Thursday, 16 May 2013

2013 Budget Tool - Introducing the Tax Tracker Web App

Did you know that your tax pays more towards subsidising tertiary education than for the Police and foreign aid combined?

Today sees the launch of Maxim Institute’s free, one-click Tax Tracker web app, a simple online tool that lets you enter your annual income, click “GO” and immediately see a receipt of what your income tax is going to pay for this year, based on the hot-off-the-press 2013 Budget numbers.

Why should we care? The new Budget gives us spending figures in the millions and even billions, which isn’t exactly what most of us are used to seeing on our bank statements. This app gives everyday Kiwis a much-needed sense of scale, showing you how much income tax you have paid, and where it is being spent.

As the web app calculates income tax only, Maxim Institute has also generated detailed written scenarios including GST expenditure for four representative New Zealand households; these will be live on the web app site by Friday afternoon.

You’ll find notes to explain it all in our Cheatsheet guide to New Zealand’s tax system, as well as our full project methodology at the bottom of the site.

Check out www.maxim.org.nz/taxtracker now and find out where your money is going.

ENDS

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