Disability Allowance

You may get a Disability Allowance if you:

• have a disability that is likely to last at least 6 months
• have regular, ongoing costs because of your disability that are not fully covered by another agency
• are a New Zealand citizen or permanent resident
• normally live in New Zealand and intend to stay here.

It also depends on how much you and your partner earn.

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You can apply on behalf of a child if they're 18 or under and financially dependent on you.

You may be able to get both the Disability Allowance and the Child Disability Allowance for the same child.

You can't get a Disability Allowance if you get Board payments from Child, Youth and Family for the child.

The information provided in this page is a guide only. Contact us to talk about your individual circumstances.

We pay up to a maximum of $63.22 a week for Disability Allowance and it's not taxed. How much you get depends on the extra costs you have because of your disability.

The Disability Allowance is usually paid straight into your bank account with your main benefit or pension (or weekly if you don't get any other assistance).

The Disability Allowance can help pay for a number of things - as long as your health practitioner tells us you need them because of your disability. Here are some of the things we may be able to help with, and the sorts of proof we need to see - so keep all your receipts.

Some of the extra costs we may be able to help with...	We'll need to see...
Doctor's, specialist's and hospital fees that aren't already subsidised	Receipts or invoices showing the date, cost and reason for your visit
Prescription fees	Receipts or print-outs from your chemist showing the date, cost, the item you received and whether it's subsidised
Travel to your doctor, specialist, hospital or counsellor	Tickets or receipts showing the date, cost and how you travelled (if you travelled in your own car, we need to know the cc rating of your car and how far you travelled)
Heating	Your summer and winter electricity bills
Medical alarm rental and monitoring	The Disability Allowance - Medical Assessment for Medical Alarm form completed by a health practitioner, and the contract or receipt for the installation/rental of the medical alarm.

When your Disability Allowance is reviewed, we need to see proof of any costs that have increased or are new. Ask us for a Disability Allowance file to keep your receipts in.

Find out if you might get this benefit, and what other financial assistance may be available to you.

What application form you fill out depends on what payments you’re already getting from us.

We can grant you the financial assistance you’re entitled to from the date you first contact us if you complete your application within 20 working days of that date.

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Not getting any payments from us or only getting childcare payments

1. Apply

You can apply online.

If you don’t want to complete the form online you can print out and complete an Extra Help application form.

2. Meet with us

Once you've filled out an application form, you'll need to meet with us.

You can book an appointment using MyMSD.

To register, all you need is your client number and the phone number or email address that we have recorded in our system.

If you can't use MyMSD you can call us on 0800 559 009. When our phone system asks what you're calling about, say "apply". We'll put you through to someone who can arrange an appointment and answer any questions you have.

When you come and meet with us, you'll need to bring:

• your application form (if you haven't applied online)
• proof of your costs.

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Already getting payments from us (eg, a benefit or Accommodation Supplement) but not Disability Allowance

You can complete a Disability Allowance application form. Your health practitioner also needs to complete the Disability Certificate inside this form.

You'll need to drop off the following documents to one of our service centres, or post them to us:

• The application form
• Proof of your costs.

If you can’t print the form out, contact us and we'll send one to you, or you can pick one up from one of our service centre.

If you can't drop off these documents today, contact us now if you haven't already done so. This is so we can pay your Disability Allowance from the right date.

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Applying for counselling or medical alarm costs

If you’re applying for a Disability Allowance for the cost of counselling or medical alarms, there’s an extra form that needs to be completed.

Counselling costs:

• You, your doctor and counsellor also need to complete a Disability Certificate - Counselling form

Medical alarm costs:

• Your health practitioner also needs to complete a Disability Allowance - Medical Alarm Assessment form

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Applying on behalf of someone else

You can apply for a Disability Allowance on someone else's behalf, but only if they've filled out a form to appoint you as their agent.

If you’re already getting Disability Allowance and your costs change, you need to let us know.

If you're not sure what costs are included in your Disability Allowance, you can check in MyMSD.