The Government upgraded Cyclone Gabrielle from a large-scale adverse event to an emergency event on 20 February 2023. Extra support is available for families, businesses and farmers.
These regions and districts were identified as affected in the declaration:
- Northland
- Auckland
- Waikato
- Bay of Plenty
- Gisborne
- Hawke’s Bay
- Tararua district
There was also localised flooding and damage across other regions and districts.
Contacting us
There are 2 ways you can contact us.
- use myIR and include the key word ‘cyclone’ so we can prioritise you
- call on our emergency helpline – 0800 473 566.
Help for you, your family or your business
If you were affected by Cyclone Gabrielle you may be able to the get extra support we are offering for all January to February weather events, in addition to what we usually offer for adverse events.
Support for all January to February 2023 weather events
Tax relief for adverse and emergency events
Penalties and interest
If you let us know as soon as you reasonably can that you’ve been affected by Cyclone Gabrielle, we can then remit any late filing and payment penalties, and some interest. You’ll need to ask us to do this and have paid the core tax as soon as you reasonably can.
For Cyclone Gabrielle we can remove interest charged up to 30 June 2023 if you’re in the Northland, Auckland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Gisborne or Hawke’s Bay regions, or the Tararua district.
Help for farmers and growers
You may be able to get help through the income equalisation scheme if your income is affected by Cyclone Gabrielle.
Income equalisation scheme – late deposits
You can make late deposits for the 2022 income year up to 30 June 2023.
Income equalisation scheme – early refunds
You can apply for the early refund of a deposit. Normally, income equalisation deposits aren’t available for refund until 12 months after they have been made.
Your application for an early refund must be in writing. It may take approximately 5 days to process.
The refund will be income in the year you make the application, unless you apply it to the previous income year.
Grants available following Cyclone Gabrielle
The following grants and subsidies were available to businesses and other organisations following Cyclone Gabrielle.
Grants from the Ministry of Primary Industries
These grants were offered by the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI).
- Farmer and grower recovery grant - this grant was for urgent repair work
- Cyclone-Gabrielle rural sector funding - a grant for sector and regional groups to help with immediate recovery efforts
Check the MPI website to see if these grants apply to your business.
Cyclone Gabrielle recovery: advice and support | Ministry of Primary Industries
Both grants are for deductible expenditure or depreciable property, so are not taxable.
Your business cannot:
- claim deductions for the expenses paid for by the payment
- claim the full amount of depreciation on any depreciable property funded by the grants.
You need to calculate depreciation on the cost of the asset less the value of the grant.
If your business is GST registered or liable to be registered, and the payment is for use in your taxable activity, the payment is liable to GST. This means it should be included in your GST return.
Cyclone business recovery grant (MBIE)
This grant was made by MBIE to help business keep operating while maintaining cashflow. It was paid by the following delivery partners.
- Auckland Business Chamber
- Hawke's Bay Chamber of Commerce
- Masterton District Council
- Northland Inc
- Tararua District Council
- Thames Coromandel District Council
- Toi Economic Development Agency
- Trust Tairawhiti
This grant is an income subsidy and is taxable to your business. If you use the grant to pay any expenses, your business can still claim a deduction for those expenses.
If your business is GST registered or is liable to be registered, and the payment is for use in your taxable activity, the payment is liable to GST. This means it should be included in your GST return.
We recommend you get advice from the grant provider or your tax advisor, as the contractual arrangements can change the GST treatment of these payments.
Grants from non-government entity, including relief payments from mayoral relief funds
Your business might have received a non-government grant to help you following Cyclone Gabrielle. For example, a grant from another business to help your repair fencing or relief payments from a mayoral relief fund.
In general, grants are taxable to your business if they were provided as an income subsidy, for cashflow or to pay for deductible expenses. Deductions are still available for expenses you incur.
Grants received for depreciable property are not usually taxable. A depreciation loss might be available.
For more information about your tax responsibilities if you’ve received a government or non-government grant or subsidy, see this page.