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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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Living overseas
If you get NZ Super or Veteran's Pension and plan to live overseas, you must apply to keep these payments going. You need to meet certain criteria and how much you get depends on which country you're going to live in.
To apply, call our International Services team at least 6 weeks before you leave.
Who can apply
You can apply to keep your NZ Super or Veteran's Pension payments going while you’re living overseas if you:
- intend to live overseas, and
- are not moving to the United Kingdom (UK).
You can't get any other payments from us while you're overseas, eg:
- Winter Energy Payment
- Accommodation Supplement
- Disability Allowance
- Temporary Additional Support.
Humanitarian work
If you're going to live overseas to do humanitarian work, it needs to be unpaid, voluntary work that's full-time.
It also needs to be through a recognised aid agency as determined by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT), eg:
- Red Cross
- United National Volunteers
- Volunteer Services Abroad
- World Vision.
You also need to be ordinarily resident in New Zealand while you're doing humanitarian work overseas.
Your partner is included in your payments
If you have a partner who’s included in your NZ Super or Veteran's Pension payments, their payments will stop when you leave New Zealand. This is because they won't qualify for their payments.
If you’re going to a country we have a Social Security Agreement with, your partner can apply for a payment in that country.
How much you can get
How much you get depends on:
- what country you're going to live in
- what arrangement or agreement New Zealand (NZ) has with that country.
If you get an overseas pension, this could be affected, it depends which country you're going to live in.
When you apply, we'll let you know how much you can get.
Living in a country NZ has a Social Security Agreement (SSA) with
Some countries have their own SSA with New Zealand. The SSA sets out the rules around how much you can get. It also sets out the rules for any overseas pension you receive.
Living in a Pacific country NZ has an arrangement with
New Zealand has a special portability arrangement with 22 Pacific countries. The arrangement sets out the rules around how much you can get. If you get an overseas pension, your payments will be affected.
Living in another country
If you're going to live in a country that doesn't have a SSA or arrangement with NZ, you can get your full NZ Super or Veteran's Pension payment. If you get an overseas pension, your payments will not be affected.
How to apply
You need to apply at least 6 weeks before you leave New Zealand.
Call our International Services team to let us know about your plans.
Complete the application form and gather your documents:
- your plane ticket showing the departure date, and
- proof of your overseas bank account number (if you want payments to go into this).
Email the application form and documents to us at international.services@msd.govt.nz
If your application is approved, we'll let you know how much you'll get while you're living overseas.
Humanitarian work for 156 weeks or less
If you're going to do humanitarian work for 156 weeks (3 years) or less, you don't need to complete the application form.
You'll just need to provide proof of:
- the recognised aid agency you're working for
- how long you'll be working for them
- what the work is for, and
- that the work is unpaid, voluntary and full-time.
You can email this to us at international.services@msd.govt.nz
How you're paid
You can choose to have payments made directly to either your:
- NZ bank account every 2 weeks, or
- overseas bank account every 4 weeks.
If you choose to be paid to your overseas bank account:
- it can take around 4-6 weeks to change your payments to this account.
- don’t close your New Zealand account until you receive your first payment into your overseas account.
Taxes
You will not have to pay New Zealand tax on the payments you get from us. You may have to pay tax in the country you're going to live in. You'll need to contact their tax department for information about this.
We'll send you a tax certificate every April. This will be sent to your overseas address and you'll also be able to see it in MyMSD. It will show what you have been paid during the previous financial year while you have been overseas.
Temporarily returning to New Zealand
If you're visiting New Zealand temporarily or on holiday, you can continue to get the same payments as you get when overseas.
Contact
Our International Services team specialise in paying New Zealand benefits and pensions overseas. They are the best people to contact for questions about getting your New Zealand Superannuation or Veteran's Pension if you want to travel or live overseas.