or not the work involved is minor, IRD will make an overall assessment of your case, taking into account the time, effort and cost involved, measured both in absolute terms and relative to the nature and value of the land. The IRD has given the following example of a "minor" subdivision. Half a hectare is subdivided off a 50-hectare property, and is sold for $50,000. The costs are $4,700 for surveying, $550 for an entrance way, and $1,000 for legal fees. The IRD says, however, that this is a borderline case, and additional work such as fencing or removing gorse could make it more than minor. If the first step in subdividing is taken more than 10 years after you acquired the land, you will have to pay income tax on the profits if subdividing the land involved significant spending on: any other work, service or amenity that's customarily provided in major projects involving the development of land for industrial, commercial or residential purposes Will I have to pay GST on the profits? You may have to pay GST if the IRD can establish that your subdivision is a "taxable activity" for GST purposes (see How to work out whether you must register for GST). If you merely do a one-off subdivision of your land into two lots, with no development work, and you continue to live on one lot and sell the other lot, this won't be a taxable activity and therefore you won't be liable for GST. In