IRD peak season survival guide

Revenue Minister Todd McClay is encouraging people to use Inland Revenue’s online services as the department enters its peak season.

“Inland Revenue has put a lot of effort into making it easier for people to do more online, so they don’t have to wait on the phone,” says Mr McClay

The next few months are Inland Revenue’s busiest period, with customers seeking a variety of information regarding the end of the financial year such as whether they are due a tax refund, updating personal details or inquiring about working for family tax credits.

“In the past year, Inland Revenue received over 3.6 million calls; 1.9 million of those were made between April and August alone.”

“This increased demand places substantial pressure on Inland Revenue’s call centre and while extra resources are put in place, unfortunately some customers may experience longer wait times than usual.”

“Calls to Inland Revenue can be complex and it is important that they are fully and accurately answered. However, many people can get what they need online without having to contact Inland Revenue at all.”

“Over a million customers are already registered for online services. They do not have to wait on the phone to check the balance of their IRD accounts, receive child support information, track their tax refund, retrieve their IRD number, check their Student Loan balances and register or submit a GST return,” says Mr McClay. 

“Customers can also use the Voice ID option to automatically check the balance of their Inland Revenue accounts, receive child support information, track their tax refund, retrieve their IRD number, activate their online services account and reset passwords.”

“Along with offering customers the option to schedule an appointment to talk to a customer service specialist at another time that is convenient to them, Inland Revenue is doing all it can to help people get the information they need during this peak period,” says Mr McClay.

For more information please visit the Inland Revenue webpage http://www.ird.govt.nz/contact-us/?idglobalnav