ACC Levy Rates NZ 2026/27: All Three Levies, Confirmed
For the levy year that began 1 April 2026, ACC's earners' levy is $1.52 per $100 of liable earnings excluding GST, the average work levy is $0.69 per $100, and the average motor vehicle levy is $131.94 a vehicle from 1 July 2026 (ACC, retrieved 19 August 2026). All three were confirmed by Cabinet in December 2024, along with the rates for 2027/28, so the next two years are already set.
Two of those three numbers are averages, and one of them hides a spread of more than 250 to one. That is the part worth reading.
The three levies and who pays which
ACC funds injuries through separate accounts, and each account is fed by a different levy.
The earners' levy covers accidents outside the workplace. Everyone who earns pays it: employees through PAYE, and self-employed people on their ACC invoice (ACC, retrieved 19 August 2026).
The work levy covers accidents at work. Employers pay it on their liable payroll, and self-employed people pay it on their own liable income. The rate is set by your classification unit, which ACC assigns from the business industry classification code you chose when you registered for GST (ACC, retrieved 19 August 2026).
The motor vehicle levy covers injuries on public roads involving moving vehicles. Petrol vehicle owners pay it in two parts, at the pump and on the rego. Diesel and electric vehicle owners pay all of it on the rego (ACC, retrieved 19 August 2026).
There is a fourth line on every business invoice that is not an ACC levy at all. The Working Safer levy is collected by ACC on behalf of WorkSafe New Zealand and is a flat $0.08 per $100 of liable earnings (ACC Levy Guidebook 2026/27, page 9, retrieved 19 August 2026).
What the confirmed rates are
ACC reviews levies every three years. The 2024 consultation ran from 11 September to 9 October 2024, and Cabinet made the final decisions in December 2024, setting three years of rates at once.
| Levy | 2024/25 | 2025/26 | 2026/27 | 2027/28 | Changes on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Earners' levy rate, per $100 of liable earnings | $1.39 | $1.45 | $1.52 | $1.59 | 1 April |
| Average work levy rate, per $100 of liable earnings | $0.63 | $0.66 | $0.69 | $0.72 | 1 April |
| Average motor vehicle levy, per vehicle | $113.94 | $122.84 | $131.94 | $141.69 | 1 July |
All rates GST exclusive, as published by ACC (retrieved 19 August 2026).
Indexed to the 2024/25 year, the three lines separate immediately.
The three ACC levy rates indexed to 100 in 2024/25, calculated from ACC's published confirmed rates (ACC, retrieved 19 August 2026). The indexing is our arithmetic. The earners' and work lines are drawn separately but sit almost exactly on top of one another.
| Levy year | Earners' levy, index | Average work levy, index | Average motor vehicle levy, index |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024/25 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 |
| 2025/26 | 104.3 | 104.8 | 107.8 |
| 2026/27 | 109.4 | 109.5 | 115.8 |
| 2027/28 | 114.4 | 114.3 | 124.4 |
The two payroll levies are moving in lockstep, both up about 14% across the four years. The motor vehicle levy is up 24%, close to double the pace. If you own a car and earn a wage, the larger percentage increase in your ACC bill is arriving on your rego, not your payslip.
The average work levy rate is nobody's actual rate
The $0.69 figure is an average across the whole economy. No individual business is charged it. Your rate comes from your classification unit, and ACC publishes every one of them in the levy guidebook. Reading the 2026/27 table end to end, the standard employer and self-employed work levy rates we can find run from $0.02 per $100 to $5.29 per $100 (ACC Levy Guidebook 2026/27, levy rates table, retrieved 19 August 2026). That is a spread of more than 250 to one on the same dollar of income.
| Classification unit | CU code | Work levy rate per $100, GST exclusive |
|---|---|---|
| Computer systems design and related services | 78340 | $0.02 |
| Accounting services | 78420 | $0.03 |
| Legal services | 78410 | $0.05 |
| Real estate services | 77200 | $0.16 |
| Cafes and restaurants | 57300 | $0.40 |
| Hairdressing and beauty services | 95260 | $0.50 |
| Electrical services | 42320 | $0.68 |
| Cleaning services and facilities management (nec) | 78660 | $1.00 |
| Plumbing services | 42310 | $1.35 |
| House construction | 41110 | $1.53 |
| Carpentry services | 42420 | $1.76 |
| Dairy cattle farming | 01300 | $2.14 |
| Logging | 03020 | $2.20 |
| Roofing services | 42230 | $2.25 |
| Shearing services | 02120 | $2.82 |
| Meat processing | 21110 | $3.40 |
| Horse racing activities, thoroughbred and other (nec) | 93110 | $5.29 |
Standard employer and CoverPlus self-employed work levy rates for 2026/27, from the ACC Levy Guidebook 2026/27 levy rates table (rates effective 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027, retrieved 19 August 2026). Employers in the Experience Rating programme are charged a slightly different rate on the same line of the table.
Note where the $0.69 average sits in that list. It falls between electrical services at $0.68 and cleaning at $1.00. An accountant is charged a fraction of it and a roofer a multiple of it, so quoting the average to either one tells them nothing about their own bill.
What changed for motorcycles on 1 July 2026
The one levy change most likely to produce a visible bill shock this year is on two wheels. Cabinet approved three things for motorcycles from 1 July 2026: new engine-size sub-classes of 0 to 250cc, 251 to 750cc and 751cc and over, an increase in motorcycle levies to the equivalent of 33% of motorcycle injury costs, up from 28%, and a new 25% discount for riders who complete advanced rider training (ACC, retrieved 19 August 2026). A further increase to 37% is scheduled for 1 July 2027.
Collapsing five old bands into three did not move every rider the same way.
Vehicle licence ACC levy for petrol motorcycles, excluding GST, as published by ACC (retrieved 19 August 2026). These figures sit before the $25 motorcycle safety component that ACC adds on its main motor vehicle levy page.
| Engine size | 2025/26 | 2026/27 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moped | $107.09 | $86.93 | Down $20.16 |
| 0 to 250cc | $321.17 | $311.70 | Down $9.47 |
| 251 to 600cc | $321.17 | $442.18 | Up $121.01 |
| 601 to 750cc | $428.19 | $442.18 | Up $13.99 |
| 751cc and over | $428.19 | $624.93 | Up $196.74 |
Two groups got cheaper and three got dearer, and the biggest single move is a 46% increase for machines over 750cc. Add the $25 safety component that ACC states is included in the headline rates on its motor vehicle page, and the published 2026/27 licence levies reconcile exactly: $86.93 plus $25 is the $111.93 quoted for mopeds and scooters, and $624.93 plus $25 is the $649.93 quoted for large motorcycles (ACC, retrieved 19 August 2026). That reconciliation is our arithmetic; ACC does not publish it as a single table.
The current motor vehicle levy rates
| Vehicle class | Petrol | Non-petrol |
|---|---|---|
| Cars and light passenger vehicles | $56.75 | $115.34 |
| Mopeds and scooters | $111.93 | $125.36 |
| Small motorcycles, 250cc or less | $336.70 | $350.13 |
| Medium motorcycles, 251 to 750cc | $467.18 | $480.61 |
| Large motorcycles, over 750cc | $649.93 | $663.36 |
| Goods service vehicle, light, 3,500kg or less | $94.30 | $147.41 |
| Goods service vehicle, heavy, not in Fleet Saver | $246.27 | $263.59 |
| Vintage, class 3 and 7 | $30.40 | $61.80 |
Vehicle licence levy rates excluding GST, plus a petrol levy of 6 cents a litre paid at the pump by petrol vehicles only, as published by ACC (page last published 1 July 2026, retrieved 19 August 2026). The $25 motorcycle safety component is included in the motorcycle and moped rates above.
The petrol and non-petrol split is the sleeper here. A diesel or electric car pays $115.34 on the rego against $56.75 for a petrol car, because the petrol car pays the rest of its levy at the pump and there is no diesel pump levy (ACC, retrieved 19 August 2026).
The two earners' levy numbers, reconciled
You will find the earners' levy quoted as $1.52 and as $1.75, and both are right. ACC's guidebook states $1.52 per $100 and notes that all levy rates in it are shown exclusive of GST. Inland Revenue publishes $1.75 per $100 and states that its amounts include GST (Inland Revenue, retrieved 19 August 2026). Grossing $1.52 up at the standard 15% GST rate gives $1.748, which rounds to Inland Revenue's figure. That gross-up is our arithmetic, not a published reconciliation.
Which one applies to you depends on how you pay. A salaried employee has the GST-inclusive figure taken through PAYE. A self-employed person is invoiced the GST-exclusive rate with GST added as a separate line, and if you are GST registered that GST is deductible (ACC, retrieved 19 August 2026).
The earnings floor and ceiling
Levies are charged on a band, not on everything you earn.
| Levy year | Minimum liable earnings | Maximum liable earnings | CPX minimum cover | CPX maximum cover |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024/25 | $44,250 | $142,283 | $35,400 | $113,826 |
| 2025/26 | $49,365 | $152,790 | $39,492 | $122,232 |
| 2026/27 | $50,501 | $156,641 | $40,401 | $125,313 |
| 2027/28 | $51,632 | $160,244 | Not yet published | Not yet published |
Minimum and maximum liable earnings for 2024/25 to 2026/27 and all CoverPlus Extra cover limits from ACC; the 2027/28 row from ACC (both retrieved 19 August 2026).
One caution, since we read both pages. ACC's levy results page gives the 2024/25 maximum liable earnings as $142,286, while its levy calculation page and Inland Revenue both give $142,283 (all retrieved 19 August 2026). We have used $142,283 above because two of the three sources agree on it, and we cannot tell which is the typographical error.
The maximum applies to everyone. The minimum applies only to self-employed people working full time, which ACC defines as more than 30 hours a week averaged over the tax year. A full-time self-employed person who earns less than the minimum is levied on the minimum anyway (ACC, retrieved 19 August 2026). Part-time self-employed people are levied on what they actually earned.
What we could not verify
Three things are worth flagging as not published, rather than estimated here.
ACC does not publish the 2027/28 CoverPlus Extra minimum and maximum cover amounts. It states that the amounts increase slightly each year and that anyone already on the maximum must request the new one, but the figures for the year starting 1 April 2027 are not on the site as at the date of writing.
ACC does not publish a worked, GST-inclusive total for a self-employed levy invoice. The guidebook gives GST-exclusive rates and the invoice page confirms GST is added and is deductible, but the arithmetic joining them is left to the reader. Where we do that arithmetic, in how to calculate your ACC levy, we say so.
ACC does not publish the year-on-year change for car, goods service vehicle or vintage licence levies in the same table format it uses for motorcycles, so we have not charted one.
What to do with these numbers
Two of these levies you cannot change: the earners' levy and the motor vehicle levy are set rates on set bases. The work levy you can at least check, because it hangs off a classification code that may not describe what you do any more.
If you are weighing what ACC leaves uncovered against the cost of private cover, our income protection calculator sizes the benefit, and a licensed adviser can price it. QuoteHub is operated by Craig Smith Business Services Limited, trading as Smiths Insurance and KiwiSaver, a licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931). Our panel is listed on our disclosure page.
References
- ACC, Levy results (retrieved 19 August 2026): Cabinet-confirmed earners', work and motor vehicle levy rates for 2024/25 to 2027/28, minimum and maximum liable earnings, and the motorcycle and Work Account system changes
- ACC, Levy Guidebook 2026/27 (rates effective 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027, retrieved 19 August 2026): every classification unit rate, the Working Safer levy and the GST note
- ACC, Paying levies if you own or drive a vehicle (page last published 1 July 2026, retrieved 19 August 2026): current licence levy rates by vehicle class and the 6 cents a litre petrol levy
- ACC, Motorcycle levy changes (retrieved 19 August 2026): petrol motorcycle licence levy by engine band, 2025/26 against 2026/27
- ACC, Calculating your levies (retrieved 19 August 2026): minimum and maximum liable income by year, CoverPlus Extra cover limits, full-time and part-time definitions
- ACC, Understanding your levy invoice (retrieved 19 August 2026): how classification units are assigned
- ACC, Understand your CoverPlus invoice (retrieved 19 August 2026): the three levy lines and the GST line
- Inland Revenue, ACC earners' levy rates (retrieved 19 August 2026): the GST-inclusive earners' levy rate and maximum levy payable
Disclaimer: This article is general information only and does not constitute personalised financial advice. Every levy figure on this page is reproduced from ACC or Inland Revenue as at the date stated beside it. Earners' and work levy rates change on 1 April and motor vehicle levy rates change on 1 July each year. Nothing here is tax advice; check your own position with your accountant. QuoteHub is operated by Craig Smith Business Services Limited, trading as Smiths Insurance and KiwiSaver, a licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931), Christchurch.
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