Booster KiwiSaver Annual Statement Glossary

Your KiwiSaver account details

This section shows the money that went in and out of your KiwiSaver account in the last financial year. It lists the money put in (contributions) and the money taken out (withdrawals).

Your employee contributions

What you contributed to your KiwiSaver account from your wages or salary before paying income tax – your gross pay.

You tell your employer what you want to pay into your KiwiSaver account – choose from 3%, 4% 6%, 8% or 10% of your pay. If you haven’t chosen, you pay the default rate of 3%.

Your voluntary contributions

What you chose to pay as well as, or instead of, employee contributions. You can pay money into your own KiwiSaver account or someone else's. You can contribute money once, or from time to time, or set up a direct debit for regular payments from your bank account.

Your employer contributions

What your employer contributed to your KiwiSaver account. Your employer must contribute at least 3% of your pay when you contribute to your KiwiSaver account from your pay, unless they're paying into another super scheme for you. Your employer contribution rate is based on your wages or salary before tax is taken out – your gross pay.

Note: What your employer contributes is taxed so what ends up in your account is a bit less than what they've paid.

If you're not contributing from your pay, your employer doesn't have to contribute either. However, your employer may choose to make voluntary contributions on your behalf.

Government contributions

The government contributes to your KiwiSaver account every year if you qualify. You get government contributions if you are:

• Paying into your KiwiSaver account
• 18 years or older and not eligible for a retirement withdrawal
• Living in New Zealand.

The government contributes 50c for every $1 you put in, up to $521.43 each year.

For more information please see government-contributions.

You may also get other payments from the Inland Revenue if they work out they owe you money.

Transfers from other schemes

Any money paid into your account by another KiwiSaver scheme or pension scheme.

Withdrawals

The total amount of money you've taken out of your KiwiSaver account, like the first-home withdrawal.

Portfolio Investment Entity (PIE) tax you've paid (or been credited)

PIE tax is a tax on your taxable income or loss each year. It's based on your Prescribed Investor Rate (PIR) and is the total amount of PIE tax you owe after taking any tax credits into account.

PIE tax you've paid – tax we've paid to the IRD for you.

PIE tax you've been credited – tax you've got back from the Inland Revenue (IRD) and which has been paid into your account.

We deal with these payments for you by adjusting your units in the investment fund or funds. See the end of the document for what a unit is.

Your PIR: On 31 March 2025, we used the PIR that we had for you to work out your tax. Check your tax statement to see your PIR.

Note: Your PIE tax for the financial year ending 31 March 2025 is shown on your 2025 tax statement. However, your 2025 scheme member statement shows your PIE tax for the financial year ending 31 March 2024 because it was paid from your account in April 2024 (i.e. during the financial year ended 31 March 2025).

Your investment earnings before fees and expenses

How much money you got as earnings or returns from the performance of your investment fund or funds. This could be positive or negative (a loss), depending on how your investments have done. Here, your earnings are gross, before any:

• Fees or expenses are paid out,
• Rebates are paid into your account.
  
  
  

Fees and expenses you've paid

The total fees and expenses you've paid as an individual investor. They include:

• Fees taken directly out of your account, like the:
  • monthly member fee
• withdrawal fee if you've closed your account.
  • Your share of the fees and expenses involved in the management and administration of the investment fund (fund charges).
    
    

Your total net investment earnings

How much money you got as earnings or returns from your investments after all the fees you've paid have been taken out.

Note: Your total investment earnings are not the same as taxable earnings, which are given on your tax statement.

Your taxable income (or loss), before fees and expenses

This could be positive or negative (a loss), depending on how your investment fund or funds have performed. Here it's gross, before any:

• Fees or expenses are paid out
• Rebates are paid into your account.
  
  
  

Fees and expenses (or rebates)

The total fees and expenses you've paid as an individual investor. They include:

• Fees taken directly out of your account, like the:
  
  • Monthly member fee
  • Withdrawal fees, if you've closed your account.
• Your share of indirect fees charged for the investment fund or funds, like the:
  
  • Investment management fee, which covers the costs of managing the funds’ investments.

 

Your taxable income (or loss), after fees and expenses

How much your taxable earnings add up to after all the fees and expenses you've paid have been taken out. 

Note: Taxable earnings are not the same as your total investment earnings, which are given on your member statement.

Gross tax payable on your taxable income (or creditable on your taxable loss)

The amount of PIE tax you owe before taking tax credits into account. This comes from multiplying your taxable income or loss by your PIR.

Total tax credits may include:

• Foreign withholding tax credits
  • If investment funds in which you've got units have investments outside New Zealand, you may get tax credits from the Inland Revenue (IRD) for the tax those funds have already paid. Only the tax credits used in your PIE tax calculation are shown.
• New Zealand tax credits
  • If investment funds in which you've got units have investments in New Zealand, you may get tax credits from the IRD for the tax those funds have already paid. 

For more information about PIE tax you've paid (or been credited) – see above

Investment units

When you put money into an investment fund, you buy units. A unit is your share of the investments in that fund.

If you owe money, we cancel some units so what they're worth – their value – covers what you need to pay. 

 

Different levels of fees & expenses, and taxes

There are two levels of fees & expenses, and taxes on investments. These are paid by:

• The funds you invest in – ‘investment level’. These are indirect because they are shared among all investors in the fund.
• You – ‘investor level’. These are direct because you pay them as an individual, not as one of a group of investors.