KiwiSaver Options

Selecting the correct KiwiSaver option is important as this determines whether KiwiSaver is deducted from an employee’s pay packet and what information is sent in the ED file.

More information about KiwiSaver for new employees can be found here: https://www.ird.govt.nz/kiwisaver/kiwisaver-employers/starting-employees-in-kiwisaver

KiwiSaver Option on DataPay	When to use	More Info
Exempt	an employee not eligible for KiwiSaver an employee who doesn’t need to be automatically enrolled and has chosen not to opt-in Note: not to be used for employees who fall into the categories for Exempt (Casual/Temp) or Exempt (Under 18).	https://www.ird.govt.nz/kiwisaver/kiwisaver-employers/starting-employees-in-kiwisaver/check-employee-eligibility-for-kiwisaver https://www.ird.govt.nz/kiwisaver/kiwisaver-employers/starting-employees-in-kiwisaver/employees-who-choose-to-opt-into-kiwisaver
Exempt (Casual/Temp)	a casual employee who has chosen not to opt-in a temporary employee employed for 28 days or less who isn’t required to be automatically enrolled and has chosen not to opt-in Note: not to be used for casual agricultural workers (tax code CAE).	https://www.ird.govt.nz/kiwisaver/kiwisaver-employers/starting-employees-in-kiwisaver/employees-who-choose-to-opt-into-kiwisaver/opting-in-and-enrolling-temporary-and-casual-employees
Exempt (Under 18)	an employee exempt from KiwiSaver because they are aged under 18 years, and they have not opted in with their scheme provider	https://www.ird.govt.nz/kiwisaver/kiwisaver-employers/starting-employees-in-kiwisaver/employees-who-choose-to-opt-into-kiwisaver
Existing Member	an employee who is already a KiwiSaver member
Existing Opt Out	This is to indicate an employee has already opted out of KiwiSaver. This option is only to be used when transferring employees from another system to DataPay.
Opt In (Automatic Enrolment)	a new employee required to be automatically enrolled a temporary employee who is automatically enrolled after 28 days (i.e. changing from option Exempt (Casual/Temp)) a casual agricultural employee (tax code CAE) who is automatically enrolled after three months Note: not to be used for anyone who opts in voluntarily, use Opt In (Voluntary Enrolment) instead.	https://www.ird.govt.nz/kiwisaver/kiwisaver-employers/starting-employees-in-kiwisaver/auto-enrol-employees-into-kiwisaver https://www.ird.govt.nz/kiwisaver/kiwisaver-employers/starting-employees-in-kiwisaver/employees-who-choose-to-opt-into-kiwisaver/opting-in-and-enrolling-temporary-and-casual-employees
Opt In (Voluntary Enrolment)	a new or existing employee aged 65 years or older and who chooses to opt in a new or existing casual employee who chooses to opt in a temporary employee who chooses to opt in within 28 days of starting their employment	https://www.ird.govt.nz/kiwisaver/kiwisaver-employers/starting-employees-in-kiwisaver/employees-who-choose-to-opt-into-kiwisaver
Opt Out	an employee who is automatically enrolled, and who has chosen to opt out (employees cannot opt out within two weeks of their start date)	https://www.ird.govt.nz/kiwisaver/kiwisaver-employers/employees-who-want-to-opt-out-of-kiwisaver
Opt Out (Over 65)	an existing employee who is aged 65 years or older who belonged to KiwiSaver and has now chosen to opt out	https://www.ird.govt.nz/kiwisaver/kiwisaver-employers/contributions-and-deductions/employees-with-special-circumstances

Opting Out

If an employee is automatically enrolled in KiwiSaver when they start their new job, they can opt out between two to eight weeks of starting work (i.e. between day 14 and day 56).

https://www.ird.govt.nz/kiwisaver/kiwisaver-employers/employees-who-want-to-opt-out-of-kiwisaver

IRD Requirements

When an employee opts out of KiwiSaver, Inland Revenue (IR) requires extra information to be included in payday filing.

Bank Account Holder Name

For payday filing to be reported correctly, IR requires you to record the name of the bank account holder when an employee opts out of KiwiSaver. This will be mandatory when the KiwiSaver option ‘Opt Out’ is selected.

Bank Account Holder Name in Direct Access

In Direct Access, this error will appear if the Bank Account Holder Name has not been supplied.

If the employee opted out prior to the Bank Account Holder Name becoming a mandatory field, they’ll be required to enter this the next time they make changes in the Payroll tab (see below).

Late Opt Out

Subject to approval from IR, an employee may be able to opt out after eight weeks (i.e. after 56 days), but they must provide a reason for the late opt-out. This does not apply if the employee is over 65 years old.

The following table lists the late opt-out reasons available on DataPay.

Late Opt Out Reasons
Employer did not provide a KiwiSaver information pack within seven days of starting employment
Inland Revenue did not send an investment statement upon allocation to a default scheme
Employer did not provide an investment statement (for the employer-chosen KiwiSaver scheme)
Events outside of control meant the opt-out application was unable to be submitted within the eight-week time limit
Did not meet the criteria to join KiwiSaver (see Employee information pack [KS3] for criteria)
Incorrectly enrolled under the age of 18
Other reason (please explain)

If you select “Other reason (please explain)” you will be prompted to provide a reason. This information will be sent to IR.

In DataPay, a pop-up will open on saving if this is required.

Payroll Administrator - NZ