Where’s the Money Going? Call for Transparency on Government’s Use of Visitor Levy

The Taxpayers’ Union is criticising the Government for skimming up to $139 million a year from the International Visitor Levy while telling the public it’s for tourism and conservation, raising serious questions about whether the levy is being used as promised.

Taxpayers’ Union spokesperson Tory Relf said:

“No wonder the Department of Conservation wants to charge visitors extra for certain sites; the Government is siphoning off tourist tax money instead of properly funding conservation.”

“They’ve also announced a new events fund that’s smaller than the amount they’re keeping from the levy. It looks like the tourist tax has just become a general top-up for the Crown’s books, not the dedicated tourism and conservation fund people were told it would be.”

“When the Government tells the public that the IVL is for tourism and conservation but quietly diverts hundreds of millions elsewhere, it undermines trust and accountability. New Zealanders and visitors alike are entitled to expect levies collected for a specific purpose to actually be spent on that purpose.”