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Week to 25 Sep 2026 · per litre

Fuel taxes and levies

Of the 338.3c board price of a litre of 91 this week, 133.3c was tax, levies and GST. Diesel paid 55.0c at the pump, with its road tax collected through RUC.

Excise 70.024cACC levy 6.00cETS 12.4cGST 15%
Tax and levies per litre, week to 25 September 2026GATEPOSTc/LTAX 91133.3DIESEL55.0SHARE39%All tax per litre · MBIE · 25 Sep 2026
Rates: NZ Customs excise duty table (Customs and Excise Act 2018, Sch. 3); ACC, levies for vehicle owners; NZ Customs notice, 30 June 2026. Per-litre amounts: MBIE Weekly fuel price monitoring, week to 25 September 2026 (provisional), read via Figure.NZ.

The rates

Taxes and levies per litre, incl. GST where stated
Tax or levy91, c/LDiesel, c/LSource
Fuel excise duty (NLTF)70.024c0.000cNZ Customs excise duty table (Customs and Excise Act 2018, Sch. 3)
ACC motor vehicle levy6.000c–ACC, levies for vehicle owners
Local authority fuel tax0.660c0.330cAuckland Transport, local authority fuel tax
Fuel monitoring levy (PEFML)0.570c0.570cNZ Customs notice, 30 June 2026
Emissions Trading Scheme (cost in the price)12.4c13.9cMBIE estimate, this week
GST (15% of everything above)43.6c40.2cInland Revenue

How a litre is taxed

Petrol pays fuel excise duty of 70.024c a litre, which goes to the National Land Transport Fund and pays for roads and public transport. On top come the ACC motor vehicle levy of 6.00c a litre, which funds injury cover for road crashes, and the petroleum or engine fuel monitoring levy of 0.57c and a local authority fuel tax of 0.66c. MBIE's tax line for 91 this week adds those to 77.2c.

The Emissions Trading Scheme is not a tax line on the docket, but fuel importers must surrender carbon units for the fuel they sell, and the cost is passed on. MBIE estimates it at 12.4c a litre for 91 and 13.9c for diesel this week. GST at 15% is charged on the whole lot, excise included, which is why a one-cent change in excise moves the pump by 1.15 cents.

Diesel is the exception: no excise, just 0.9c of levies at the pump. Diesel vehicles pay road user charges by distance instead.

The docket for 91 and diesel

Regular 91 · week to 25 Sep 2026

Import cost183.2c
Importer margin18.1c
Excise and levies77.2c
ETS carbon cost12.4c
GST at 15%43.6c
Pump price after discounts334.5c
Import costImporter marginExcise and leviesETS carbon costGST at 15%
MBIE · 25 Sep 2026

Diesel · week to 25 Sep 2026

Import cost218.4c
Importer margin34.7c
Levies (no excise)0.9c
ETS carbon cost13.9c
GST at 15%40.2c
Pump price after discounts308.1c
Import costImporter marginLeviesETS carbon costGST at 15%
MBIE · 25 Sep 2026

Twenty-two years of the tax line

The 91 tax line since 200420c40c60c80c20082012201620202024
91 excise and levies91 ETS
Cents a litre, excluding GST. MBIE Weekly fuel price monitoring, week to 25 September 2026 (provisional), read via Figure.NZ.

When the tax line moved

MBIE's file shows each change to excise and levies in the week it reached the pump. The most recent ones: 10 July 2020, 79.7c to 80.7c (+1.0c); 18 March 2022, 80.6c to 59.2c (−21.4c); 25 March 2022, 59.2c to 55.6c (−3.6c); 30 June 2023, 55.7c to 62.9c (+7.2c); 7 July 2023, 62.9c to 80.8c (+17.9c); 5 July 2024, 80.8c to 77.4c (−3.4c).

The big step down and back up in 2022 and 2023 is the temporary 25-cent cut in excise and road user charges introduced after Russia's invasion of Ukraine; it is listed with its legal dates in the calendar below.

Changes, past and announced

  1. Auckland regional fuel tax starts at 10c a litre plus GST on petrol and diesel sold in Auckland. Auckland Transport
  2. Petrol excise rises to 70.024c a litre and light-vehicle RUC to $76 per 1,000 km, the rates still in force. NZ Customs
  3. Temporary 25c cut in petrol excise, to 45.024c a litre, after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. NZ Customs
  4. Road user charges cut by 36% across all rates as the matching relief for diesel and heavy vehicles. NZTA Waka Kotahi
  5. Relief ends: petrol excise returns to 70.024c a litre and RUC to standard rates. NZ Customs
  6. Light electric vehicles start paying RUC at $76 per 1,000 km; light plug-in hybrids at $38. NZTA Waka Kotahi
  7. Auckland regional fuel tax ends; MBIE's tax line for 91 drops by about 3.4c the next week. Auckland Transport
  8. Minimum fuel stockholding obligation starts: importers must hold 28 days of petrol, 24 of jet fuel and 21 of diesel. MBIE
  9. Fuel crisis package: the In-Work Tax Credit rises by $50 a week from 7 April 2026, until 31 March 2027 or until 91 stays under $3 a litre for four weeks. No cut to excise or RUC. Inland Revenue
  10. The fuel monitoring levy (PEFML) falls from 0.69c to 0.57c a litre. NZ Customs
  11. The Government cancels the 12c excise rise planned for January 2027 and announces 5c steps from 2028 instead, with matching RUC increases. Beehive release
  12. The RUC exemption for heavy electric vehicles is due to end. Ministry of Transport OIA response
  13. Announced: petrol excise up 5c a litre with an equivalent RUC rise, the first of the new 5c steps. Not yet legislated. Beehive release, 31 August 2026
  14. Announced: a second 5c excise step with matching RUC, then further 5c steps each January and July in 2029. Not yet legislated. Beehive release, 31 August 2026

Straight answers

What share of a litre of 91 goes to tax in NZ?

133.3c of a 338.3c litre of 91 in the week to 25 September 2026: excise and levies 77.2c, ETS 12.4c and GST 43.6c.

Is there a regional fuel tax in Auckland?

Not any more. Auckland's regional fuel tax of 10c a litre plus GST ran from 1 July 2018 and ended on 30 June 2024, after Parliament repealed the regional fuel tax law.

Does diesel pay fuel excise?

No. Diesel pays 0.9c a litre of levies at the pump; diesel vehicles pay road user charges instead.