires ACC levies and KiwiSaver, and dismissal that must be substantively justified and procedurally fair even though there is no statutory notice or severance floor to fall back on. An EOR carries all of it correctly from day one, so a wrong assumption never becomes a liability.

Operational in days, not weeks

Incorporating in New Zealand is genuinely fast, commonly a matter of days once your online application and director consents are in place, but you still cannot legally employ anyone until Companies Office registration completes, and you need a genuinely resident director in place first. An EOR removes that wait entirely: a compliant New Zealand employment agreement is issued and your hire starts in days. You prove the market first, then incorporate later only if the headcount justifies it. This is the real value of EOR in New Zealand: speed into a market that looks simple on paper but has its own distinct levy and dismissal structure, with the compliance carried by an expert.

Everything your New Zealand EOR covers

One transparent monthly fee per employee covers all of this. No hidden extras.

Compliant New Zealand agreement

A compliant New Zealand employment agreement under the Employment Relations Act 2000, issued and maintained for you.

Payroll, ACC levies & KiwiSaver

Payday-aligned payroll run, with PAYE, ACC levies, and KiwiSaver contributions calculated, withheld, and filed correctly every pay cycle.

Statutory benefits

All statutory benefits administered: paid annual leave, public holidays, sick leave, and government-funded parental leave. The employee-side ACC Earners’ Levy (1.75%) and the employee’s own KiwiSaver contribution are deducted from salary, not billed to you.

Compliance & support

Ongoing HR compliance and a single point of contact, for the life of the engagement.

Your questions answered

Straight answers on how Employer of Record works in New Zealand.

Is my hire employed by Bradford Jacobs or by me?

Legally, your hire is employed by the New Zealand EOR partner we place you with, which is what keeps you compliant without an entity. Day to day they work for you: you set the work, the goals, the relationship. You get the team; the partner carries the legal employer obligations.

Usually within days once the role and salary are agreed, with a compliant New Zealand employment agreement from day one. Compare that to incorporation, which is fast on paper but still requires Companies Office registration and a genuinely resident director before you can legally employ anyone.

Two components: the ACC Work Levy (averaging NZD 0.69 per $100 of liable earnings, rated to your industry) plus a minimum 3.5% KiwiSaver contribution, both capped at NZD 156,641 of liable earnings per employee. Add the transparent EOR partner fee and you have your all-in cost.

Yes, when done properly. The EOR is a real New Zealand legal employer meeting all Employment Relations Act, ACC, KiwiSaver, and Inland Revenue obligations. The risk is using an under-resourced partner, which is exactly why we place you with vetted partners and stay on your side.

The compliant employment agreement, payday payroll (PAYE, ACC levies, and KiwiSaver withholding), employer contributions, statutory benefits and leave administration, and ongoing HR compliance. We give you one all-in monthly figure up front, with no hidden extras.

Yes, and most companies do once the headcount and permanence justify it. We manage the transition from EOR to your own New Zealand Limited Company, and can support the incorporation itself. Most use EOR for 12 to 24 months first.

Ready to hire in New Zealand?

Tell us the role and we will come back with a compliant, all-in monthly cost and the right partner, usually within a day. No entity, no lock-in, no pitch, just the fastest compliant way to get your person working in New Zealand.

Tax and labour data verified July 2026 (Inland Revenue, ACC, Employment New Zealand). Figures change; we confirm the current position when we scope your hire.