ACC Levies for NZ Tradies 2026/27: What Every Self-Employed Tradie Must Know

If you're a self-employed tradie in New Zealand, ACC levies are one of those costs that quietly chew through your cash flow every year. The 2026/27 levy year brought real changes — the earners' levy rate went up, maximum liable earnings jumped, and ACC removed the No-Claims Discount that many trades had relied on. If you haven't reviewed your ACC setup since last year, now is the time.

This guide breaks down how ACC levies work for self-employed tradies, what's changed for 2026/27, and how CoverPlus Extra could save you money.

Why ACC Matters for Tradies

ACC (Accident Compensation Corporation) is New Zealand's no-fault accident compensation scheme. If you're injured and can't work, ACC covers 80% of your lost income — but only if you've been paying levies and only based on what ACC thinks your income was.

For employees, the employer handles a large part of this. For self-employed tradies — sole traders, working partnerships, and owner-operators — you pay two types of levies yourself:

1. Earners' levy — covers injuries that happen off the job (e.g. weekend sports, car accidents)
2. Work levy — covers injuries that happen while you're working

Both are based on your liable earnings (your net profit or agreed cover amount).

2026/27 Levy Rate Changes

Earners' levy has increased from $1.67 to $1.75 per $100 of liable earnings for 2026/27. That's a rise of about 4.8%.

Maximum liable earnings have increased to $156,641 (up from around $142,283 in 2025/26). If you earn above this threshold, you don't pay levies on the portion above it — but it also caps your weekly compensation if you're injured.

Work levy rates vary by industry risk classification (your CU code). Construction and trades sit in higher-risk brackets than office work. A builder or roofer might pay $1.50–$2.50 per $100 of earnings in Work levies, compared to under $0.30 for a desk worker.

Working Safer levy remains at $0.08 per $100 — a flat charge that funds WorkSafe NZ.

Example: What a Builder Earning $85,000 Might Pay

Use our ACC levy calculator to run your own numbers based on your income and trade type.

The No-Claims Discount Is Gone

One of the biggest 2026/27 changes is the removal of the ACC No-Claims Discount (NCD). Under the old Experience Rating framework, businesses and self-employed workers with a good safety record received a discount on their Work levy. Trades with low injury rates — electrical, plumbing, painting — often benefited from this.

ACC and MBIE confirmed the NCD is no longer part of the levy structure from 2026/27. If you were previously receiving a discount, your effective Work levy rate may have increased even if the base rate didn't change much.

Action: Check your ACC invoice carefully. Compare your total levy against prior years — if it's jumped significantly, it may be partly due to NCD removal, not just rate increases.

CoverPlus vs CoverPlus Extra: Which Is Right for You?

By default, self-employed tradies are on CoverPlus (the standard scheme). Under CoverPlus, if you make a claim, ACC calculates your weekly compensation based on your most recent IR3 tax return. This sounds straightforward, but it creates two common problems for tradies:

• Your last tax year was low — maybe you had a quiet year or wrote off a lot of expenses. ACC uses that lower number to calculate your compensation.
• Your income fluctuates a lot — seasonal tradies, or anyone who has busy and slow years, can end up under-compensated if injured during a good year but assessed on the prior year.

CoverPlus Extra (CPX) is the alternative. You negotiate a fixed agreed income level with ACC in advance. If you're injured and can't work, ACC pays 100% of that agreed amount (not 80% of a calculated average). You pay levies based on your agreed level instead of your actual income.

CPX Income Limits for 2026/27

You can set your CPX agreed income anywhere between $40,401 and $125,313.

This means CPX isn't suitable if you want cover above $125,313 — the standard CoverPlus scheme caps at $156,641 but uses your actual earnings.

When CPX Makes Sense for Tradies

• You have variable income and want certainty about what you'd receive if injured
• Your business expenses are high, meaning your taxable profit (and thus ACC assessment) is lower than your actual earnings
• You want to set your cover level strategically to manage levy costs
• You're a subcontractor who invoices through a company structure

When you apply for CPX, ACC invoices you annually in April. The cover kicks in immediately on approval — you don't need to wait for a new tax year.

How to Reduce Your ACC Bill Legally

There are a few legitimate ways to reduce what you pay:

1. Switch to CoverPlus Extra at a lower cover level If you genuinely don't need cover up to your full income (e.g. you have savings, a partner's income, or income protection insurance), you can set your CPX amount lower. This reduces your levy bill — but make sure you've actually thought through what you'd need if injured for 3–6 months.

2. Review your classification unit (CU) code Your Work levy rate is set by your CU code, which corresponds to your industry. If ACC has you in the wrong code — for example, classified as a roofer when you mainly do interior finishing — you may be overpaying. Contact ACC to review your classification.

3. Combine ACC with income protection insurance ACC covers work and non-work injuries, but it doesn't cover illness (heart attack, cancer, mental health). A private income protection policy fills that gap. Some tradies find that setting their CPX amount at a lower level and taking a top-up income protection policy gives better overall coverage at a similar total cost. See our article on income protection insurance for NZ tradies for more detail.

4. Use your hourly rate calculator to build levies into your charge-out rate ACC levies are a real cost of being self-employed. Make sure you're pricing them into your jobs — not absorbing them out of profit. A sole-trader builder paying $3,000+ per year in ACC levies needs to factor that into their hourly rate.

Paying ACC Levies: Timing and Process

ACC invoices self-employed tradies based on information filed with Inland Revenue. The typical cycle:

1. You file your IR3 (individual tax return) with IRD by 7 July (or your tax agent's extension date)
2. ACC receives your income data from IRD
3. ACC issues your levy invoice — usually around August or September

If you're on CPX, you receive your invoice in April each year instead, based on your agreed cover level.

Late or missed returns can cause problems. If ACC can't confirm your income, they may use a default rate or a previous year's figure. Make sure your IR3 is filed on time. IRD's provisional tax and income tax filing guidance explains what you need to file as a self-employed person.

Action Checklist for 2026/27

• [ ] Review your most recent ACC invoice and compare to prior year
• [ ] Check your Classification Unit (CU) code is correct for your trade
• [ ] Decide whether CoverPlus Extra suits your situation
• [ ] If on CPX, confirm your agreed income level still reflects your needs
• [ ] Make sure ACC levies are built into your charge-out rate

Tools and Apps to Help

Managing ACC alongside GST, provisional tax, and invoicing is a lot for one person. Apps like Fastcrew are built specifically for NZ tradies and can help you track your income, generate invoices, and keep records tidy when your ACC and IRD returns are due.

Download our free NZ tradie templates at tradietools.nz/templates/ — including a self-employed tax checklist and charge-out rate worksheet that factors in ACC levies, vehicle costs, and overhead.

Key Resources

• ACC CoverPlus Extra — official ACC page
• ACC levy rates 2026/27 — rates and calculator
• IRD: ACC earners' levy rates — earners levy history
• MBIE: Setting ACC levy rates — policy background

NZ Tradie Tools provides free calculators, templates and guides for New Zealand tradies. Visit tradietools.nz.