A-Z benefits and payments

A

• Accommodation Costs Arrears Grant

  If you're worried you'll lose your housing because you owe accommodation costs, you may be able to get an Accommodation Costs Arrears Grant.

• Accommodation Costs in Advance Grant

  If you need to pay accommodation costs before moving in and don't have enough money, we may be able to help pay for this.

• Accommodation Security Cover Grant

  You may find accommodation where your supplier needs assurance that costs can be paid for if you leave. If so, we may be able to provide that assurance.

• Accommodation Supplement

  Accommodation Supplement is a weekly payment which helps people with their rent, board or the cost of owning a home.

• Advance Payment of Benefit

  An Advance Payment of Benefit is a one-off payment to help you pay an essential or emergency cost if you can't pay it another way.

• Apprenticeship Boost

  Apprenticeship Boost is a payment to help employers keep and take on new apprentices.

• Away from Home Allowance

  Away from Home Allowance is a weekly payment which helps carers with the living costs for 16 or 17 year olds who are living away from home while on a tertiary or training course. We pay the allowance to the carer of the young person.

B

• Bond Grant

  If you don't have enough money to pay bond to your landlord, you may be able to get a Bond Grant.

• Business Training and Advice Grant

  If you're starting your own business, we may be able to help with developing a business plan, training in business skills, advice and project reports.

C

• Child Disability Allowance

  Child Disability Allowance is a fortnightly payment made to the main carer of a child or young person with a serious disability. It is paid in recognition of the extra care and attention needed for that child.

• Childcare Subsidy

  Childcare Subsidy is a payment that helps families with the cost of pre-school childcare.

• Civil Defence Payment

  When there's an emergency event (e.g. flooding or an earthquake), we may make Civil Defence Payments available. If you've been affected and these payments are available, you may be able to get one.

• Civilian Amputee Assistance

  Civilian Amputee Assistance helps amputees, or those born without a limb(s), with some of their costs when they need to go to an Artificial Limb Centre.

• Clothing Allowance for Orphan's Benefit and Unsupported Child's Benefit

  A Clothing Allowance is a weekly payment we give you if you get Orphan's Benefit or Unsupported Child's Benefit for children in your care, to help you pay for their clothing.

• Community Costs

  Community Costs is a weekly payment which helps people in a short-term residential treatment programme meet their essential ongoing costs in the community.

• Community Services Card

  The Community Services Card can help you with the costs of health care and public transport. This means you could pay less on some health services, prescriptions and fares for public transport. Always carry your card with you to make it easy to get the benefits.

• Course Participation Assistance

  We may be able to help with the costs of going to a short-term course or programme that helps you gain specific employment skills.

D

• Disability Allowance

  Disability Allowance is a weekly payment for people who have regular, ongoing costs because of a disability. These could be visits to the doctor or hospital, medicines, extra clothing or travel.

• Driver licences

  Need help to get your driver licence? We can help you get the support you need.

E

• Early Learning Payment

  The Early Learning Payment helps pay the costs of Early Childhood Education for children aged 18 months to 3 years. These children need to be from families enrolled in selected Family Start or Early Start Programmes.

• Emergency Benefit

  If you can't support yourself and don't qualify for any other payment, you may be able to get the Emergency Benefit.

• Emergency housing

  If you have nowhere to stay tonight or in the next 7 nights, we may be able to pay for you to stay in emergency housing.

• Emergency Maintenance Allowance

  Emergency Maintenance Allowance is assistance that may be paid to sole parents who do not qualify for any other payments.

• Employment Transition Assistance

  Employment Transition Assistance is a weekly payment you can get if you've completed a Supported Living Payment Employment Trial.

• Establishment Grant

  The Establishment Grant is a one-off payment to carers of someone else's child to help with the costs when a child first comes into their care, eg a bed, bedding and clothing.

• Extraordinary Care Fund

  You can apply if a child you care for shows promise in a skill or talent, or because they are experiencing difficulties and need extra support. To qualify you need to get the Orphan’s Benefit or Unsupported Child’s Benefit.

F

• Flexi-wage – job seeker information

  Flexi-wage is one of the ways we're supporting more New Zealanders into work, by helping you get the skills you need for the job, and supporting more employers to hire staff.

• Flexi-wage for self-employment

  Flexi-wage is one of the ways we're supporting more New Zealanders into work. We may be able to help you start your own business and help with costs while you get started.

• Flexible Childcare Assistance

  We may be able to help with the costs of informal childcare e.g. a babysitter, if you can't access formal childcare programmes while you're at work or in employment-related study or training.

• Funeral Grant

  A Funeral Grant can help with some of the funeral costs of someone who has died.

G

• Guaranteed Childcare Assistance Payment

  If you're under 20 and in full-time education, training or work-based learning, you may be able to get the Guaranteed Childcare Assistance Payment (GCAP) to assist with the cost of childcare.

H

• Holiday and Birthday Allowance

  You automatically get the Holiday and Birthday Allowance if you already get Unsupported Child's Benefit or Orphan's Benefit. Use these payments to celebrate important events in the child’s life, like their birthday or Christmas.

• Home Help

  If you're a parent or carer we may be able to help you with the cost of home help to complete household tasks or training in parenting skills.

• Home repairs and maintenance

  If you need money for essential repairs or maintenance for your home and you're on a benefit, we may be able to help.

• House Modification Funding

  House Modification Funding is a payment which helps someone pay for changes to their home because they or their child have a disability.

I

• International Custody Dispute Payment

  If you're a parent involved in an international custody or access dispute over the care of your child or children, and you have limited financial support, we may be able to help you.

J

• Jobseeker Support

  Jobseeker Support is a weekly payment that helps people while they are looking for work or can't work right now. 

M

• Mainstream programmes

  If you have a disability or health condition, including a mental health condition or neurodiversity, and you want to work, you can apply to join one of our Mainstream programmes. The programmes can help you get into paid work and support you towards getting a long-term job.

• Mana in Mahi - Strength in Work

  Take part in Mana in Mahi to get paid while you train to do a job you love.

• Moving Costs Grant

  If you're moving into accommodation and don't have enough money to pay for moving costs, we may be able to help.

N

• New Employment Transition Grant

  The New Employment Transition Grant is a payment which helps people who are no longer on a benefit and who can't work because of sickness or a breakdown in childcare arrangements.

• New Zealand Seasonal Work Scheme

  Get help with costs like travel, clothing or temporarily moving home, when you're starting seasonal horticulture or viticulture work.

• New Zealand Superannuation

  New Zealand Superannuation is a fortnightly payment for people aged 65 and over.

O

• Orphan's Benefit

  Orphan's Benefit is a weekly payment which helps carers supporting a child or young person whose parents have died or can't be found, or can't look after them because they have a serious long-term health condition or incapacity.

• Out of School Care and Recreation (OSCAR) Subsidy

  Out of School Care and Recreation (OSCAR) Subsidy is a payment which helps families with the costs of before and after school care for up to 20 hours a week, and school holiday programmes for up to 50 hours a week.

P

• Power, gas and heating if you have a disability

  If you have extra power, gas or heating costs because of your disability or health condition, we may be able to help you pay this as part of a Disability Allowance.

• Power, gas, water bills or heating

  We may be able to help you with an urgent power, gas or water bill, heating costs or water tank refill if you have no other way to pay.

R

• Re-establishment grant (Special Needs Grant)

  The Special Needs Grant (re-establishment grant) is a payment to help people in specific circumstances re-establish themselves in the community.

• Recoverable Assistance Payment

  A Recoverable Assistance Payment is a one-off payment to help you pay an essential or emergency cost if you can't pay it another way.

• Relocate for Work Support

  We may be able to help with travel and moving costs if you're relocating for a new job.

• Residential Care Loan

  If you’re going into residential care and want to keep your home for a while, you may not be able to pay for the cost of your care. You may be able to get a Residential Care Loan to help pay for this.

• Residential Care Subsidy

  If you need long-term residential care in a hospital or rest home, you may be able to get a Residential Care Subsidy from Health New Zealand - Te Whatu Ora.

• Residential Support Subsidy

  Residential Support Subsidy is a payment that helps with the cost of residential support.

• Rural Assistance Payments

  Rural Assistance Payments can help farmers during or after an adverse event, e.g. a flood or drought.

S

• School and Year Start-up Payment

  If you're caring for someone else's child and need help with pre-school or school-related costs at the beginning of the year, you may be able to get the School and Year Start-up Payment.

• Seasonal Work Assistance

  Assistance for seasonal workers who are no longer getting a benefit and have lost wages because of work missed due to bad weather.

• Self-employment start up payment

  If you're starting a business and need help with essential start up costs, eg furniture or the first lot of stock, we may be able to help.

• Social Rehabilitation Assistance

  Social Rehabilitation Assistance is a payment which helps people who are in a residential social rehabilitation programme and their benefit isn't enough to meet the fees.

• Sole Parent Support

  Sole Parent Support is a weekly payment that helps single parents find part-time work or get ready for future work.

• Special Disability Allowance

  Special Disability Allowance is a weekly payment for people who have a spouse or partner who is in residential care, or has been in a public hospital for over 13 weeks. It's paid to the spouse or partner who is not in care to help with the extra costs of having their spouse or partner in care.

• Special Needs Grant

  A Special Needs Grant is a one-off payment to help you pay an essential or emergency cost if you can't pay it another way.

• Steps to Freedom Grant

  If you've been released from prison, we may be able to help you get set up in the community with a 'Steps to Freedom' grant.

• Student Allowance

  A Student Allowance is a weekly payment paid by StudyLink, that can help with your living expenses while you’re studying.

• Supported Living Payment

  Supported Living Payment is a weekly payment to help you if you have, or are caring for someone with, a significant health condition, injury or disability.

T

• Temporary Additional Support

  Temporary Additional Support is a weekly payment that helps you when you don't have enough money to cover your essential living costs.

• Tenancy Costs Cover

  If you're trying to get a rental property but feel you're being turned down due to your personal situation, we may be able to help.

• Training Incentive Allowance

  If you need help with fees and other study costs for a course you're doing, you may be able to get a Training Incentive Allowance (TIA).

• Transition to Alternative Housing Grant

  If you choose to move out of public (social) housing into a private rental property, we may be able to give you a one-off payment. This payment is called ‘Transition to Alternative Housing Grant’.

• Transition to Work Grant

  We may be able to pay for things you need to find or start a job, such as clothes, travel, living expenses until your first pay and other things.

U

• Unsupported Child's Benefit

  Unsupported Child's Benefit is a weekly payment which helps carers supporting a child or young person whose parents can't care for them because of a family breakdown.

V

• Veteran's Pension

  Veteran's Pension is a fortnightly payment for veterans who have qualifying operational service in the New Zealand Armed Forces.

W

• Winter Energy Payment

  The Winter Energy Payment is an extra payment to help with the cost of heating your home over the winter months. You must be getting a main benefit, pension or Jobseeker Support Student Hardship.

• Work Bonus

  If you're on a benefit and choose to work even though you don't have work obligations, you may be able to get a Work Bonus.

• Working for Families

  Working for Families is help from Work and Income and Inland Revenue (IR) to make it easier to work and raise a family.

Y

• Young Parent Payment

  Young Parent Payment helps young parents aged 16-19 year olds.

• Youth Payment

  Youth Payment helps young people aged 16 or 17 who can't live with their parents or guardian and aren't supported by them or anyone else.