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Benefits and payments homepage
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Overview
Take a look at the range of benefits and payments we have available.
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Not working
Redundancy, health condition or disability or another reason you can’t work
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Living expenses
Food, school costs, power, accommodation or other living expenses you need help with
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Relationship changes
You’ve had a relationship break-up, family breakdown or violent relationship end
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Health and Disability
Counselling, prescription and GP costs, medical alarms and other costs we can help with
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Seniors
Travelling overseas, how to apply, payment rates and dates, overseas pensions, income and other info for Seniors
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Caring
Caring for someone else’s child or someone with a health condition, injury or disability
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Urgent or unexpected costs
Dental, glasses, car repairs, fridge, washing machine, funeral or other urgent costs you need help with
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Children
Childcare, school uniforms, stationery, having a baby and other costs if you have children
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Payment issues
Fixing issues with Accommodation Supplement, Special Benefit and other payments we’ve made
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16-19 year olds
Education, training, work and benefit help for 16-19 year olds
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Benefits and forms
A-Z list of benefits, forms, benefit rates
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Work homepage
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Overview
Find out what services we can offer to help you find work and when you start a new job.
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Looking for work
We have jobs available now in various industries and you can search on our job websites.
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Help with your job search
From advice on making a plan, to tips on where to look and following up leads.
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Training and experience
Our programmes can help you get ready for work with training and work experience.
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Job Connect on Facebook
Find out how we can help you get ready to work, find work, and support available while you're working.
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CVs and cover letters
We’ve got great templates and advice for writing your CV or cover letter, and filling out job applications.
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Help with work costs
Get help to pay for the things you need to start work
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Job support and advice
Get all the support and advice you need to stay in work.
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Health and disability
If you want to work, we can support you to find the right job for you.
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Start your own business
We can help you get your business up and running.
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Job interviews
Get advice about how to prepare for and deliver a great interview.
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Help for 16-19 year olds
We’ve got extra support for young people to get ready for work and find a job.
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On a benefit homepage
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Overview
Check out what you need to do when you're getting a benefit or other payment from us.
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Something's changed
Address, contact details, overseas travel, childcare, relationship or anything else that’s changed.
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Income
Declare income, wages deduction calculator and tables
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Childcare
Change in your childcare situation, continue childcare payments, cohort entry schools and other childcare information
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Re-apply
Re-apply for Jobseeker Support, Sole Parent Support, Temporary Additional Support and more
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Payments
Check or stop your payments, payment cards and other information
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Debt
Check your debt, repayments and other debt information
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Rights and responsibilities
Our commitment to you, obligations, complaints, benefit fraud and more
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Housing homepage
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Overview
Find out how we can help you with housing.
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Nowhere to stay
Get help if you have nowhere to stay right now.
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Find a house
Find out where to look for private housing, or apply for public (social) housing.
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Living in your home
Get help with accommodation costs, and advice on any housing issues and public housing tenancies.
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Move house
Find out how we can help if you’re moving house.
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Securing a private rental
If your situation, or a barrier you face, is making it hard to find a landlord who will offer you a private rental house, we may be able to help.
We can give you a letter of assurance to show to landlords when you’re looking for a place. The letter assures landlords that if they offer you a place and your tenancy lasts less than a year, we’ll help pay costs at the end that your bond won’t cover. This is called 'Tenancy costs cover'.
You may be able to get tenancy costs cover if you:
- are finding it hard to get private housing due to a barrier, like discrimination
- have a better chance of securing a private house with this help
- pay a bond to your landlord
- have your tenancy end within 12 months (if you stay in the house for longer than 12 months, you won’t qualify for this help)
- have costs at the end of your tenancy that your bond won’t cover.
The landlord must:
- require a bond of up to 4 weeks
- lodge the bond with Tenancy Services
- use a written tenancy agreement under the Residential Tenancies Act.
We’ll also take into account other factors, such as:
- your situation
- if this is the best help for you
- what other help is available to you
- if this payment would help you move into private housing.
Residency
You also need to meet one of these residency criteria:
- you're a New Zealand citizen
- you have a resident visa or permanent resident visa and have lived in NZ continuously for at least 2 years since getting it
- you're recognised as a refugee by Immigration New Zealand
- you're recognised as a protected person by Immigration New Zealand
- you're getting a main benefit from us (eg, Jobseeker Support), or
- you fit into one of these categories:
- you have a Christchurch Response Visa
- you get Christchurch Mosque Attack Assistance, or
- you get a Special Needs Grant because you came to New Zealand on a temporary visa to be with your NZ partner and your relationship ended due to domestic violence.
We can pay up to 4 weeks of rent to help with costs that might come up at the end of your tenancy, such as rent arrears or property damage.
You’ll need to pay this money back.
You need to apply while you’re looking for a house.
Step 1 - Call us
Call us on 0800 559 009
If you get NZ Super or Veteran's Pension, call Senior Services on 0800 552 002
Step 2 - Go to an appointment
We’ll book you an appointment to come in and see us.
At your appointment, we’ll check if you qualify for Tenancy Costs Cover and give you an application form to fill out.
If your application’s approved, we’ll give you a letter of assurance to give to landlords while you’re looking for a private house. This will explain what your tenancy costs cover is and what costs it could help pay for at the end of your tenancy.
The letter is valid for 3 months. If you don’t find a house within 3 months, the letter will expire. We may be able to issue you a new letter – contact Work and Income on 0800 559 009 to talk about this.
Step 3 - Get landlord to sign letter of assurance once you find a house
If you get accepted into a private house, you need to get your landlord to sign the letter of assurance.
You also need to gather these documents:
- signed letter of assurance
- bond receipt from the landlord
- tenancy agreement.
You can drop the letter and documents off to your local Work and Income service centre or post them to us.
We’ll also send a copy of the letter to your landlord for their records.
Step 4 - Lodge a claim at the end of your tenancy
If your tenancy ends within 12 months, and you have costs that your bond won’t cover, you or your landlord can lodge a claim. If you stay in the house for longer than 12 months, you won’t be able to claim.
The claim needs to be lodged within 3 months after your tenancy ends.
The claim can be lodged by dropping off one of the following documents to your local Work and Income service centre, or posting it to us:
- Tenancy agreement
- Mediator’s Order, or
- Tenancy Tribunal Order form.