KiwiSaver contributions just went up: what 3.5% + 3.5% actually means for your pay

KiwiSaver contribution rates changed on 1 April 2026. If you're an employee in KiwiSaver, the minimum deducted from your pay and the minimum your employer puts in both rose from 3% to 3.5% each. If your payslip looks different since April, that's why. This covers the payroll rate change only. Self-employed members and voluntary lump-sum contributions run under different rules.

• Before 1 April 2026: 3% from you plus 3% from your employer, 6% combined.
• From 1 April 2026: 3.5% from you plus 3.5% from your employer, 7% combined.
• Employee choices stay 3.5%, 4%, 6%, 8% or 10% of gross pay (default 3.5% if you don't pick a higher rate).
• From 1 April 2028: rising again to 4% plus 4%, 8% combined. Already legislated, not a new decision still to come.
• On $60,000 a year: $3,600 combined before, $4,200 combined from April 2026.
• On $90,000 a year: $5,400 combined before, $6,300 combined from April 2026.

The employer share is the compulsory employer contribution. It's paid in addition to your salary or wages for most employees, not taken out of them. If your employer already contributes more than the minimum, under an existing agreement for example, they don't need to add anything further as long as they're still meeting or exceeding the 3.5% floor. Employer contributions also attract employer superannuation contribution tax (ESCT), which your employer handles through payroll.

Separately, eligible members get a government contribution: 25 cents for every dollar you personally put in, up to $260.72 a year, not available once your taxable income passes $180,000. Because most members reach that cap well before their 3.5% contributions do for a full year, this rate change doesn't move the government contribution. The two run independently of each other. The full government contribution needs at least $1,042.86 of your own money in the 1 July to 30 June year; employer amounts do not count toward that threshold.

Your current rate shows as a percentage next to the KiwiSaver deduction on your payslip. Your own and your employer's contribution totals for the year sit in myIR under KiwiSaver. For most employees the new rate applies automatically, nothing to fill in, just a slightly larger deduction from 1 April 2026, matched by a slightly larger employer contribution alongside it. Figures above are checked against Inland Revenue's KiwiSaver changes and employee contribution pages (ird.govt.nz), current as at 7 October 2026.

Curious what today's contribution levels mean for your own returns? Have a look at how KiwiSaver funds have actually performed, run your numbers through the KiwiSaver Health Check, or book a KiwiSaver review with Kyle. An adviser can put the numbers in context against your own balance and goals.