Almost anyone in New Zealand can ask for money. The catch is the how. Who you are decides whether you can run a raffle, whether donors get a tax credit, and what you can ask parents for.
Find yourself below. Where the answer depends on your situation, we say "usually" and link the official page.
Four words worth knowing
- Society: for gambling law, "an association of persons established and conducted entirely for purposes other than commercial purposes". Incorporated or not, a club, PTA or charity usually counts; a business doesn't.
- Authorised purpose: what a society's raffle profits must go to. Usually a charitable or community purpose.
- Donee organisation: a group IRD has approved so that gifts to it earn the giver a tax benefit.
- Tax credit versus deduction: a person who gives to a donee organisation can claim back a third of the gift as a tax credit. A company or Māori authority deducts the gift from its income instead.
Find your situation
- A person raising money for yourself or your family (medical costs, a trip, sport)
- An informal group, like a parents' group with no legal structure
- An incorporated society or club
- A registered charity
- A state or state-integrated school (and its PTA)
- A kindergarten
- A private daycare or other ECE business
- A church
- A business raising money, for a cause or for itself
- Collecting names and phone numbers along the way
A person raising money for yourself or your family
Usually allowed
- Asking friends, family and the public for donations, in person or online.
- A personal Givealittle page.
- Selling things, a Fill My Jersey or a family and friends sponsorship letter.
Limits
- Personal-benefit raffles aren't permitted.
- Donors get no tax credit.
Givealittle is open to individuals and charges a 5% fee (including GST), taken at payout. Card donors add 1.5%. Nothing is paid out until the receiver verifies their identity with an NZ driver licence or passport, so do it on day one. Boosted, the other big NZ platform, is for arts projects only.
On raffles, DIA says the money must benefit the community, not an individual or business. Its example of what's not allowed: sending your child to summer camp. Anyone, including a person, can run a Class 1 raffle, with prizes and total ticket value each $500 or less. But when an individual runs it, all the profit must go back as prizes, so nothing is left for you. A society is different: welfare help for people in need can be a charitable purpose for its raffle money, but DIA advises against grants to individuals, so check with DIA before a society raffle that helps one person or family.
Tax. IRD gives donation tax credits only for genuine gifts to approved donee organisations, never for donations that directly benefit the giver's own family. What about you, the receiver? IRD's view in IS 23/11 is that a gift usually isn't taxable income. It can be when linked to a job, a business or a voluntary activity, or when gifts come regularly enough to live on. A one-off appeal for treatment or a trip usually isn't taxable, but check with IRD or an accountant if unsure. NZ has had no gift duty since 1 October 2011.
Keep clear records. Use a separate bank account, keep receipts, and say up front where any surplus goes.
A club can sometimes help, through an athlete-support policy; a few funders also offer grants to individuals. But DIA tells societies that grants to individuals should be avoided from gambling money, so a raffle for one player's trip is unlikely to fit; one for a shared club travel fund is firmer ground. See umbrella organisations.
An informal group
Usually allowed
- Class 1 and Class 2 raffles for a community purpose.
- Selling food to fundraise up to 20 times a calendar year without Food Act registration.
- Collecting donations.
Limits
- Most big grants need a legal entity.
Check
- Who holds the money, and who's liable if something goes wrong.
DIA says a Class 2 raffle can be run by a society, "either a corporate society or unincorporated". That covers prizes up to $5,000 and total ticket value up to $25,000, with no licence. The fundraising food exemption applies too, though the food must still be safe and suitable.
Don't assume donations to your group qualify for a tax credit. A group has to qualify for IRD donee status itself, and a group whose purposes are all charitable usually has to register as a charity first. Funders such as the Lottery Grants Board want a legal entity.
An incorporated society or club
Usually allowed
- Class 1 and 2 raffles, and Class 3 (prizes over $5,000) with a DIA licence.
- Most community grants.
- Selling sponsorship.
Limits
- Many clubs aren't donee organisations, so check before promising a tax credit.
Check
- That your society re-registered.
Every society registered under the old 1908 Act had to re-register under the Incorporated Societies Act 2022 by 5 April 2026. Societies that didn't were removed from the register. If yours was, check its restoration options and IRD's requirements before carrying on: IRD says you may be able to apply to restore it before 6 April 2032. If it can't be restored, it's no longer a legal entity, members could be personally liable, and IRD says a new IRD number is needed to keep operating.
Raffle profits must go to authorised purposes. For sport, that means amateur sport.
A registered charity
Usually allowed
- Raffles, if you meet the Gambling Act's society, purpose and class rules (a non-commercial charity usually does).
- Tax credits for donors, once IRD grants donee status.
Ongoing duties
- File an annual return and tell Charities Services about changes.
- Make sure your fundraisers can give your registration number if asked.
Check
- Your entry on the Charities Register is current.
Charities Services says most registered charities that receive donations qualify for donee status, and IRD usually grants it automatically. Most are exempt from income tax on income related to their charitable purposes, but Charities Services says income from business activities not directly related to your purpose may still be taxable. IRD decides, so ask it (charities.queries@ird.govt.nz) if you run a shop or trading arm. You must also provide public, not private, benefit.
A state or state-integrated school
Usually allowed
- Asking for donations. Schools in the donations scheme can ask only for overnight camps.
- Charging for agreed extras outside the curriculum, like weekend sports teams or the ball.
- Fairs, raffles and sales, whether or not you're in the scheme.
Limits
- No charges for curriculum learning.
- No child is left out of a curriculum camp or trip because the family didn't pay.
- Families can't be made to buy or help with fundraising.
The Ministry's charges guidance lists what's free, what's a donation and what families pay for if they agree. Schools in the donations scheme get a per-student payment instead. Its common questions say the scheme doesn't stop fundraising "through the sale of goods and services", and that a PTA, as a separate legal entity, isn't bound by it. More in our school camp guide.
Operational funding covers day-to-day running; fundraising usually pays for extras. A genuine gift of money to a school can earn the giver a tax credit. Purchases, raffle tickets and payments that buy a benefit don't.
A kindergarten
Usually allowed
- Donations, as long as they're clearly voluntary.
- Optional charges for genuine extras, like an excursion entry fee.
- Fundraising like any community group.
Limits
- No fees for any of a child's 20 Hours ECE hours, and a donation must never be called a "fee".
Check
- Who your association is, and whether it has donee status.
Kindergartens are managed by a kindergarten association. Most describe themselves as not-for-profit charities; check yours on the Charities Register. IRD lists kindergartens among donee organisations.
Under the Ministry's 20 Hours ECE rules, donations are voluntary and unenforced. An optional charge must cover the real cost of something above the regulated standards, and can't be a condition of enrolment. If parents decline, "the only action a service or educator can take is to withhold the additional feature(s)", and the child must still get at least the regulated standard of service.
A private daycare or other ECE business
Usually allowed
- Selling things or running events, as trading income.
- Parents forming their own committee or society to fundraise.
Limits
- No Class 2 raffle, because a business isn't a society.
- Donors usually get no tax credit.
- The 20 Hours ECE donation and optional-charge rules apply here too.
A for-profit centre has commercial purposes, so it fails the society test. It can run only a Class 1 raffle, with everything going back as prizes. It also can't usually be a donee organisation.
A parents' group fundraising for the children is the common workaround. But if the new bikes become the owner's property, raffle money is a poor fit: DIA says nobody should make a direct commercial profit from an authorised purpose. Agree who owns what, or stick to sales and donations.
A church
Usually allowed
- Offerings, appeals, raffles and events, like any society.
- Tax credits for donors. IRD includes religious organisations among donee organisations.
Check
- That the church or parish is on IRD's approved donee list before you print "tax deductible".
A business
Usually allowed
- Donating to, sponsoring or partnering with a charity, school or club.
- Giving a share of sales to a cause, if you say exactly how much.
- A lawful sales promotion (a prize draw tied to a purchase).
Limits
- No Class 2 raffle, for a cause or for yourself.
Check
- That every claim about the cause is accurate and you can back it up.
"10% of today's sales go to the kindy" is a promise. The Commerce Commission says claims must not mislead and need a reasonable basis. Name the cause, give the share, and post what you handed over. Want a raffle? Let the charity run it while you donate the prizes. A cash gift to a donee organisation is usually deductible for a company.
Worked example: a business raising money for itself
A new gym runs a car wash and sausage sizzle outside its premises "to raise money for the business". That isn't banned, but it's ordinary trading, not a fundraiser.
Probably shouldn't
- Call it a fundraiser. People may assume the money goes to a cause, and the Commerce Commission says claims must not mislead.
- Rely on the fundraising food exemption. It covers food sold for charitable, benevolent, philanthropic or cultural purposes, not a business's own income.
- Forget tax. The takings are business income. If the gym is GST-registered (compulsory from $60,000 turnover), GST applies too.
- Let wash water reach the drain. Discharging it to stormwater is illegal under the RMA. The footpath may also need council permission.
- Add a raffle. A business isn't a society.
Could instead
- Hold a genuine charity day. Name the cause, say how much goes to it ("all takings from the sizzle" or "$2 a wash"), hand it over and post the receipt.
- Check the one-off event rule before selling food. MPI says selling food at a single one-off event, once in a calendar year, needs only safe and suitable food. Selling more often, or giving food away to promote the business, usually means registering. Ask your council first.
Worked example: a business running a prize draw or competition
Usually fine
- Free entry, nothing to buy. The Gambling Act defines gambling as paying or staking consideration on an outcome that depends on chance. A draw that's genuinely free to enter is usually outside it.
- "Buy and go in the draw". This is a sales promotion. It's lawful if entry costs nothing beyond the normal price and the business makes no gain beyond normal trading. The dates and how the winner is picked must be clear before it starts, and the conditions can't change midway.
- Pure skill competitions. No chance means no gambling under the Act, though fair-trading rules still apply.
Watch out
- Prizes. The banned prize list applies to promotions too: no alcohol, tobacco or firearms, and no vouchers for them.
- Online money. Taking payment online is allowed only if the promotion is run as a lottery drawn after all entries close.
- Fair Trading Act. The Commerce Commission says all conditions must be clearly stated. Prizes must be described accurately and awarded as offered, and the chances of winning can't be overstated.
- Charity draws. Charging extra to enter "for the hospice" makes it a raffle, which a business can't run beyond Class 1. Let the charity run it, with your business giving the prizes.
- Unusual entry method? Ask DIA.
Collecting names and numbers
Raffle stubs, bid sheets and sign-up forms collect personal information, and the Privacy Act applies to clubs, charities and community groups, even all-volunteer ones. In plain terms:
- Collect only what you need, and keep it secure.
- Generally use it only for the purpose you collected it for. Principle 10 allows other uses in limited cases, including when the person agrees.
- Destroy it securely once you're done, and name someone as privacy officer.
When you collect, Principle 3 says to take reasonable steps so people know:
- what you're collecting and why;
- who will receive it;
- who is collecting it and who will hold it;
- whether giving it is voluntary, and what happens if they don't;
- that they can see and correct what you hold.
One stub line can do it: "Your name and number are used by [Group] only to contact the winner, kept by our treasurer and destroyed after the draw. Optional, but we can't contact you if you win without them. Ask us to see or correct them."
Texting buyers about your next fundraiser is a new use, so get permission first. A tick box is easiest: "Tick if you're happy for us to text you about future fundraisers."
The Unsolicited Electronic Messages Act covers commercial electronic messages with a New Zealand link, such as emails or texts selling tickets. They need consent, a clear sender and a working unsubscribe, actioned within five working days. Consent can be express, inferred or deemed in limited situations, but one sale isn't enough to infer it, so a tick box is clearest. A pure donation appeal isn't automatically commercial, but treat it the same way.
If you have a privacy breach that has caused, or is likely to cause, anyone serious harm, you must tell the Privacy Commissioner and the people affected as soon as practicable. The 72 hours often quoted is the Office's guidance, not a fixed legal deadline. Its NotifyUs tool helps you decide.
Before you start
- Know which kind of group you are, and whose name is on the bank account.
- Write down what the money is for and what happens to any surplus.
- Raffle? A person can run only Class 1, with all profit returned as prizes. Class 2 needs a society, a community purpose, prizes up to $5,000 and total ticket value up to $25,000. Prizes over $5,000 need a DIA Class 3 licence. Check the banned prize list.
- Selling food? Count your occasions this calendar year, keep it safe and suitable, and check council rules.
- Promising a tax credit? Confirm you're on IRD's donee list, and receipt only genuine gifts.
- School in the donations scheme? Ask for donations only for overnight camps.
- Asking ECE parents for money? Keep donations voluntary and optional charges genuinely optional.
- Collecting contact details? Add a collection notice and a separate consent tick box.
- Keep receipts, and report back to everyone who gave.
The official rules are on our pages for individuals, raffles, donations and tax and events.