Tenancy Costs Cover

You may be able to get Tenancy Costs Cover if you have taken reasonable steps to find a rental property. For example, you have:

• applied for rental properties
• gone to rental property viewings
• registered with a rental agency or housing broker
• obtained character references if necessary.

You also need to be entering a tenancy that:

• the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA) applies to, i.e. you'll have a tenancy agreement, and
• requires you to pay a bond of 4 weeks rent.

You must find a rental property within 6 months of getting a Letter of assurance.

We'll also take into account other factors, such as:

• your situation
• if you can afford to stay in the accommodation long-term
• how long you’ll be living in your accommodation (generally this needs to be at least 28 days)
• if this is the best payment for you
• what other help is available to you.

There is also residency criteria you need to meet.

Residency criteria

You must be either:

• getting a main benefit, NZ Super or Veteran's Pension, or
• ordinarily resident in New Zealand and either:
  • a New Zealand citizen
  • have a residence class visa under the Immigration Act 2009
  • recognised as a refugee or protected person under the Immigration Act 2009, or
  • getting a Special Needs Grant because you came to New Zealand on a temporary visa to be with your New Zealand partner and your relationship ended due to domestic violence.

We'll give you a letter that explains:

• what Tenancy Costs Cover is, and
• what costs it could help pay for at the end of your tenancy.

You can give this letter to landlords while you're looking for a house.

The most you can get to cover outstanding costs at the end of your tenancy is a payment equal to 4 weeks rent. Your tenancy will need to have ended within 2 years and you’ll need to pay this money back.

Outstanding costs are costs over and above your bond amount, and could cover things like:

• property damage
• rent you owe.

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.

Step 3 - Get a Letter of assurance

If your application's approved, we'll give you a letter of assurance to give to landlords while you're looking for a 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 6 months. If you don't find a house within 6 months, the letter will expire. We may be able to issue you a new letter – call us on 0800 559 009 to talk about this.

If you get accepted into a rental property, you need to get your landlord to sign the Letter of assurance.

You also need to gather these documents:

• 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.

If your tenancy ends within 2 years and you have costs that your bond won’t cover, you can lodge a claim. If you stay in the house for longer than 2 years, you won’t be able to claim.

The claim needs to be lodged within 3 months after your tenancy ends. 

If you don't agree to the costs, the landlord can make a claim. They'll need to provide a Tenancy Tribunal or court order confirming you owe them accommodation costs.

How to make a claim

You can lodge a claim by showing us one of these documents:

• Tenancy agreement
• Mediator’s Order, or
• Tenancy Tribunal Order form.

You can bring this document into your local service centre or post it to us.

If the claim is approved

If the claim is approved, we'll pay the money directly to your landlord.

We'll check if your landlord's already a supplier with us. If they're not, we'll ask them to register as a supplier by completing a 'Supplier Registration Form'. This is so we can make the payment to them.