My Employer Isn't Paying My KiwiSaver: How to Check and What to Do in NZ

Think your employer isn't paying your KiwiSaver? Here's how to check myIR and your payslips, where contributions can get stuck on the way to your provider, your rights in NZ, and how Inland Revenue recovers unpaid contributions.

If your payslip shows KiwiSaver coming out but your balance never seems to move, it is worth checking properly rather than assuming the worst. Most of the time the money is on its way and simply has not landed yet. Sometimes, though, deductions or the employer contribution genuinely are not reaching Inland Revenue, and that is a problem you can do something about.

This guide walks through how to check whether your employer is actually paying your KiwiSaver, why a delay is normal, what your rights are, and how Inland Revenue recovers contributions that have not been paid.

TL;DR: Your employer must deduct your KiwiSaver and add the compulsory employer contribution of at least 3% of gross pay, then pass both to Inland Revenue at every payday ¹². Check what has actually been received against your IRD number in myIR ⁵. Allow around 4-6 weeks before money shows in your provider account ⁶. If it is genuinely unpaid, Inland Revenue can recover it as a debt, with interest and penalties ⁸.

How do you check if your employer is actually paying your KiwiSaver?

There are three places to look, and they tell you different things.

1. Your payslip. This shows what your employer has deducted from your pay. If a KiwiSaver line is there, your contribution is at least coming out. If there is no KiwiSaver line and you expect one, that is the first thing to query.

2. Your myIR account. This is the one that matters most. Through myIR you can see the KiwiSaver contributions Inland Revenue has actually received and is holding against your IRD number ⁵. This tells you whether your employer's deductions and the employer contribution have genuinely been passed on, not just taken off your pay.

3. Your KiwiSaver provider. Your scheme (for example Booster, Milford, Simplicity, Generate or Fisher Funds) shows what has been credited to your investment account. This is the last step in the chain, so it always lags the other two.

The key idea is that money has to travel: payslip, then Inland Revenue, then your provider. A gap at one stage does not always mean a gap at the others. Checking myIR is the way to tell a normal processing delay apart from a real problem.

The path your KiwiSaver takes from payslip to provider

Your contributions are not paid straight to your fund. They move through Inland Revenue first, and there is a normal lag at each step.

Based on Inland Revenue's KiwiSaver contribution flow, 2026 ¹⁵⁶. Illustration only; actual timing varies.

The takeaway: if your provider balance has not updated but myIR shows the contributions received, the system is working as intended and you simply need to wait. If myIR shows nothing several weeks after the deduction came off your pay, that is the point to start asking questions.

What's the difference between missing deductions and a missing employer match?

These are two separate things, and the distinction matters when you raise it.

Your deductions are the contributions taken out of your own pay, usually at 3%, 4%, 6%, 8% or 10% of your before-tax pay, with 3% the default if you have not chosen a rate ³. If a deduction is missing, either it was not taken off your pay (check the payslip) or it was taken but not passed on (check myIR).

The employer contribution is separate money your employer adds on top. The compulsory employer contribution is a minimum of 3% of your gross salary or wages ². Importantly, this is paid on top of your gross pay, not out of it ⁷, and it is calculated on your gross earnings including bonuses, commission and overtime ⁷. So a missing employer contribution is not visible by looking at your take-home pay at all. You generally only see it by checking what has been received in myIR or credited by your provider.

A common point of confusion: the employer contribution has ESCT (Employer Superannuation Contribution Tax) deducted before it reaches your account, so the amount credited is smaller than a flat 3% of your pay. That is normal and is not the same as a missing contribution. We explain how that tax works in our guide to ESCT on KiwiSaver employer contributions.

Why might contributions not show up in myIR yet?

Before assuming your employer has done something wrong, it helps to know the ordinary reasons for a delay.

• Payday filing timing. Employers file and pay after each payday, so there is always a short gap between the money leaving your pay and Inland Revenue recording it ¹.
• Provider processing. Even once Inland Revenue holds the money, passing it to your scheme and having it invested takes time. Providers commonly note this can be around 4-6 weeks from deduction to appearing in your account ⁶.
• A new job or first contribution. Your very first contributions can take longer while your enrolment is set up.
• Monthly rather than per-pay crediting. Some of the lag is simply batching; contributions can appear in a lump rather than every payday.

So a balance that has not moved after a week or two is usually nothing to worry about. A pattern of deductions coming off your pay for months with nothing arriving in myIR is the real warning sign, because at that point the money has clearly left your pay but is not reaching Inland Revenue.

What are your rights if your employer hasn't paid?

Your employer has a legal obligation to deduct your KiwiSaver contributions and pay the compulsory employer contribution, and to pass both to Inland Revenue as part of payday filing at each payday ¹. This is not optional, and it is not something you have to chase as a favour.

If your employer has not met that obligation, Inland Revenue can pursue the unpaid amounts as a debt and apply interest and penalties under the general tax rules ⁸. In other words, the responsibility for getting it right and for any shortfall sits with the employer, not with you. You are entitled to have the deducted and compulsory amounts reach your KiwiSaver account.

That said, the path to fixing it usually runs through Inland Revenue rather than a tribunal in the first instance, because Inland Revenue is the body that collects and enforces these contributions. The practical steps below reflect that.

This is general information about how the rules work, not advice about your specific employment situation. If your circumstances are complicated, an employment-law professional or Inland Revenue can give you tailored guidance.

How do you raise it with your employer first?

If myIR shows a genuine gap, raising it directly is often the quickest fix. Many shortfalls come from payroll errors, a missed rate change, or a new starter not being set up correctly, rather than anything deliberate.

A calm, factual approach tends to work best:

1. Gather your evidence. Save your payslips showing the deductions, and a record from myIR showing what Inland Revenue has and has not received ⁵.

2. Ask payroll or your manager to check. Explain what you are seeing: deductions on your payslip but nothing recorded in myIR for the same period.

3. Confirm your details. Mistakes often come down to a wrong IRD number, a missing enrolment, or the wrong contribution rate being applied ³.

4. Put it in writing. A short email creates a record of when you raised it and what was said.

5. Agree a timeframe for them to correct it and to confirm the back contributions have been filed and paid.

If your employer fixes the error and files the missing amounts, that is usually the end of it. If they do not, or if you are not comfortable raising it directly, the next step is Inland Revenue.

How does IRD recover unpaid KiwiSaver contributions?

Inland Revenue is the agency that collects KiwiSaver contributions, so it is also the agency that recovers them when an employer has not paid.

Where an employer has not paid the deductions or the compulsory employer contributions on time, Inland Revenue can pursue the unpaid amounts as a debt and apply use-of-money interest and late-payment penalties under the general tax rules ⁸. Practically, that means:

• You can report the shortfall to Inland Revenue. If your employer is deducting but not passing the money on, let Inland Revenue know so it can investigate.
• Inland Revenue chases the employer, not you. The debt is the employer's. You are not expected to make up the difference.
• Interest and penalties may apply to the employer on top of the unpaid amount, which is part of how the rules encourage prompt payment ⁸.
• Recovered contributions are passed on to your scheme in the normal way once collected, so they end up in your account where they should have been.

It is worth keeping your own records throughout, because they make any investigation faster and clearer.

Can you claim back the lost employer match and returns?

The unpaid deductions and the compulsory employer contribution are recoverable as a debt that Inland Revenue can pursue from the employer ⁸, so the contributions themselves are not simply lost. Once collected, they flow through to your KiwiSaver account.

The investment returns you might have earned in the meantime are less clear-cut. Money that should have been invested months ago was not in the market during that time, so there can be a real opportunity cost. How any shortfall on lost earnings is treated depends on the specifics, and it is not something a general guide can promise an answer to. If a large amount was unpaid for a long period, it is worth getting advice on your options.

There is one knock-on effect worth flagging. The annual government contribution depends on your own personal contributions reaching at least $1,042.86 in the year to qualify for the full $521.43 (for the year 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025) ⁴. If your deductions did not reach Inland Revenue in time, your recorded personal contributions for the year could fall short, which can affect your government contribution. If you are near the threshold, a voluntary top-up before 30 June can protect it. We cover the timing in our guide to the government contribution top-up deadline.

When to get advice and document everything

Most KiwiSaver gaps are timing, not theft, and resolve themselves or with a quick word to payroll. But a few situations are worth taking seriously and documenting carefully:

• Deductions coming off your pay for several months with nothing showing in myIR.
• An employer who is unresponsive or disputes that contributions are owed.
• A large unpaid amount, or one stretching back a long way, where lost returns and your government contribution could be affected.
• Uncertainty about whether your contribution rate, IRD number or enrolment are set up correctly across your jobs.

Keep your payslips, your myIR records, and any emails. That paper trail is what turns "I think something is wrong" into a clear case Inland Revenue or an adviser can act on. For more on the common pitfalls that catch people out, see our guide to common KiwiSaver mistakes, and if you are weighing up whether to get a second opinion, our piece on when to see a financial adviser may help.

Frequently asked questions

How long should I wait before worrying my KiwiSaver isn't being paid?

Allow around 4-6 weeks from when a deduction comes off your pay to it appearing in your provider account, as there is a normal processing delay at each step ⁶. Check myIR in the meantime: if Inland Revenue has received the contributions, the system is working and you are just waiting on your provider. If nothing shows in myIR several weeks after the deduction, that is the point to query it ⁵.

Where do I check what my employer has actually paid?

Your myIR account shows the KiwiSaver contributions Inland Revenue has received and is holding against your IRD number ⁵. Your payslip shows only what was deducted from your pay; your provider shows only what has been credited and invested. myIR is the place to confirm the money has genuinely been passed on.

Does the employer contribution come out of my pay?

No. The compulsory employer contribution, a minimum of 3% of your gross salary or wages, is paid on top of your pay, not deducted from it ²⁷. So you cannot see it by looking at your take-home pay. The amount credited will be a little lower than 3% because ESCT is deducted from it first.

What can I do if my employer still won't pay?

Raise it directly with payroll first, in writing, with your payslips and myIR records to hand. If that does not resolve it, you can report the shortfall to Inland Revenue, which can pursue the unpaid amounts from the employer as a debt and apply interest and penalties ⁸. The debt is the employer's, not yours.

Will I lose my government contribution if my employer was late?

Possibly, if the delay means your recorded personal contributions for the year fall below $1,042.86, the amount needed for the full $521.43 government contribution for the year to 30 June 2025 ⁴. If you are near the threshold, a voluntary top-up before 30 June can protect it. Check your figures rather than assume.

Can I get back the returns I missed while contributions were unpaid?

The unpaid contributions themselves are recoverable as a debt Inland Revenue can pursue ⁸, so they should reach your account once collected. Lost investment returns are harder to claim and depend on the specifics. If a large amount was unpaid for a long time, it is worth getting advice on your options.

This article is general information only and is not personalised financial advice. It does not take into account your particular financial situation, goals or needs. Before acting, consider whether it's right for you and seek advice tailored to your circumstances. KiwiSaver is a long-term savings scheme. Government contributions, contribution rates, withdrawal rules and tax settings are set by the Government and can change; figures are correct as at 2 June 2025, so check current rules at ird.govt.nz, kiwisaver.govt.nz and sorted.org.nz. Craig Smith Business Services Ltd (FSP712931), trading as Smiths Financial, holds a Class 2 licence issued by the Financial Markets Authority and is a member of the Financial Dispute Resolution Service (FDRS). Written by Henry Smith, Financial Adviser; reviewed by Craig Smith, Principal Adviser. Last reviewed 2 June 2025.