Will I have to pay for my wife's care? Ask Susan

RNZ News

6 hours ago

RNZ's money correspondent Susan Edmunds answers your questions.
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My wife is chronically ill, 10 years older than me at 71 and will at some point need care.
We are renting at the moment, pending the wind-up of my mother's estate. We will then either buy a section and put a tiny home on it, or continue renting, using interest income to offset the rest.
Were we to invest to offset rent costs, would our investment be considered equivalent to a family home, since the investment returns would be creating exactly that - we would not be able to afford both a house and a substantial investment?
Whether you get any help with paying for care will depend on your assets.
The Ministry of Social Development group general manger of client service delivery Graham Allpress says, in this situation, the asset test that would be applied for access to a rest home subsidy would be $155,873, not the higher limit that can be applied, if a house's value is taken into account.
"A family home must be a residential dwelling you own, and your partner or dependent children live in."
The asset limits will increase from 1 July, taking the limit in this situation to $159,810.
I have a question regarding secondary income tax. If my primary job is on part-time hours and my secondary job is on a casual contract, would I still need to use the secondary income tax code?
The short answer is yes, probably.
"In most instances, you should determine which is your 'main job' and determine the correct tax code, and then determine the right secondary tax code for other sources of income," Deloitte tax partner Robyn Walker said.
"Secondary tax codes may 'feel' like you are being taxed more, but it should, in general, all work out over the course of the year. The reasons why secondary codes are higher are they are taxing you at a higher rate, based on your expected income for the year; whereas your primary source of income benefits from a blending of the lower 10.5 percent and 17.5 percent rates."
If, at the end of the year, you have paid too much tax you are entitled to a refund.
She said, if your income was variable, you could have other options.
"If you have lumpy or variable income - which makes it difficult to determine which is your main job, or you have other sources of income or tax losses from a business - you can also consider applying to Inland Revenue to obtain a tailored tax code. Through this process, they will help you determine the best way to get your tax as accurate as possible throughout the year."
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