Second job tax code calculator: SB, S, SH, ST or SA
Your second job's tax code comes from what both jobs pay together in a year: SB up to $15,600, S to $53,500, SH to $78,100, ST to $180,000 and SA above that. Add SL if you have a student loan. The calculator picks the code and shows what every code would withhold against the tax the second job really adds.
Worked out for the example. Change the boxes to make it yours.
| Main job a year (tax code M) | $60,000 |
|---|---|
| Second job a year | $13,000 ($25.00 x 10 hours x 52) |
| Total from both jobs | $73,000 |
| Income tax due on the total | $14,121 |
| Less what M takes from the main job | $10,221 |
| Tax the second job adds | $3,900 |
| SB (10.5%) | $1,365, $2,535 short, a bill after 31 March |
| S (17.5%) | $2,275, $1,625 short, a bill after 31 March |
| SH (30%): your code | $3,900, the right amount |
| ST (33%) | $4,290, $390 too much, refunded after 31 March |
| SA (39%) | $5,070, $1,170 too much, refunded after 31 March |
| ACC earners' levy on the second job (1.75%) | $228 |
| Second job take-home a week, on SH | $170.63 |
- Your total of $73,000 is in the $53,501 to $78,100 band, so SH deducts 30% of every dollar from the second job, plus the ACC earners' levy.
- Income tax at the 2026/27 rates, worked on the year. The independent earner tax credit and any other income are left out; KiwiSaver comes out of your pay on top if you are a member.
Your Career, on the Career and Timesheets plan with a 7-day free trial. Your account adds the job, its tax code and its pay, after asking, and checks the code again when either job's pay changes.
How the code is chosen
Your main job's M code taxes that job as if it were all you earn, so it uses the lowest rates first. A second job's pay sits on top, in a higher band, and its secondary code deducts tax at that band's flat rate. Inland Revenue sets the code by your estimated total income for the year from all sources: SB (10.5%) up to $15,600, S (17.5%) from $15,601 to $53,500, SH (30%) from $53,501 to $78,100, ST (33%) from $78,101 to $180,000 and SA (39%) above $180,000. The ACC earners' levy of 1.75% is deducted on top of every code. Our article on secondary tax with two jobs walks through a full example, and the tax code glossary entry lists every code.
How the refund or bill is worked out
The calculator works out the income tax on both jobs together at the 2026/27 rates, then takes off what the M code deducts from the main job on its own. What is left is the tax the second job really adds. Each secondary code withholds its flat rate from every dollar of the second job, and the difference between the two is what Inland Revenue squares up after 31 March: a refund if the code took too much, a bill if it took too little. Using M on both jobs, or a code from a band below your total, is the usual cause of a bill.
When a tailored tax code fits better
A secondary code is exact only when the whole of the second job's pay falls in one band. When your main job is in a lower band and the second job carries the total over a threshold, the right code still takes too much from the part below it. A tailored tax code from Inland Revenue sets a rate that matches your situation, applied for in myIR or on form IR23BS, and it has to be applied for again each tax year. The calculator says when the gap is worth asking about and shows the rate that would take exactly the right amount.
Student loans and what is left out
With a student loan, add SL to the code. The repayment threshold of $24,128 is used by your main job, so a secondary code with SL repays 12% of every dollar of the second job. If your main job pays under the threshold, Inland Revenue's student loan special deduction rate can lower that. The calculator leaves out the independent earner tax credit, KiwiSaver and income other than the two jobs, and works on the year, so a few dollars of difference from pay-period rounding is normal. If an employer has no tax code declaration (IR330) from you, it must deduct tax at the 45% non-declaration rate.
Questions
What tax code do I use for a second job in NZ?
A secondary code chosen by your expected total income from all jobs for the year: SB up to $15,600, S from $15,601 to $53,500, SH from $53,501 to $78,100, ST from $78,101 to $180,000 and SA above $180,000. Your main job stays on M.
Why is my second job taxed so much?
A secondary code taxes every dollar at the band your total income reaches, because your main job has already used the lower bands. If the code matches your total, the tax is what you would owe anyway. If it is too high for your situation, a tailored tax code can lower it.
Can I use M on both jobs?
No. M on two jobs uses the low bands twice, which usually means a tax bill after 31 March, and Inland Revenue can ask your employer to change the code.
How much student loan comes out of a second job?
On a secondary code with SL, 12% of every dollar, because the $24,128 threshold is already used by your main job. If your main job pays under the threshold, you can apply for a special deduction rate.
What is a tailored tax code?
A rate Inland Revenue sets for you when the standard codes would leave a large refund or bill, for example when two jobs straddle a tax band. You apply in myIR or on form IR23BS, and it lasts until 31 March.
What happens when I save the second job?
Your account adds the second job, its tax code and its pay to Your Career, after asking. Your Career is on the Career and Timesheets plan, with a 7-day free trial, and checks the code again whenever the pay in either job changes.
Sources
- Inland Revenue: tax codes for individuals (secondary tax codes and rates).
- Inland Revenue: secondary tax codes.
- Inland Revenue: apply for a tailored tax code.
- Inland Revenue: repaying my student loan when I earn salary or wages.
- Inland Revenue: tax code declaration IR330.
More free tools: see all the calculators.