The tax department is having a company linked to the operations of Destiny Church liquidated and has applied to have another of the church’s trusts shut down.

New Zealand Gazette filings show the Inland Revenue Department filed an application to have the registered company Te Hahi O Nga Matamua liquidated on August 19. The application was heard and approved at the High Court at Auckland on November 7 and the company is now in liquidation.

Its sole shareholder is Destiny Church NZ Trust and its sole director is Jennifer Marshall, assistant to controversial church leader Brian Tamaki.

On September 25, IRD lodged an application to liquidate Whakamana International Trust, which in August changed its name from Destiny International Trust. Marshall signed off on the name change.

The application for liquidation is to be heard by the High Court at Auckland in December.

Based on trust register filings, it appears that Whakamana International Trust’s predecessor by name, Destiny International Trust, and Te Hahi o Ngā Matamua Holdings, have been removed from the charity register at least twice, in 2017 and 2022.

Both have been re-registered after each instance, despite widespread calls for the church and its related entities to be struck off for good.

An opinion piece published in February by Dr Emmy Rākete, a lecturer in social sciences in the University of Auckland’s Faculty of Arts and Education, says the Government should stand up to Destiny Church, which “too often uses the fear of violence to drive queer people out of public life”.

“First, we must pressure the Government to adopt lawfare against Destiny Church’s organisation. Destiny Church-affiliated charities must be removed from the charities register, ending the tax-exempt status that supports the organisation’s operations.”

Susan Barker, of Susan Barker Charities Law, says another type of tax IRD might chase trusts for, aside from the usual PAYE levies, is deregistration tax.

“Section HR 12 [of the Income Tax Act 2007) has become a reasonably complicated tax but, broadly, a deregistered charity must divest itself of all its assets within 12 months or pay tax on the market value of the assets that remain.

“It has been catching charities out badly, particularly those that own land that might have increased significantly in value since it was first purchased.”

Barkers describes this section of the act as a “very blunt instrument”.

Responding to Newsroom’s questions over the phone, Marshall says the two entities haven’t been in operation for years and that all taxes “would have been paid”.

In a following statement sent by email, she says: “Both Whakamana International Trust and Te Hāhi o Ngā Matamua Holdings Limited ceased to operate as Destiny Church entities in February 2022 when their registrations with Charities Services ended.

“These old entities have had no connection to Destiny Church or its ongoing charitable operations since that time. No reference should be made to the Church in relation to these entities. The current administrative steps are simply part of their wind-up.”

Inland Revenue customer segment leader, Tony Morris, says starting a liquidation process is not something the department does lightly, as it can effectively spell the end for the company.

“A decision to start the liquidation process is often made against a background of non-payment of tax, failure to honour agreed arrangements and non-engagement.

“To start the liquidation process we will issue a statutory demand, requiring payment of a debt. Before doing this in any case we consider a range of circumstances. Factors supporting liquidation include where the company:

“Continues to trade while insolvent and is being run in a way that presents a risk to the Commissioner and other creditors;
continues to trade while not meeting its current tax obligations, and negotiations with the company to resolve the debt have failed;
has applied for financial relief and we have declined that;
has been charged shortfall penalties for evasion or taking an abusive tax position – these penalties are unable to be written off by law, unless an order for liquidation is made;
has assets, including an overdrawn shareholder account, that the liquidator may be able to sell to repay the debt; and
appears to have dissipated assets in an effort to avoid paying its debts/creditors.”

The church, led by its ‘Apostle’ and founder Bishop Brian Tamaki, has around 11 branches, which are attended by a predominantly Māori and Pasifika congregation.

Most recent available consolidated financial statements for the Destiny International Trust (now Whakamana) and the entities it controls, including Te Hahi o nga Matamua Holdings Limited, are from the year ending March 31, 2019.

An independent auditor’s report to trust beneficiaries from Grant Thornton says: “We draw attention to Note 16 in the consolidated financial statements, which indicates that the Group incurred a deficit of $58,540 for the year ended 31 March 2019 and, as of that date, the Group’s current liabilities exceeded its current assets by $177,494.

“As stated in Note 16, these events or conditions, along with other matters as set forth in Note 16, indicate a material uncertainty exists that may cast significant doubt on the Group’s ability to continue as a going concern.”

Financial statements showed the church had property worth $4.3 million.

The church has been mired in controversy over the years, with most recent headlines relating to a violent church-linked protest at an Auckland Pride storytime event.

Authorities investigated allegations of assault after a group of around 50 people entered the Te Atatū Community Centre in February this year and refused to leave. Seven people have since been charged.

Journalist John Campbell’s second investigative series into the church has this year highlighted fear from members, far-right prejudices and how it has amassed money and power. (Newsroom)

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