Tax-free public transport arrives in Wellington region
Metlink has partnered with Extraordinary in making tax-free public transport available across the Wellington region, giving employees a new way to save on their daily commute.
Extraordinary is a payroll-based scheme that allows employees to pay for the bus, train, or ferry using their pre-tax salary, saving around 30% every time they travel. Passengers can also tag on and off the bus or train using an Extraordinary card, just like a contactless bank card.
Greater Wellington Chair of the Public Transport Committee Ros Connelly says anything that makes travel more affordable is a good idea.
Extraordinary creates another opportunity for people to save money using public transport,
“We encourage employees to ask their workplace to enable Extraordinary Pay as a staff benefit. By using Extraordinary you save around 30% on travel, and we hope more people will choose the ease and practicality of public transport over the cost and hassle of finding a car park.”
Extraordinary is the only Inland Revenue-approved pre-tax public transport platform in New Zealand. The pre-tax benefit is backed by a binding Inland Revenue ruling in 2025 (BR Prd 25/03) allowing employees to fund public transport from pre-tax income through salary sacrifice, saving upwards of $900 every year.
Extraordinary Chief Executive Steven Zinsli says Extraordinary will make a real difference in people’s day-to-day life.
"Nine hundred dollars. That's a month of groceries, a few power bills, a school uniform – it's sitting there for your employees right now. Don't walk past it," says Zinsli.
"Pre-tax public transport isn't a perk, it's a pay rise your employees didn't know they already had. It’s largely cost-neutral for employers, there's no reason not to offer it.”
Several Wellington-based organisations have already adopted Extraordinary, including Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University of Wellington, Kiwibank, Greater Wellington, and Hutt City Council.
Employees can ask their employer to consider joining Extraordinary to make public transport more affordable and save on personal fuel costs.