Social Security Act 2018, s 347 Ministerial Direction on Advance Payment of Benefits, Recoverable Assistance Programme

Recoverable Assistance covers a wide range of costs, for example:

• household necessities (power, appliances, furniture, bedding, essential home repairs)
• things you need for work or school (driver licences, school uniforms, safety footwear)
• rent or a bond for new accommodation
• travel costs if you’re stranded and unable to get home or to a tangi.

Recoverable Assistance from Work and Income is usually the last resort – for example, when you’ve received an eviction notice from your landlord or a disconnection notice from your power company.

Work and Income will consider a range of things before they approve your request including:

• the effect on the on you or your family if the need is not met
• the amount of debt you already have with Work and Income
• whether they consider your need is “immediate”
• whether they believe you could pay for the need yourself
• your ability to repay the amount back
• whether the repayments will put you into further hardship
• whether you would be likely to apply again for the same thing.

Payments are made directly to suppliers (if they’re on Work and Income’s database) or indirectly through a payment card provided to you by Work and Income. They can also be paid to your bank account if it’s not possible to pay the supplier directly.

Tip: For practical information on what you can say to Work and Income when you are applying for Recoverable Assistance, go to www.clwaikato.org.nz and scroll down to “MSD and the law”.

The maximum amount for one payment is usually restricted to six times your weekly main benefit. If you’re not on a benefit, it will be restricted to six times the weekly rate of Supported Living Payment you would get if you were on benefit.

There are maximum amounts for certain specific costs including home repairs, safety footwear, and travel if you’re stranded and unable to return home.

You can apply for Recoverable Assistance more than once. However:

• the total amount to be repaid (the new payment + the amount owing on your previous payment) cannot be more than six times the main benefit rate, and
• Work and Income might decline if you’ve already applied for Recoverable Assistance in the last year for the same or similar reasons.

Tip: These restrictions might be lifted in exceptional circumstances – for example, if you, your partner or your children would suffer serious hardship, or if the restriction is unreasonable given your wider life circumstances.

You’ll usually be expected to repay the grant within two years, though this is not a requirement and Work and Income have the discretion to set lower repayments.

If you are receiving any assistance from Work and Income, this will be deducted from your payments each week. You can negotiate the rate of repayment but generally this will never be more than $40 a week. The debt is interest free.