NZ Super — Time Away: the rule, how days are counted, examples

Summary

New Zealand Superannuation (NZ Super) keeps being paid for the first 26 weeks of a trip abroad, as long as you are back within 30 weeks. If you return between week 27 and week 30, payments stop after week 26 and you keep what you received. If you stay away for more than 30 weeks, you may have to pay back all 26 weeks, unless the delay was beyond your control. Each trip is counted on its own. The Ministry of Social Development, through Work and Income, applies the rule.

Paid while away: The first 26 weeks of a trip
Hard limit: 30 weeks away, after which the 26 weeks may have to be paid back
Period: Each trip away from New Zealand, counted on its own
Other payments: Extra payments can continue for up to 28 days only
Law: New Zealand Superannuation and Retirement Income Act 2001, section 22
Run by: Ministry of Social Development, Work and Income

Who it applies to

People aged 65 or over who receive NZ Super and travel abroad for several months.
People who receive the Veteran's Pension, which follows the same travel rule.
Retired people who spend the northern summer with children and grandchildren abroad.
Couples where one partner is included in the other partner's NZ Super.
People who also receive the Winter Energy Payment, Accommodation Supplement or Disability Allowance.

The rule

NZ Super is normally paid only to people who are in New Zealand. Section 22 of the New Zealand Superannuation and Retirement Income Act 2001 makes an exception for temporary absences. NZ Super continues for the first 26 weeks of an absence if the absence does not last more than 30 weeks.

This gives three outcomes. If you return within 26 weeks, you are paid for the whole trip. If you return in week 27, 28, 29 or 30, payments stop at the end of week 26, you keep the 26 weeks and payments start again when you are back. If you stay away for more than 30 weeks, you were not entitled to the 26 weeks, and Work and Income can ask you to pay them back.

There is a protection for bad luck. If the absence goes beyond 30 weeks because of circumstances that were beyond your control and that you could not reasonably have foreseen before you left, the 26 weeks can still be paid. Work and Income gives examples such as an aircraft breakdown, a death in the family, or a sudden illness or injury of you, your partner or a relative. You should apply before the 26 weeks end and give proof.

Work and Income also expects that you intend to travel for less than 26 weeks, that you live mainly in New Zealand and that New Zealand is your home. It says you may not qualify if you spend more time abroad than in New Zealand over a year. If you only receive NZ Super, you do not need to tell Work and Income about a trip of 26 weeks or less. Longer stays abroad, and moves to another country, follow different rules, which the Act also sets out.

Why it exists

NZ Super is paid from general taxes to people who live in New Zealand. The 26-week rule lets retired people travel and visit family without losing income. The 30-week limit, with the duty to pay back, stops people from living abroad most of the time and still drawing a payment that is meant for residents.

Counting the days

You count how long one trip lasts, from the day you leave New Zealand to the day you return. Twenty-six weeks are 182 days and 30 weeks are 210 days.

Write down the day you leave New Zealand.
Add 26 weeks, which is 182 days. NZ Super is paid up to that point.
Add 30 weeks, which is 210 days. You should be back in New Zealand before that point.
If something outside your control delays your return, contact Work and Income before the 26 weeks end.
When you return, the count ends. The next trip starts a new count from zero.

How Countr counts it. Countr counts the whole days of your current trip away from New Zealand. The day you leave and the day you return are not counted as days away. The limit is set at 181 days, which is a little under 26 weeks, so the card warns early and never late, and the warning starts 30 days before. The card watches your current absence only. If a past trip already went over the limit, check your History, because the card will show nothing. If the app cannot see where you were on a day, the count starts again, so gaps make the number smaller and never bigger. The app does not judge the 30-week repayment rule or the reasons for a delay.

Track NZ Super — Time Away on your phone.

Countr finds your past trips in your photos and keeps counting from there.

Download on the App Store

Examples

A trip of five and a half months

Margaret flies to London on 1 May 2026 and returns to Christchurch on 15 October 2026. Her trip lasts 167 days, which is under 26 weeks. NZ Super is paid for the whole time and she does not need to tell Work and Income, because NZ Super is her only payment. When she lands, nothing changes.

Back in week 29

Rangi leaves on 1 March 2026 and returns on 20 September 2026. He is away for 203 days, which is 29 weeks. NZ Super is paid for the first 26 weeks, until the end of August, and then stops. Because he is back within 30 weeks, he keeps the 26 weeks. His payments start again once he is back in New Zealand.

More than 30 weeks away

Joan also leaves on 1 March 2026. She decides to stay longer with her daughter in Canada and returns on 10 November 2026, after 254 days, which is more than 36 weeks. The choice was hers and nothing forced it. Work and Income can ask her to pay back all 26 weeks that were paid. If she had been kept abroad by a sudden illness and had told Work and Income in time, the 26 weeks could have been kept.

Exceptions

If the absence passes 30 weeks for reasons beyond your control that you could not have foreseen before you left, the first 26 weeks can still be paid.
Extra payments such as the Winter Energy Payment, Accommodation Supplement, Disability Allowance and Temporary Additional Support can continue for up to 28 days only, and you must tell Work and Income before you leave.
If a partner is included in your NZ Super, the partner's payments also stop after week 26, and the partner cannot be included again when you return.
The Veteran's Pension follows the same 26-week rule.
People who plan to be away for longer, or to live in another country, come under different rules and should talk to Work and Income before they go.

Common misconceptions

“I can be away for 26 weeks per year.”: The rule is per trip, not per year. But Work and Income also expects you to live mainly in New Zealand, and says you may not qualify if you spend more time abroad than in New Zealand over a year.
“If I stay 31 weeks, I only lose the weeks after week 26.”: After more than 30 weeks you may have to pay back all 26 weeks that were paid during the trip, unless the delay was beyond your control.
“I must always report my travel.”: If NZ Super or the Veteran's Pension is your only payment and the trip is 26 weeks or less, you do not need to tell Work and Income. You must report if you receive other payments.
“All my payments continue for 26 weeks.”: Only NZ Super and the Veteran's Pension do. Supplements and allowances can continue for up to 28 days.

Questions and answers

What happens if I come back in week 27?

Your NZ Super stops at the end of week 26 and you keep the 26 weeks you were paid. The duty to pay back arises only when the absence is longer than 30 weeks.

Does a short visit home start a new 26 weeks?

Each absence is counted on its own, so a new trip starts a new count. But you must still be living mainly in New Zealand, and Work and Income can look at how much of the year you spend abroad.

My flight was cancelled and I will be late. What should I do?

Contact Work and Income, by email to its international services team, before the 26 weeks end, and keep proof such as airline letters or medical notes. If the delay was beyond your control, payments can continue or the 26 weeks can be kept.

Can I get NZ Super while I live abroad for good?

The 26-week rule does not cover that. Moving to another country comes under separate rules about payment overseas and about New Zealand's social security agreements, so ask Work and Income before you leave.

How many days are 26 weeks and 30 weeks?

Twenty-six weeks are 182 days and 30 weeks are 210 days. Countr uses 181 whole days away for the first limit, so that its warning comes before the real limit.

Sources

Other rules for New Zealand

New Zealand Citizenship 1,350 days in any 5 years
New Zealand PR 368 days in any 2 years
New Zealand Tax Residence 183 days in any 12 months

See all trackers

This page explains the rule and how the days are counted. It is not legal or tax advice. The authority decides each case on its own facts.