Selling a Business or Fleet Vehicle in NZ — GST, Depreciation & Paperwork (2026)

Who actually owns the vehicle

This sounds obvious, and it's where most business sales go wrong. The person holding the keys is very often not the person entitled to sell. Before you take a quote, check two records and make sure they agree: the registered person on the NZTA record and the owner in your fixed asset register.

That last row is more common than you'd think. Small firms around East Tamaki, Wiri and Airport Oaks often bought a ute years ago in a director's personal name, depreciated it in the company's books, and never lined the two up. Sort out which entity owns the vehicle before anything else, because it decides who signs, whose GST return the sale goes into, and whose name the notice of disposal is filed in.

GST on the sale of a business vehicle

For a GST-registered business, a vehicle used in the taxable activity is a business asset. Selling it is a taxable supply, just like selling stock. You return GST on what you receive, at 15%, which works out to 3/23 of a GST-inclusive price.

A few points catch business owners out:

• Scrap and wrecking sales count. A $1,150 offer for a dead van is still a supply of a business asset. If the price is GST-inclusive, $150 of it belongs to Inland Revenue.
• Ask whether the offer is GST inclusive or exclusive. The same headline number can be worth 15% more or less to you depending on the answer. Get the GST position in writing with the offer.
• You'll need to provide taxable supply information. Since April 2023 the old "tax invoice" rules have been replaced by taxable supply information requirements. In practice your sale record needs your GST number, the date, a description of the vehicle, the price and the GST.
• Mixed private use changes the numbers. If you only claimed part of the GST when you bought the vehicle, or you've made change-of-use adjustments since, the GST on sale isn't always a simple 3/23. That's the point to involve your accountant.
• Not registered? Then no GST. A non-registered sole trader sells the vehicle without GST, and a GST-registered buyer may be able to claim a second-hand goods input tax credit on its side.

Depreciation recovery vs loss on disposal

Every year you've owned a business vehicle you've probably claimed depreciation, which lowers its adjusted tax value (the cost less depreciation claimed, shown in your fixed asset register). When you sell, Inland Revenue compares what you actually got with that book figure.

Where a vehicle had private use, both the recovery income and the loss are generally apportioned by the business-use percentage you've used for depreciation. Selling for more than the original cost is a separate matter. The gain above cost is usually capital, but anything near that line needs an accountant's view.

A loss on disposal is one of the few good tax outcomes from a vehicle that's died. It's also why the buyer's paperwork matters. A handwritten note saying "ute taken away" is weak evidence for a deduction. A written offer and payment record from an identifiable buyer is much better.

A worked example: scrapping a work ute

A GST-registered landscaping company in Takanini has a 2012 diesel ute with a failed injector pump and a cracked chassis rail. It's been used 100% for business. Figures are illustrative only.

The point of the example: compare the GST-exclusive proceeds with the adjusted tax value, not the headline offer. Whether to repair or scrap uses the same logic as for any vehicle, which is set out in our repair or scrap guide. For what work utes actually fetch, see our page on cash for utes and 4WDs.

Finance, leases and general security agreements

Business vehicles are more likely than private cars to have someone else's interest attached, and it isn't always obvious which kind.

Vehicle-specific finance

A loan or hire purchase on the vehicle itself shows up on the PPSR against the VIN. It works exactly as it does for a private car: get a payout figure and settle from the proceeds. Our PPSR finance guide covers the steps.

Leases

Under most fleet leases, operating or finance, the leasing company owns the vehicle. You can't sell it, even if it's written off or worn out. Ring the lessor. They'll either let you buy it out and then sell, or handle the disposal themselves and settle the end-of-lease position with you.

General security agreements

Business lending often comes with a general security agreement over "all present and after-acquired property" (AllPAP). That catches company vehicles even though no specific vehicle is named. Disposing of assets in the ordinary course of business is usually allowed, but read the agreement or check with your bank before selling high-value units or a whole fleet.

Company cars and FBT

If a vehicle has been available to employees for private use, you've been paying fringe benefit tax on it. FBT is based on the days the vehicle was available for private use, so it stops from the day it no longer is. Normally that's the day you take it off the employee or hand it to the buyer.

• Record the date the vehicle was withdrawn from private use, and keep it with the sale record.
• Don't leave it parked at a staff member's home waiting for collection. A vehicle sitting there may still count as available.
• Book the pickup from your yard or depot so the handover date and the FBT end date are the same.

What to strip before collection

A work vehicle carries far more of your business than a private car does. Go through this before the truck arrives:

• Telematics and GPS trackers. Remove the unit or cancel the subscription, or you'll keep paying to track a car being crushed.
• Fuel cards, toll tags and parking accounts. Cancel the card and take the vehicle off any toll or Auckland Transport account linked to the plate.
• Tools, racking, toolboxes and canopies. Aftermarket gear is often worth more moved to your next vehicle. Tell us in advance if it's staying, because it can lift the offer.
• Signwriting and logos. You don't have to remove them for a scrap sale, but if the vehicle may go back on the road, ask about it. Nobody wants their brand on someone else's driving.
• Hazardous loads. Gas bottles, fuel cans, chemicals and sprays need to come out before we tow.
• Logbooks, keys and remotes. Hand over every key and record the odometer or hubodometer reading on the sale record.

Selling several vehicles at once

Fleet managers, contractors and rental operators across South Auckland tend to retire vehicles in batches, either at the end of a lease cycle or after a contract finishes. A batch sale is simpler to run if you set it up properly:

1. Send one list with plate, make, model, year, kilometres, condition and location for each unit.
2. Get itemised prices, not just a single lump sum. Your accountant needs a figure per asset for the depreciation calculations.
3. Agree the GST position once for the whole batch.
4. Book one collection window. We can bring a flatbed and a heavy tow for several units from the same yard.
5. File a notice of disposal for every plate, in the registered owner's name, on the day each vehicle leaves.

Running and non-running vehicles can go in the same batch. Good units are valued for resale or export and dead ones for parts and metal. The economics behind those two prices are explained in how cash for cars companies make money.

Trucks, COF and RUC

Heavier commercial vehicles add a couple of considerations:

• COF instead of WoF. Vehicles over 3,500 kg gross need a Certificate of Fitness. An expired COF doesn't stop a sale. It only stops the vehicle being driven, which is why we tow. See selling without a WoF or rego.
• Unused road user charges. Diesel utes, vans and trucks often have prepaid RUC distance left. Depending on the situation you may be able to claim some of it back, so check our rego and RUC refund guide before the vehicle goes.
• Hubodometer readings. Record the reading at handover, since your RUC records depend on it.

We buy across the commercial range, including utes, vans, light and medium trucks and 4WDs, in any condition.

Business seller's checklist

How we handle business vehicles

Here's our own process, which is also a reasonable standard to expect from any buyer. Every business quote is in writing and states the GST position. Fleet offers are itemised per vehicle. We search the PPSR before quoting and tell you about any security interest straight away. Payment goes by bank transfer to the business account, so there's a clean record for your accountant. We collect from yards, depots and job sites across Manukau, East Tamaki, Wiri, Papakura, Drury and the rest of South Auckland, usually on the same day. Our trust and credentials page lists who we are and how to verify us.

Related reading

• Selling a car with finance still owing: PPSR searches, payout figures and settlement.
• NZTA notice of disposal explained: getting each plate off the business's name.
• Claiming a rego and RUC refund: recovering prepaid licensing and road user charges.
• Cash for utes and 4WDs: what work utes are worth in 2026.
• NZ insurance write-off categories: if a fleet unit has been written off.
• 2026 price guide: what drives the offer on any vehicle.
• Frequently asked questions: payment, paperwork and pickup.

Frequently asked questions

Do I charge GST when I sell a business vehicle in NZ?

Usually yes, if you are GST-registered and the vehicle was used in your taxable activity. The sale is treated as a taxable supply, so 3/23 of the GST-inclusive sale price is output tax in your next return. That applies to scrap and wrecking sales too, not just sales of good vehicles. If GST was never claimed on the vehicle because it was bought privately or used mostly privately, the position can be different, so confirm with your accountant.

What is depreciation recovery income on a vehicle?

If you sell a vehicle for more than its adjusted tax value, the difference, up to the total depreciation you have claimed, is depreciation recovery income and is taxable. It means the asset did not lose as much value as your depreciation claims assumed, so some of that deduction is reversed.

Can I claim a loss when I scrap a work vehicle?

Generally yes. If a business vehicle is sold or scrapped for less than its adjusted tax value, the shortfall is normally deductible as a loss on disposal, apportioned where the vehicle had private use. Keep the buyer's written offer and payment record as evidence of what you received.

Who can sign to sell a company-owned car?

The vehicle is sold by the registered owner, which is the company, not an employee who drives it. A director or someone with written authority from the company should sign, and the notice of disposal should be filed in the company's name. Buyers will usually ask for ID from the signer and evidence of their authority.

Can I sell a leased fleet vehicle?

Not directly. Under most operating and finance leases the leasing company owns the vehicle and will hold a security interest on the PPSR. Talk to the lessor first: they may let you buy the vehicle out and then sell it, or they will deal with the disposal themselves.

When does FBT stop on a company car I've sold?

Fringe benefit tax is based on the days a vehicle is available to employees for private use, so it stops from the day the vehicle is no longer available, which is normally the handover date. Record that date clearly for your FBT return.

Do you buy damaged or non-running fleet vehicles?

Yes. We buy work utes, vans, trucks and company cars in any condition, including accident-damaged, high-kilometre, failed WoF or COF and non-running vehicles, and we can collect several units from the same yard in one visit.

Is the price for a business vehicle GST inclusive?

It depends on the buyer, so always ask. A GST-registered seller should agree in writing whether the price includes or excludes GST, because a GST-inclusive figure leaves you 3/23 less once you return the output tax. We state the GST position on every business quote.

This guide is general information for South Auckland business vehicle sellers, not tax, legal or accounting advice. GST apportionment, depreciation and FBT depend on your own records and circumstances. Confirm the treatment of any sale with your accountant or Inland Revenue.