New Zealand (NZ)
New Zealand is an English-speaking Pacific country known for high trust institutions, dramatic landscapes, outdoor life, and a pragmatic immigration system built around skills, family, study, and investment.
Social Security in New Zealand
Benefits, contributions, and how the system works for expats.
New Zealand has a tax-funded welfare and accident-compensation model rather than a European contribution-based social insurance system. Inland Revenue handles tax credits and KiwiSaver administration; Work and Income handles most income support; ACC covers qualifying accidental injuries; and NZ Super is a residence-based public pension from age 65. Eligibility depends heavily on citizenship or residence status, ordinary residence, income, assets, family situation, and stand-down rules. Temporary visa holders should assume little or no welfare access until they verify their exact status.
IRD number
IRD number
Apply through Inland Revenue using passport, visa, identity, and address or customer-due-diligence evidence. Some banks and offshore processes can support pre-arrival setup, but many newcomers complete it after arrival.
- PAYE salary tax
- Self-employment and GST
- Bank interest and withholding tax
- KiwiSaver
- Working for Families
- Best Start
- Student loans and allowances
- Company/director tax records
- Property income and bright-line tax records
Benefits & Support Payments
Jobseeker Support
Jobseeker Support
Main income support for eligible people looking for work, preparing for work, or temporarily unable to work because of health conditions.
Usually citizens or residents who meet ordinary residence, income, asset, and work-obligation rules. Temporary visa holders generally should not rely on it.
Apply through Work and Income / MyMSD, then attend appointments and provide income, identity, and accommodation evidence.
Accommodation Supplement
Accommodation Supplement
Helps eligible people with rent, board, or some home ownership costs.
Citizens/permanent residents and some residents normally living in New Zealand, subject to income/assets and minimum accommodation cost thresholds.
Apply through Work and Income with tenancy agreement, board/rent evidence, income details, and bank statements.
Working for Families
Working for Families tax credits
Family payments administered mainly by Inland Revenue: Family Tax Credit, In-work Tax Credit, Best Start, and Minimum Family Tax Credit.
Families with dependent children who meet tax residence, care, income, and immigration/residence rules.
Apply through myIR or SmartStart; update income estimates whenever pay, hours, or family circumstances change.
Paid Parental Leave
Paid parental leave
Government-funded payments for eligible primary carers taking leave from work after a birth or adoption.
Work test applies. Employees and self-employed people can qualify if they meet the required work pattern.
Apply through Inland Revenue, often using SmartStart after the employer confirms leave details.
Childcare Subsidy
Childcare Subsidy
Helps eligible families pay for approved childcare.
Depends on child age, approved provider, caregiver activity, income, and residence status.
Apply through Work and Income with childcare provider and income evidence.
Disability Allowance
Disability Allowance
Helps eligible people with ongoing costs from a disability or health condition, such as doctor visits, prescriptions, transport, or heating.
Work and Income residence/income tests plus medical verification.
Apply through Work and Income with medical certificates and cost evidence.
ACC treatment and weekly compensation
ACC
No-fault cover for qualifying accidental injuries in New Zealand, including treatment subsidies and possible weekly compensation.
Anyone injured in New Zealand can be covered for qualifying accidents, including visitors, but illness is not covered.
A health provider lodges the ACC claim after treating the injury.
NZ Super
New Zealand Superannuation
Residence-based public pension paid from age 65.
Age 65+, ordinarily resident in New Zealand, and meeting residence/presence requirements or agreement-country rules.
Apply through Work and Income before turning 65 or when eligible.
Temporary Additional Support
Temporary Additional Support
Short-term last-resort help for essential living costs when other income and assistance are not enough.
Work and Income hardship rules, residence status, cash asset tests, and budget assessment.
Apply through Work and Income with full income, asset, and cost evidence.
Contribution Overview
Employees do not pay a broad social security contribution like in Germany or France. Payroll deductions are mainly PAYE income tax, ACC earners levy, KiwiSaver if enrolled, student loan deductions if applicable, and any court/family support deductions. Employers also pay ACC levies and KiwiSaver employer contributions for eligible workers. Self-employed people pay income tax, ACC levies, GST if registered, and arrange their own retirement saving.
International Social Security Agreements
New Zealand has social security agreements with selected countries, including Australia, Canada, Denmark, Greece, Ireland, Jersey/Guernsey, Malta, the Netherlands, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. Agreements can help with NZ Super or overseas pension entitlement, but they do not make all benefits portable or remove every residence requirement. Check Work and Income for the current agreement text before relying on it.
Three newcomer traps: (1) assuming ACC covers illness, (2) assuming residence automatically means benefit entitlement, and (3) assuming NZ Super is contribution-based. Keep arrival/departure records, visa evidence, tax residency evidence, and overseas pension statements because New Zealand agencies often ask for dates and source-country proof.
Social Security
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