Skip to main content
background pattern
Work and income | Te Hiranga Tangata
  • COVID-19 support
  • Employers
  • Providers
  • Go to MyMSD login
  • Benefits and payments homepage

    • Overview

      Take a look at the range of benefits and payments we have available.

    • Not working

      Redundancy, health condition or disability or another reason you can’t work

    • Living expenses

      Food, school costs, power, accommodation or other living expenses you need help with

    • Relationship changes

      You’ve had a relationship break-up, family breakdown or violent relationship end

    • Health and Disability

      Counselling, prescription and GP costs, medical alarms and other costs we can help with

    • Seniors

      Travelling overseas, how to apply, payment rates and dates, overseas pensions, income and other info for Seniors

    • Caring

      Caring for someone else’s child or someone with a health condition, injury or disability

    • Urgent or unexpected costs

      Dental, glasses, car repairs, fridge, washing machine, funeral or other urgent costs you need help with

    • Children

      Childcare, school uniforms, stationery, having a baby and other costs if you have children

    • Payment issues

      Fixing issues with Accommodation Supplement, Special Benefit and other payments we’ve made

    • 16-19 year olds

      Education, training, work and benefit help for 16-19 year olds

    • Benefits and forms

      A-Z list of benefits, forms, benefit rates

  • Work homepage

    • Overview

      Find out what services we can offer to help you find work and when you start a new job.

    • Looking for work

      We have jobs available now in various industries and you can search on our job websites.

    • Help with your job search

      From advice on making a plan, to tips on where to look and following up leads.

    • Training and experience

      Our programmes can help you get ready for work with training and work experience.

    • Job Connect on Facebook

      Find out how we can help you get ready to work, find work, and support available while you're working.

    • CVs and cover letters

      We’ve got great templates and advice for writing your CV or cover letter, and filling out job applications.

    • Help with work costs

      Get help to pay for the things you need to start work

    • Job support and advice

      Get all the support and advice you need to stay in work.

    • Health and disability

      If you want to work, we can support you to find the right job for you.

    • Start your own business

      We can help you get your business up and running.

    • Job interviews

      Get advice about how to prepare for and deliver a great interview.

    • Help for 16-19 year olds

      We’ve got extra support for young people to get ready for work and find a job.

  • On a benefit homepage

    • Overview

      Check out what you need to do when you're getting a benefit or other payment from us.

    • Something's changed

      Address, contact details, overseas travel, childcare, relationship or anything else that’s changed.

    • Income

      Declare income, wages deduction calculator and tables

    • Childcare

      Change in your childcare situation, continue childcare payments, cohort entry schools and other childcare information

    • Re-apply

      Re-apply for Jobseeker Support, Sole Parent Support, Temporary Additional Support and more

    • Payments

      Check or stop your payments, payment cards and other information

    • Debt

      Check your debt, repayments and other debt information

    • Rights and responsibilities

      Our commitment to you,  obligations, complaints, benefit fraud and more

  • Housing homepage

    • Overview

      Find out how we can help you with housing.

    • Nowhere to stay

      Get help if you have nowhere to stay right now.

    • Find a house

      Find out where to look for private housing, or apply for public (social) housing.

    • Living in your home

      Get help with accommodation costs, and advice on any housing issues and public housing tenancies.

    • Move house

      Find out how we can help if you’re moving house.

  • Go to the Work and Income home page
When autocomplete results are available use up and down arrows to review and enter to select.
  • MyMSD login
  • Online Services
    • Apply online
    • Apply for NZ Super
    • Apply for COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme
    • Help while you’re self-isolating
    • MyMSD
    • Find a Job
    • Fixing some payment issues
    • Check what you might get
    • Supplier registration
    • List a job vacancy
  • Benefits and payments
    • Carers
      • Caring for someone with a health condition, injury or disability
      • Caring for a child with a disability
      • Caring for someone else's child
    • Children
      • Childcare
      • Having a baby
      • School costs
      • Caring for someone else's child
    • Emergencies
      • Civil Defence Payment
      • Cyclone Gabrielle
      • COVID-19
      • Farmers affected by adverse events
    • Health and disability
      • Vehicle modification
      • Contraception
      • Counselling
      • Dental treatment
      • Glasses
      • House modification
      • Medical alarms
      • Prescriptions and health practitioner costs
      • Residential care
      • Travel costs
    • Living expenses
      • Heating and power bills
      • Managing your money
    • You're not working
      • Redundancy
      • Health condition or disability
      • Fired or left
      • Deported to NZ
      • Released from prison
    • Relationships
      • Break-up
      • Family breakdown
      • Violent relationships
    • Seniors
      • NZ Super
      • Veterans Pension
      • Payment dates
      • Payment rates
    • Urgent costs
      • Food
      • Accommodation
      • Power, gas and water bills or heating
      • Dental treatment
      • Glasses
      • Whiteware
      • Medical costs
      • House repairs and maintenance
      • Car repairs
      • Bereavement
      • Fire or theft
    • 16-19 year olds
  • Work
    • Job search
      • 'Find a job' website
      • Jobs in MyMSD
      • Where to look for jobs
      • Job search by region
      • Seasonal work
      • Jobs in forestry
    • CVs and cover letters
      • CV templates and tips
      • Cover letter template and tips
      • Applying for job tips
    • Training and work experience
      • Mana in Mahi
      • Limited Services Volunteer
      • Work Confidence programmes
      • Training
      • Voluntary work
      • Work experience
      • Creative Careers Service
    • Help with work costs
      • Moving for a job
      • Help when you're working
      • Starting your new job
      • Help to stay in work
    • Job interviews
      • Job interview tips
      • Preparing for a job interview
      • Courses to help you get a job
    • Job support and advice
      • Advice when you get a job
      • Advice once you start work
      • Support for women
      • Support for men
    • Health and disability job support
      • Help with job search and costs
      • Health and wellbeing support for work
      • Work and Supported Living Payment
      • Employment Service
      • Employment service for secondary school students
      • Job and Training Support Funds
    • Start your own business
    • Job help for 16-19 year olds
  • On a benefit
    • Changes and income
      • Income
      • Change housing details
      • Relationships
      • Change bank account
      • Child enters or leaves your care
      • Change contact details
      • Overseas travel
    • Re-apply
      • Re-apply for Jobseeker Support
      • Re-apply for Sole Parent Support
      • Re-apply for TAS
    • Wages deduction tables
    • Obligations
      • Jobseeker Support obligations
      • Supported Living Payment obligations
      • Sole Parent Support obligations
      • When you don’t meet your obligations
    • Payments
      • Check your payments
      • Changes to your payments
      • Money management for youth clients
      • Stop your payments
      • Stop your childcare payments
      • Getting a Payment Card
      • Using your Payment Card
      • Balances and transactions on your Payment Card
      • Problems with your Payment Card
    • Debt
      • Pay debt from overseas
      • Pay debt from NZ
      • Pay debt when not on benefit
      • Pay debt while on a benefit
    • Childcare
      • Change in circumstances
      • Continuing pre-school childcare
      • Continuing childcare when your child's at school
      • Stop childcare
      • Childcare absences
      • Childcare centre closes due to COVID-19
      • Move to OSCAR
      • Extending childcare
    • Having another child
    • Arrest warrants
    • Your rights and responsibilities
      • Your obligations
      • Have someone act on your behalf
      • Avoid benefit and housing fraud
      • Annual review
      • Our commitment to you
  • Housing
    • Nowhere to stay
      • Emergency housing
      • Escaping family violence
      • Leaving prison
    • Find a house
      • Who can get public housing
      • Apply for public housing
      • Waiting for public housing
      • Accepting a public housing offer
    • Living in your home
      • Housing costs
      • Living in public housing
    • Move house
      • Bond Grant
      • Rent in Advance Grant
      • Moving Costs Grant
      • Tenancy Costs Cover
      • Transition to Alternative Housing Grant
      • Transfer to another public housing property
  • Benefits, rates and forms
    • A-Z benefits
    • Benefit rates
    • Forms
    • Income and cash asset limits
  • Pensions
    • Get benefits overseas
    • Get NZ Super overseas
    • Moving to NZ
    • Social security agreements
    • Seniors Services
  • Providers
    • Activity in the Community projects
    • Large scale emergency
    • Childcare assistance
      • What's new
      • Registering your childcare service
      • Become an approved OSCAR provider
      • How we can help you
      • Tell us when things change
      • Payment schedules
      • Contacting us if you're a childcare or OSCAR provider
      • Centre absences and closures due to COVID-19
    • Advocates
    • Health and disability practitioners
      • Guides and forms
      • Roles
      • Assisting people into work
      • Medical certificates
      • Health and disability related benefits
      • Designated health practitioners second opinions
      • Medical appeals
    • Housing providers
      • Property owners and landlords
      • Emergency housing providers
      • Public housing providers
    • Forms
  • About Work and Income
    • Contact us
      • Our locations
      • Senior Services International
      • Overseas pension agencies contact details
      • Veterans
      • Report a suspected fraud
      • Other languages
    • Our services
      • Appointments
      • Cheap as data
      • Become a contracted provider
      • Information for trespassed clients
    • Our privacy notice
      • Collecting your information
      • Using your information
      • Sharing your information
      • Respecting your information
      • Managing your information
    • Making a complaint
      • Review of decision
      • Review of a medical decision
    • News
    • Careers at Work and Income
  • About this site
    • Accessibility
    • Privacy, disclaimer and copyright information
    • Online security
    • Words we use
    • Site map
  • Employers
    • Recruitment
      • List a vacancy
      • Hire an LSV graduate
      • Hire disabled people or people with health conditions
      • Shortlisting
      • Work experience
      • Pre-employment drug testing
      • Make an employment offer
    • Extra support and training
      • Flexi-wage
      • Apprenticeship Boost
      • Mana in Mahi
      • Skills for Industry
      • Support once your employee starts work
      • Mainstream programmes
      • Modifications to your workplace
    • Industry partnerships
    • Redundancy support
    • Emergencies and adverse events
    • Employee debt
  • COVID-19
    • People affected by COVID-19
      • Help while you're self-isolating
    • COVID-19 support for employers
      • COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme
    • Previous COVID-19 payments
      • Short-Term Absence Payment
      • Wage Subsidies August 2021
      • Wage Subsidy March 2021
      • Resurgence Wage Subsidy
      • Income Relief Payment
      • Wage Subsidy Extension
      • 2020 Wage Subsidy
      • Essential Workers Leave Support Scheme
      • Leave payment
      • Repaying a previous COVID-19 payment
  1. Home
  2. Benefits and payments
  3. Seniors
  4. Help from other organisations

Benefits and payments

  • Carers
  • Children
  • Emergencies
  • Health and disability
  • Living expenses
  • You're not working
  • Relationships
  • Seniors
    • NZ Super
    • Veterans Pension
    • Payment dates
    • Payment rates
  • Urgent costs
  • 16-19 year olds

Help from other organisations

There are many other organisations that can help you with health and transport costs and general wellbeing

Help with health costs

Health and Disability Support Services

This assistance includes support such as helping with bathing, meal preparation or modifications to your home so you can continue living there.

If you're the main carer for another person, you may be able to get help to take a break.

For more information contact your local District Health Board (in your phone book).


Healthline

Healthline is a free, 24-hours telephone health advice service which lets you talk confidentially to a registered nurse anytime you need to.

Phone Healthline on 0800 611 116


High Use Health Card (also known as High User Card)

This card is for people who go to a health practitioner, eg a doctor, on a regular basis (a minimum of 12 times in 12 months). Please talk to your health practitioner if you think you may qualify for this card.


Pharmaceutical Subsidy Card

If you need a lot of prescriptions each year, you may qualify for a Pharmaceutical Subsidy Card.

Talk to your health practitioner, eg, your pharmacist, or visit the Ministry of Health website: www.health.govt.nz for more information.


Seniorline (information about independence or finding care)

Seniorline is a national service providing information on how to get help to stay at home and relief care for caregivers. They also have information on rest homes and private hospitals, help to find care, funding and the services that should be provided.

For more information about Seniorline visit www.adhb.govt.nz/seniorline or phone 0800 725 463.


Hearing Aid Subsidy

If you need a hearing aid/s the Ministry of Health may be able to help with this cost.

There are 2 types of assistance. Depending on your circumstances and type of hearing loss, you may be able to get help from one of these schemes.

Hearing Aid Funding Scheme

There are a number of requirements you need to meet to qualify for this and you may need to complete an income and asset test.

For more information visit www.health.govt.nz/publication/guide-getting-hearing-aids-hearing-aid-funding-scheme

Hearing Aid Subsidy Scheme

If you don't qualify to have your hearing aid paid for under the funding scheme, you may be able to get a subsidy. This isn't income or asset tested.

For more information visit www.health.govt.nz/publication/guide-getting-hearing-aids-hearing-aid-subsidy-scheme

For more information or to apply phone Enable New Zealand on 0800 362 253 (0800ENABLE) or visit Enable.co.nz


Home insulation and heater grants

If you're a low-income homeowner, you may be able to get a grant covering 90% of the cost of:

  • heating (maximum grant of $3,000 including GST) for either:
    • an efficient heat pump
    • a wood burner, or
    • a pellet burner, and
  • ceiling and underfloor insulation.

For more information visit www.warmerkiwihomes.govt.nz or phone 0800 749 782

Total Mobility Scheme

If you have mobility difficulties which prevent you from easily using public transport, you may be able to get subsidised taxi fares.

The Scheme is organised by the Ministry of Transport and participating regional councils to help people to take an active part in their community.

For more information and to check if the scheme is available in your area contact your local council.

Mobility parking scheme

If you have limited mobility you may be able to get a permit which allows you to:

  • park conveniently close to your destination in accessible reserved parking spaces
  • park longer than the stated time in some standard car parks and metered spaces.

All applications have to be approved by a doctor. Your doctor or the local CCS Disability Action office will have application forms for you to fill in.

For more information visit www.ccsdisabilityaction.org.nz or phone 0800 227 2255

Rates Rebate Scheme

The Rates Rebate Scheme offers a discount to low income earners who pay rates on their own home. Ratepayers apply to their local council for the rebate.

For an application form and more information about qualifying for this rebate visit www.ratesrebates.govt.nz or contact your local council.

To help keep yourself and your family safe there's detailed information about scams on the Consumer Affairs website

This includes information on how to identify scams, protect yourself against them and what to do if you've been scammed.

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner website also has useful advice to keep your information safe.

Contact Inland Revenue for information about tax, for example your tax rate on your NZ Super payments, or if you're earning other income.

For more information visit www.ird.govt.nz or phone 0800 227 774 (have your IRD number handy).

The New Zealand Fire Service can help you install and check your smoke alarms. Check your phone book for the number to contact in your area.

If you have a disability you believe is either attributable to, or aggravated by, your service as a member of the New Zealand Armed Forces you may be able to get a Disablement Pension.

A Surviving Spouse Pension is also available to the partner of veterans:

  • if their death is found to be attributable to service as a member of the New Zealand Armed Forces, or
  • if they were getting a Disablement Pension of at least 52 per cent at the time of death, or
  • if it's found they could've been getting a Disablement Pension of at least 52 per cent at the time of death.

For more information visit www.veteransaffairs.mil.nz or phone 0800 4 VETERAN (0800 483 8372)

Working for Families assistance

You could qualify for tax credits from Inland Revenue, depending on your income.

Check out our Working for Families page or phone 0800 227 773 for more information.

How we can help

  • Benefits and payments
  • Work
  • On a benefit
  • Housing

Online services

  • Check what you might get
  • Find work
  • Apply online
  • MyMSD
  • How to stay safe online

About

  • About Work and Income
  • About this site
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy, disclaimer and copyright

Contact us

  • Phone numbers
  • Find a service centre
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Feedback
  • Help in other languages
Go to Ministry of Social Development's website Go to Govt.nz's website Shielded Site