Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Social Security Act 2018

Factors affecting benefits - Factors affecting benefits - Factors affecting eligibility for benefit: shared care of dependent child

195: Shared care of dependent child

You could also call this:

“How the government decides which parent gets extra money for shared childcare”

If your parents live apart and both get benefits, this law explains how the government decides which parent gets extra money for taking care of you. This only applies if you spend at least 40% of your time with each parent.

The government will only give extra money for you to one parent. They call this parent the “primarily responsible parent”. To figure out who this is, they will:

  1. Try to decide which parent takes care of you more.
  2. If they can’t decide that, they’ll look at who took care of you the most before your parents started living apart.
  3. If they still can’t decide, they’ll ask your parents to agree on who should get the extra money.

If your parents can’t agree, neither of them will get extra money for taking care of you until they do agree.

Remember, this only matters for deciding about benefits. It doesn’t change how much time you spend with each parent or how much they care about you.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM6783514.

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“No more extra money cut for not helping with child support”

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196: Rules for assessing which parent has greater responsibility for dependent child, or

“How to figure out which parent takes care of a child more”

Part 4 Factors affecting benefits
Factors affecting benefits: Factors affecting eligibility for benefit: shared care of dependent child

195Shared care of dependent child

  1. This section applies if—

  2. the parents of a dependent child live apart; and
    1. both parents receive benefits; and
      1. each parent has the primary responsibility for the care of the child for at least 40% of the time.

        1. In assessing the benefit and rate of benefit of each parent, MSD must treat the child as a dependent child in assessing the benefit and rate of the primarily responsible parent only.

        2. In subsection (2), the primarily responsible parent is—

        3. the parent who MSD decides has the greater responsibility for the child; or
          1. if MSD is unable to make a decision under paragraph (a), the parent who MSD decides was the child’s principal caregiver immediately before the parents began living apart; or
            1. if MSD is unable to make a decision under paragraph (a) or (b), the parent who the parents agree is the primarily responsible parent.

              1. If the primarily responsible parent cannot be identified under subsection (3), MSD must not take the child into account in assessing the benefit and rate of benefit of either parent until the parents agree who is the primarily responsible parent.

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