Traffic light system in other languages and alternate formats
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Traffic light system information in English
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Open transcript
Traffic light system
About the traffic light system
The traffic lights are an easy, helpful way for you to know if you're on track with meeting your obligations. If you get off track, we’ll explain your responsibilities, and support you to get back on track.
This helps to set clear expectations up front and empowers you to meet your obligations.
Who the traffic light system is for
Benefits with work-related and/or social obligations
You’ll be in the traffic light system if you have work-related and/or social obligations. These are:
- find or prepare for work
- take part in Work Ability Assessments, to help us understand what kind of work you can do
- take part in activities with our service providers, to find a job or prepare for work
- social obligations (when taking care of dependent children).
If you get Youth Payment, Young Parent Payment or have a youth coach, you’ll be in the traffic light system but your obligations are different. Go to the Youth Services website www.youthservice.govt.nz/trafficlights to find out what your obligations are.
You or your partner will have work-related and/or social obligations if you get one of these benefits:
- Jobseeker Support, or
- Sole Parent Support
If your partner is under 18, they will have youth activity obligations www.youthservice.govt.nz/trafficlights. This means they’ll be in the traffic light system but their obligations are different.
You or your partner may have work-related and/or social obligations if you get either:
- Emergency Benefit, or
- Emergency Maintenance Allowance.
You will have other obligations www.workandincome.govt.nz/obligations as well. To find out what happens if you or your partner don't meet your other obligations, see When you don't meet your obligations - Work and Income
Supported Living Payment
Most people who get Supported Living Payment are not in the traffic light system. This is because you do not have an obligation to find work.
You will only be in the traffic light system if:
- you're taking care of dependent children, because this means you have social obligations (to make sure children get health checks and education)
- it has been assessed you can prepare for work and we have discussed this with you (very few people have this), or
- we've asked you to take part in a Work Ability Assessment or to work with a contracted service provider (very few people are asked to do this).
If you have a partner, their obligations are likely to be different. This means they could be included in the traffic light system, even if you’re not.
Supported Living Payment obligations - Work and Income
Supported Living Payment obligations for partners - Work and Income
How it works
Depending on your situation, there are different things you or your partner need to do (your obligations). If you are in the traffic light colour system, then it will help you stay on track with some of your obligations.
Most people who get Supported Living Payment are not in the traffic light system.
The traffic light system lets you know where you're at and what you need to do.
- Green: If you're at green, you're on track and meeting your obligations.
- Orange: You'll move to orange if you don't meet your obligations and you don't have a good reason. This means you need to contact us straight away. If you don't contact us and get back on track within 5 working days, you'll move to red.
- Red: Once you're at red, your benefit could reduce or stop. If your benefit has reduced or stopped, you need to contact us immediately to get back on track.
If there's any reason why you can't meet your obligations, talk with us straight away. If you haven’t been in touch, we’ll try and contact you before you move to orange, to find out why you haven’t met your obligations.
We’ll send you a letter to let you know if you’re at orange or red. You can also see in MyMSD what traffic light colour you’re at.
Contact us
- You can contact our general enquiries team from Monday-Friday 7am-6pm, and Saturday 8am-1pm on 0800 559 009
- If you’re Deaf, hard of hearing, deafblind, have a speech impairment or find it hard to talk, you can use the New Zealand Relay Service nzrelay.co.nz
- If you’re deaf, hard of hearing or find it hard to communicate by phone you can contact us on:
- Text: 4206
- Email: MSD_Deaf_Services@msd.govt.nz
Listen in an audio file
Open transcript
00:00:00
Traffic light System update
Producer’s Note: this document shows the combined logo for Ministry of Social Development, Te Manatū Whakahiato Ora, Work and income Te Hiranga Tangata, the New Zealand coat of arms sits to the left of the Ministry of Social Development text. This document was produced as a single audio file primarily for blind, deaf, blind and low vision people by Accessible Information and Communications Limited on the 10th of July 2025.
Being a single file, navigation to different sections is not supported
00:00:30
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00:00:49
When you browse to one of these URLs, your browser will automatically redirect to the original long URL. End of producer’s note.
00:00:58
Traffic light system update - about the traffic light system. The traffic lights are an easy, helpful way for you to know if you're on track with meeting your obligations. If you get off track, we'll explain your responsibilities and support you to get back on track. This helps to set clear expectations upfront and empowers you to meet your obligations.
00:01:19
Who the traffic light system is for - Benefits with work related and or social obligations. You'll be in the traffic light system if you have work related and or social obligations. These are ‘find or prepare for work’, ‘take part in workability assessments to help us understand what kind of work you can do’, ‘take part in activities with our service providers to find a job or prepare for work’.
00:01:42
Social obligations when taking care of dependent children.
If you get youth payment, young parent payment or have a youth coach, you'll be in the traffic light system, but your obligations are different. Go to the Youth Services website, a icons dot NZ/0881 to find out what your obligations are. You or your partner will have work related and or social obligations. If you get one of these benefits: Jobseeker Support or Sole Parent Support. If your partner is under 18, they will have youth activity obligations. See A icons dot NZ/0881. This means they'll be in the traffic light system, but their obligations are different. You or your partner may have work related and or social obligations if you get either:
00:02:24
Emergency Benefit or Emergency Maintenance Allowance. You will have other obligations as well. See A icons dot NZ/7125 to find out what happens if you or your partner don't meet your other obligations. See when you don't meet your obligations, Work and Income at a icons dot NZ/3836.
00:02:46
Supported Living Payment. Most people who get Supported Living Payment are not in the traffic light system. This is because you do not have an obligation to find work. You will only be in the traffic light system if
- you're taking care of dependent children, because this means you have social obligations to make sure children get health checks and education
- it has been assessed you can prepare for work and we have discussed this with you, very few people have this, or
- we've asked you to take part in a workability assessment or to work with a contracted service provider, very few people are asked to this.
00:03:19
If you have a partner, their obligations are likely to be different. This means they could be included in the traffic light system even if you're not. Supported Living Payment obligations Work and Income, see A icons dot NZ/3836
Supported Living Payment obligations for partners, Work and Income, see A icons NZ/6704.
00:03:43
How it works
Depending on your situation, there are different things you or your partner need to do your obligations. If you are in the traffic light colour system then it will help you stay on track with some of your obligations. Most people who get Supported Living Payment are not in the traffic light system. The traffic light system lets you know where you're at and what you need to do.
00:04:03
Green. If you're at green, you're on track and meeting your obligations. Orange. You'll move to orange if you don't meet your obligations and you don't have a good reason. This means you need to contact us straight away. See A icons dot NZ/7699.
00:04:18
If you don't contact us and get back on track within 5 working days, you'll move to red.
Red. Once you're at red, your benefit could reduce or stop. If your benefit has reduced or stopped, you need to contact us immediately to get back on track. See A icons dot NZ/7699. If there's any reason why you can't meet your obligations, talk with us straight away.
00:04:41
If you haven't been in touch, we'll try and contact you before you move to orange to find out why you haven't met your obligations. We'll send you a letter to let you know if you're at orange or red. You can also see in MyMSD what traffic light colour you're at.
00:04:57
Contact us. You can contact our general inquiries team from Monday to Friday, 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM and Saturday, 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM on 0800 559 009. If you're deaf, hard of hearing, deafblind, have a speech impairment or find it hard to talk, you can use the New Zealand Relay Service www.nzrelay.co.nz.
00:05:18
If you're deaf, hard of hearing or find it hard to communicate by phone, you can contact us on text 4206 e-mail msd_services@msd.govt.nz
00:05:33
Producer’s note: this audio version of this document was produced on the 10th of July 2025 by Accessible Information and Communications Limited 2/13 Upland Road, Remuera, Auckland, 1050. Phone 093204173 e-mail info@aicons.nz
00:05:54
Website www.aicomps.co.nz. This production was made using a computerised process for converting text to speech with a broadcast quality human voice.
00:06:06
Our process includes listening to the resulting speech and taking action to minimise pronunciation errors, including words in Te Reo Māori and Polynesian languages. This production is intended primarily for blind, deafblind and low vision people. Feedback helps us improve the quality of our service. Please contact us to comment or raise any queries regarding our production of this document.
End of document