Apply for other benefits

You can use the online form to apply for benefits or other financial assistance as part of your application for New Zealand Superannuation.

Extra help

There is a range of extra help you may be able to get on top of your New Zealand Superannuation.

Most extra help we pay depends on your personal situation and what income you (and your partner) may have. Some extra help is also asset tested.

If you want to apply for extra help as part of your New Zealand Superannuation application, you can select that option as you complete the form.

Once you select the option you'll need to provide:

  • all income details for last 52 weeks (eg wages, ACC, child support, dividends, interest, rentals, etc)
  • anything that could earn you money in the next 52 weeks (eg rental income, dividends, interest, ACC, child support, overseas payment, assets held in family trusts or businesses or private companies)
  • your expenses (eg housing, childcare, medical costs and hire purchase).

If you or a family member has a disability or health condition likely to last for at least 6 months, you may be able to get help with costs such as ongoing visits to the doctor, medicines, a medical alarm, travel and some other costs through a Disability Allowance.

To be able to receive a Disability Allowance you need to:

  • meet an income test
  • have a disability which is likely to last at least 6 months
  • have on-going, additional costs arising from that disability.

You also need to be a New Zealand citizen or permanent resident and normally live in New Zealand and intend to stay here.

Disability Allowance is income tested.

If you apply for Disability Allowance as part of your application, you will be asked for further information about your situation including income information to see if you can get this payment.

Income limits
Disability allowance

If you have costs from owning your own home (whether in your own name or in a trust you set up), renting or boarding, you may be able to get extra help through the Accommodation Supplement. How much you get will depend on your income, assets, accommodation costs, family circumstances and where you live.

Accommodation Supplement is income and asset tested. You and your partner's income and assets (including assets held in a family trust) need to be below a certain level and your housing costs have to be above a certain amount.

However, if you and/or your partner are tenants living in a social housing property, you won't be able to get Accommodation Supplement.

Income limits
Housing costs

Your housing costs also need to be above a certain amount (entry threshold) per week.

Extra help with essential costs may be available through Temporary Additional Support.

Temporary Additional Support is a payment to help you when you are unable to meet your essential living costs from what you earn or from other sources.

This assistance is income and asset tested.

To get Temporary Additional Support, your assets will need to be below a certain level.

If you apply for Temporary Additional Support as part of your application, you will be asked for further information about your situation including income and asset information, to see if you can get this payment.

To work out if you can get this help we look at:

  • how much you (and your partner) earn
  • any money or assets you (and your partner) have, either in your own names or in a family trust
  • whether we can help you in other ways
  • the types of costs you are paying for
  • what you are doing to meet or reduce your costs.
Temporary Additional Support
 

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