How to become a payroll manager
Official title: Payroll manager
Also called: Finance and payroll manager, Accounts payroll manager, Manager renumeration, Payroll and benefits manager, Payroll team leader, Payroll superviser
Payroll managers make sure payroll processes are completed. They manage payroll departments and identify and make changes.
Main tasks
- Manage payroll teams and systems for organisations
- Calculate pay, tax and deductions
- Approve and sign off staff pay
- Arrange for staff to be paid
- Check staff hours worked and leave taken
- Manage compensation and benefits packages
- Keep staff records up to date
- Make sure organisations comply with laws
How to become one
You need experience to become a payroll manager and a qualification may be useful. You usually need NCEA Level 3 to do the study or training for this job. Required: experience with payroll systems; experience in similar work. Other requirements: a relevant tertiary qualification in business and management, accounting or similar area; to pass a police check; to pass a background check.
Ways in
- Certificates and diplomas: Advanced certificates and diplomas in accounting. TEC links this job to study in accountancy. Qualifications: Dip in Commerce, NZ Dip in Business, Cert in Business Studies, Pathway Cert for MPA Entry. Usually 1 year. Graduates of these qualifications earn a median $53,000 a year one year after study and $60,000 five years after; 54% are employed one year after (TEC, from Stats NZ IDI data).; Advanced certificates and diplomas in management and business studies. TEC links this job to study in business and management. Qualifications: NZ Dip in Business, Dip in Business Studies, Cert in Business Studies, Dip in Business, Dip in Commerce. Usually 1 year. Graduates of these qualifications earn a median $52,000 a year one year after study and $61,000 five years after; 61% are employed one year after (TEC, from Stats NZ IDI data).
Pay · Past change
- Most common pay: $88,000 to $136,000 a year (median $107,000), a TEC estimate before tax.
- Lower: $71,000 a year · Upper: $172,000 a year
- TEC's pay figures are estimates only. TEC says they must not be used to set pay, in pay negotiations or in visa applications.
- Change in the number of people doing this job between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses: Increase (TEC). This is past change, not a forecast.
Who does this work
- About 600 people did this job at the 2023 Census (TEC).
Related jobs
- Payroll consultant
- Accountant and auditor
- Finance analyst
- Credit analyst
- Investment analyst
- Financial risk specialist
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Questions people ask
How do I become a payroll manager?
You need experience to become a payroll manager and a qualification may be useful. You usually need NCEA Level 3 to do the study or training for this job. Required: experience with payroll systems; experience in similar work. Other requirements: a relevant tertiary qualification in business and management, accounting or similar area; to pass a police check; to pass a background check.
How much does a payroll manager earn in New Zealand?
The Tertiary Education Commission estimates median pay at $107,000 a year, before tax. Most common pay is $88,000 to $136,000 a year.
Has the number of people working as a payroll manager grown in New Zealand?
It has grown: TEC records an increase in the number of people doing this job between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses. This is past change, not a forecast.
Sources
- Tertiary Education Commission (Tahatu Career Navigator): Tahatu career ideas: descriptions, tasks, pay estimates, people employed, employment change 2018 to 2023, entry requirements, registration, interest scores (Site scrape 2026-10 (816 career ideas, sitemap lastmod 2026-10-01)), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026
This content is sourced from the Tertiary Education Commission through the Tahatū Career Navigator website (www.tahatu.govt.nz) and used under the CC BY 4.0 licence. All or some of the information has been modified by Peernovo. TEC has not approved, endorsed or tested these modifications. TEC will not be held accountable for any errors within this content.
Qualification information from NZQA, used under CC BY 3.0 NZ.
This work is based on/includes Stats NZ's data which are licensed by Stats NZ for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence. Census data via Figure.NZ.
Includes information from O*NET OnLine by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.
Sources: Tertiary Education Commission, Tahatū Career Navigator (career ideas, pay estimates, entry requirements and study options, CC BY 4.0, modified by Peernovo); Stats NZ, 2023 Census (via Figure.NZ) and the National Occupation List (CC BY 4.0); NZQA qualification information (CC BY 3.0 NZ); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Links between career ideas and ANZSCO groups, degree fields and broad job groups are Peernovo's.
These results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.
Graduate outcomes: these results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.
Updated 4 October 2026