Do I have to pay for my partner's care?
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RNZ
Send your questions to
susan.edmunds@rnz.co.nz
If one person in a de facto relationship needs permanent medical care, does the Government require the other partner to pay for the care once the unwell patient's funds run out?
The basic answer to your question is that when your partner is being assessed for their ability to pay for their care, your income and assets will usually be taken into account.
If you're referring to medical care in a rest home setting, your assets and personal income affect whether your partner will qualify for a residential care subsidy.
"People who need residential care are required to pay for it themselves, if they can afford to do so. If they cannot afford it, they may be eligible for a residential care subsidy, which Health New Zealand pays directly to the care provider," said Ministry of Social Development group general manager for client service delivery Graham Allpress.
"MSD's role is to check whether people qualify for this subsidy by performing a 'financial means assessment'.
"To get the subsidy, a person's income and assets must be under a certain amount. If they are in a relationship, the combined income and assets of both parties must be under a certain amount."
People can qualify for the subsidy if they are 50 to 64, single and without dependent children, or over 65 and meet the income and means test. That means, even if your partner's funds have run out, your assets could still be taken into account.
If only one partner needs care, the couple combined need to have assets of no more than $155,873 not including the family home and car, or $284,636 if you do want the home and car in the assessment.
If it's other types of care that you're thinking of, it could be a good idea to contact Health NZ for a needs assessment.
There are options such as the supported living payment but eligibility for this is assessed on a household income basis, too.
I'm currently a NZ tax resident living in NZ, but previously lived in Australia (over a decade ago) and purchased shares on the ASX that I continue to own and receive dividends for (which I declare as part of my income). If I sold these shares now, worth about $150,000, what taxes would they be subject to? Specifically, would I have to pay a capital gains tax on the increased share value (as I would if I were an Australian tax resident).
This is probably a question for an accountant with expertise in Australian tax.
Based on information available online, it seems that you potentially should have paid tax on the shares in Australia when you stopped being an Australian resident.
Assuming that didn't happen, the Australian Tax Office is likely to be expecting capital gains tax to be paid on them when they are sold.
You aren't likely to have any New Zealand tax obligations.
Tax experts tell me that the authorities have access to a lot of data these days so it's possible that the Australian Tax Office will find out about any share sale and might get in touch with you.
I am 78 years of age and still work part time and also still contribute to my KiwiSaver. Am I eligible for the government contribution?
Sorry, no. While the government said it was going to start making contributions to 16 and 17-year-olds' accounts, it hasn't budged on the upper limit of 65.
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Deep dive into New Zealand's growing meth crisis
Mike Corrigan from ANT Trust says the increase in meth use is causing a ripple in the community. Photo: Aleksandr Shyripa Methamphetamine use has exploded over the past year, with the social and health related harm yet to be seen. The government is actively looking at ways to respond and the Prime Minister has pulled together a "meth sprint team", which includes the justice, police, customs and mental health ministers. RNZ understands announcements about their response are expected in the next month or so. The response also comes as Associate Police and Customs Minister Casey Costello looks at how to tackle the wider network of organised crime. Monthly reports from the Ministerial Advisory Group (MAG) on Transnational, Serious and Organised Crime (TSOC) have painted a stark picture of a New Zealand not equipped to deal with the increasing threat of organised crime and corruption. Lillian Hanly takes a closer look at the reports and what's needed to combat the hold methamphetamine has on communities. Wastewater testing has showed a 96 percent increase of consumption of methamphetamine in 2024, compared to 2023. That was an increase from 732kg in 2023 to 1434kg in 2024. Professor Chris Wilkins leads the Massey University College of Health drug research team. Photo: RNZ / Rebekah Parsons-King Professor Chris Wilkins is the leader of the drug research team at the College of Health, Massey University. Wilkins described it as almost a "doubling" and said a change of that magnitude that quickly was "almost unheard of". "Something pretty major happened and it happened in a very short timeframe," he said. New Zealand Drug Foundation executive director Sarah Helm said she had heard from those working on the ground with people coming through for addiction treatment, saying they were using "as much as a gram a day". "Which is a heck of a lot of methamphetamine." Helm said it wasn't clear yet whether there had been a growth in the number of people consuming overall, but she expected to see more acute harm occurring and, over time, more addiction as well. New Zealand Drug Foundation executive director Sarah Helm. Photo: Supplied/ NZ Drug Foundation Wilkins said he believed it was a supply side impact and that there was now increased competition for supply of methamphetamine. He explained the price of meth had dropped too, with a 38 percent decline in the price of a gram since 2017 and a 23 percent decline in the 'point price'. Compared to international prices though, New Zealand remained an attractive place to sell. Wilkins said New Zealand had had methamphetamine for more than two decades and it could be characterised as having a "mature demand profile". "It's pretty baked in." He said people knew about it, and knew if they used it or not. "It wasn't the case that suddenly people woke up in that last quarter of 2024 and decided, 'Well, we're going to double our meth use'' or 'We're really interested in meth suddenly'." One region in the Hawke's Bay - Waipukurau - saw a whopping 333 percent increase in meth use in 2024, compared to 2023. At the end of last year, Northland had the highest consumption of meth in the country. The Ngāpuhi Mane Tahere chairman sounded the alarm over the crisis in April, calling for government intervention - and the Police Minister met him the same week, but it's not a new issue for the region. RNZ spoke to a range of providers in the Far North, most with lived experience of drug addiction themselves, about what they're seeing. Te Hiku Hauora chief executive Maria Baker. Photo: RNZ / Māni Dunlop Maria Baker is the chief executive of Te Hiku Hauora, a health organisation serving the Far North. She said more than a generation had now been impacted by methamphetamine in the region. She also pointed to social issues that made things harder for their community - "lack of income, poor housing and lack of access to employment". Baker said methamphetamine seemed to be the "drug of use" now, replacing alcohol and cannabis. She said a lot more people and a range of different people from all sorts of age groups were accessing and using methamphetamine. "We see it. We see it in the street, we see it in our services. "We see it in the communities that we visit, so it tends to be a lot more visible. "To me, it suggests it's cheap and it's accessible, and it's available here." Echoing that sentiment was Rakau Ora found and director Vanessa Kite. Rakau Ora is a mental wellness service in Kaitaia. Kite said she had 30 years of lived addiction experience and much of what she saw now was the same as 20 years ago, but now she saw generational addiction. Waiana Waipouri (left), Vanessa Kite (middle) and Taniana Harrison. Photo: Supplied/Vanessa Kite "We've got fourth-generation meth users, which we weren't seeing in my time. "We've got whānau - very young whānau - that are starting their drug journey, not with dope or anything like the old days. They're starting on meth." Kite said 15 or 16-year-olds using meth wasn't uncommon. "My clients that are probably in their early 20s have already tried at least once to give up drugs." Justin Murray is general manager for Hope House Trust, a small family-based rehabilitation centre in Kaitaia, founded by Murray's parents. They are a family of lived experience, who have come from addiction and recovered. They have a seven-bed facility, offering drug and alcohol related support to individuals. He described hearing about an increased level of psychosis occurring alongside increased methamphetamine use, due to the current quality of the drug. He said there'd been more disruption with those presenting having used the drug than before. "It just takes a fair bit of time to try and get individuals to calm down, meet them at their needs and get to a therapeutic understanding… because there's a heavy emphasis on paranoia that comes with that psychosis." Lance Murray, Timothy Murray, Faye Murray and Justyn Murray from Hope House. Photo: Supplied/Justyn Murray Mike Corrigan from ANT Trust - a non-profit organisation in Kaitaia - said the increase in meth use was causing a ripple in the community. "You see it in justice, you see it at the food bank, you see it in education, and disruption through kids and their schooling. You see it in the reported burglaries and crime." He said the level of violence was also increasing and referenced an organisation that worked with police around family harm. "They aren't seeing an increase in numbers, but they're seeing an increase in the brutality of those callouts, lots more strangulation events and vicious violence." Corrigan said Northland topping the charts again lately didn't mean it was a new problem and those working to "stem the tide" were failing miserably. He also pointed out many of those working to fight the epidemic didn't have the same voice as the Ngāpuhi chair, who "manages to raise their issue and get the Minister of Police down the next two days later". "We're a long way away from resources and help. We're a long way away from Wellington. "We don't have the resources, we don't have the programmes. We don't have the infrastructure even to effectively cope with what was happening a year ago, let alone what's happening with the increase now." Where are the resources and where is the help? Associate Police Minister and Customs Minister Casey Costello. Photo: RNZ In late February, the MAG on organised crime (TSOC) was established by Casey Costello, the Minister of Customs and Associate Minister of Police. Funded by the Proceeds of Crime Fund , it included members with experience across government, law enforcement, regulation and the private sector. The group provides monthly reports to the minister with findings and recommendations regarding New Zealand's response to organised crime. In March, the report stated the threat posed by organised crime in the country had increased substantially in the last five years and "even with the best of will, New Zealand is losing the fight ". A section in the report was titled, Rearranging the Deck Chairs on the Titanic. One specific issue it focused on was the "increasing availability of illicit drugs" in the country. It noted, 10 years ago, Customs seized nearly 55kg of methamphetamine over the entire year. Last year, Customs stopped more than 90kg every week. Overall, in 2023/24, 4.8 tonnes of methamphetamine was seized in New Zealand. That quantity was reflected in consumption. Based on wastewater monitoring, the report outlined, about 15kg of methamphetamine was consumed every week in the March 2019 quarter. In the December 2024 quarter, about 36kg was consumed on average each week. There was a 96 percent increase in 2024 of the minimum annual consumption of methamphetamine compared to 2023. About 72 million doses were consumed in 2024, with a social harm cost of $1.5 billion. MDMA and cocaine have a combined social harm cost of $157 million. It referenced how, in the past, major drug seizures would have a "clear impact" on consumption - but that was no longer the case. The April report described the need to drive down the profitability and increase the level of risk for organised crime. It estimated the annual profits of crime in New Zealand are about $1.6 billion, whereas police restrain only $75 million each year . The group said it was critical for the government to set a clear objective for "attacking the money". Costello told RNZ the country's legislation and investigative powers weren't moving as fast as the gangs were, but she also pointed to the "business cartels" above the gangs, who forced the supply into the New Zealand market, which she called "lucrative". She said the retail price of methamphetamine in New Zealand was $135,000 (NZD) per kilogram, whereas in the USA, it was $7500 (NZD), "so to sell in New Zealand, it's worth the risk". "We are being treated as any big business would treat us." She believed the greatest opportunity was to take the money away from them, "because if it's not profitable, they'll go somewhere else, where it's easier to do business". The latest report - from May - warned the government corruption and insider threats are increasing in New Zealand, despite the country's long-standing reputation as a country largely free of it. The group was told by enforcement agencies about "trusted insiders" at ports and airports helping to retrieve concealed shipments of illicit drugs, before customs inspections. It raised a specific concern in the Pacific, where exposure was increased, due to expansive maritime borders, strategic trade corridors, and growing cross-border flows of goods and people. It said the country was poorly prepared to tackle the increasing threat, and recommended developing a national anti-corruption strategy and modernising the Crimes Act. Ministerial Advisory Group chair Steve Symon has been a crown prosecutor for 20 years and worked with the police, as well as with regulatory or government departments and agencies. The group includes former Deputy Police Commissioner John Tims; Owen Loeffellechner, who has experience working with banks in relation to fraud; Craig Hamilton, who specialised in the recovery of the proceeds of crime; and Jarrod Gilbert - an academic expert on the issue of crime. "We're collectively seeing the problem being incredibly bad," Symond said. "This landscape we're seeing at the moment is some of the worst we've ever seen." Regarding drugs coming through the border, he said there were "too many gaps in the sieve". The group is tasked with preparing monthly reports addressing different topics - the first was to outline the scale and nature of the problem, because organised crime wasn't well understood in New Zealand, he said. In September, the group will offer the final 'omnibus' report, with a range of recommendations (or "bold strategies") for how the government might best address organised crime. That could involve law change, he said, given the Minister told the group she wanted them to be bold about their solutions, whether they focused on organisational, cultural or legal change. In this year's Budget, Costello allocated $35 million more over four years to target drug smuggling at the border and beyond. It's one part of a multi-pronged attack against the methamphetamine issue that included efforts from Ministers Costello, Paul Goldsmith (Justice), Mark Mitchell (Police) and Matt Doocey (Mental Health), or the "meth sprint team" the Prime Minister had put together. Costello oversees the taskforce, but is also focused on stopping meth at the border with her Customs portfolio. She's also in charge of the ROCC programme - Resilience to Organised Crime in Communities - which looks to strengthen communities after the drug environment has been stamped out, so it doesn't take hold again. With his Justice portfolio, Goldsmith has a broad role in the team, but he also passed the Gangs Act, ultimately giving police new powers to disrupt and directly target gang activity. Police Minister Mark Mitchell. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi Mitchell - as Police Minister - oversees the implementation of this, which Costello said was about disempowering the gangs in a public facing way. One of the key parts of this legislation is the gang patch ban. In the six months since it started, police data as of 14 May this year showed 521 charges had been laid for insignia breaches and 637 insignia items were seized. A much bigger 6052 other charges had been laid against validated gang members in the same period. There had been 426 searches of gang targets undertaken - 175 of those with a warrant and 251 without - and 89 firearms were also seized from gang members. Doocey looked at the demand side or the health-led response to ensure people who used meth got addiction support. Currently, $2.6 billion of government money is ring-fenced each year for mental health and addiction funding. About $231 million of that is spent on drug and alcohol services. The Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission released data last month showing only a quarter of people using specialist mental health and addiction services were accessing those services. It said there were signals of "service constraints", wait times were below the government target and the percentage of declined referrals had increased. When it came to tackling the drug issue, Costello said it wasn't about locking more people up in New Zealand that have addictions and problems. The focus needed to be on the "international cartels that are driving huge profit to themselves [and] drugs into our communities", she said. Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi Goldsmith told RNZ the ministerial sprint team was in "active conversations with officials around options". "We're looking at what we can do to disrupt both supply and demand. We'll make announcements in due course." Sarah Helm said there also needed to be work done to address demand, and reduce and prevent harm , rather than being overly reliant on seizures and drug busts. "If we don't address demand and reduction, those short supply-side measures are very short-lived, because as you grab one supply source, another one steps in to meet the demand." The Drug Foundation wanted the government to adopt a range of measures, including an escalation of addiction treatment; expanding proven health-based responses like Te Ara Oranga, a campaign that reduced stigma associated with the drug, and a focus on prevention through tackling unmet health needs like better treatment for those who use methamphetamine and have ADHD. One Australian study showed 45 percent of people who used illicit stimulants regularly screened positive for ADHD. Helm also acknowledged demand reduction measures on their own risked being "band aids", if the underlying social and economic drivers of methamphetamine use weren't also addressed. Helm visited the Far North and was surprised at what little healthcare, let alone addiction treatment support was available for people there, given it had been a problem there for a long time. "We are doing them a disservice at this point in time by not pouring some resource into that community to prevent the expensive harms that come down the track, both for them and society as a whole." When asked about the harm methamphetamine use caused and why society should care, professor Chris Wilkins pointed out that public attention increased or waned as the years went by, as did the attention from MPs. "A lot of time, it's out of sight, out of mind, because problematic meth use is concentrated in high deprivation neighbourhoods and parts of the country, and often they're rural or semi-rural towns, where not a lot of MPs ever go." Wastewater testing showed the quantity of use, but the impact of that consumption was harder to record and measure, he said. "Trust me, there's going to be a lot of flow-on effects, when you double the amount of meth people use." Northland providers RNZ spoke to all agreed peer support or lived experience was important, when it came to tackling methamphetamine. Maria Baker said a border control strategy was important and agreed a multi-agency approach was needed, but pointed out there'd already been attempts 20 years ago to do just that. She said local-based solutions were also necessary, which included community-designed and led approaches, that would also then build capacity and capability. Given they were based in an isolated and rural community, there was a lack of access or resources available for people to reach out to. The services that were available - like Hope House, Rakau Ora, ANT Trust - were doing the best they could, but didn't have a lot of investment. She said most investment was focused on addiction services, rather than early intervention. Mike Corrigan said leadership was needed in the community, and acknowledgement that no one agency or organisation could fix the problem - there needed to be collaboration. He said the Far North also needed the basics, like another rehab. Corrigan said they desperately needed help, but they'd be fools to look to the government for help, given the government had "abandoned our people in so many different aspects of life". Justyn Murray said Hope House had run without or with limited government funding, and had been able to see successes, but would welcome more. He wanted to see investment in efficient services and work to address the core reasons behind substance abuse. Vanessa Kite said everything came down to funding and she wanted to see more support for those with lived experience to become clinicians. She hoped grassroots organisations like hers would be considered for funding, not just the big organisations that are already trusted. She agreed with attempts to stop illicit drugs coming through the border, but also pointed out it was getting made here too. Kite said a lot of their work wasn't about fixing people, but "teaching them to fix themselves". "This is all generational, but if we can teach them the skills to get out of that, then we're winning." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Scoop
3 hours ago
- Scoop
Do I Have To Pay For My Partner's Care?
RNZ's money correspondent answers your questions. Send your questions to If one person in a de facto relationship needs permanent medical care, does the Government require the other partner to pay for the care once the unwell patient's funds run out? The basic answer to your question is that when your partner is being assessed for their ability to pay for their care, your income and assets will usually be taken into account. If you're referring to medical care in a rest home setting, your assets and personal income affect whether your partner will qualify for a residential care subsidy. 'People who need residential care are required to pay for it themselves, if they can afford to do so. If they cannot afford it, they may be eligible for a residential care subsidy, which Health New Zealand pays directly to the care provider,' said Ministry of Social Development group general manager for client service delivery Graham Allpress. 'MSD's role is to check whether people qualify for this subsidy by performing a 'financial means assessment'. 'To get the subsidy, a person's income and assets must be under a certain amount. If they are in a relationship, the combined income and assets of both parties must be under a certain amount.' People can qualify for the subsidy if they are 50 to 64, single and without dependent children, or over 65 and meet the income and means test. That means, even if your partner's funds have run out, your assets could still be taken into account. If only one partner needs care, the couple combined need to have assets of no more than $155,873 not including the family home and car, or $284,636 if you do want the home and car in the assessment. If it's other types of care that you're thinking of, it could be a good idea to contact Health NZ for a needs assessment. There are options such as the supported living payment but eligibility for this is assessed on a household income basis, too. I'm currently a NZ tax resident living in NZ, but previously lived in Australia (over a decade ago) and purchased shares on the ASX that I continue to own and receive dividends for (which I declare as part of my income). If I sold these shares now, worth about $150,000, what taxes would they be subject to? Specifically, would I have to pay a capital gains tax on the increased share value (as I would if I were an Australian tax resident). This is probably a question for an accountant with expertise in Australian tax. Based on information available online, it seems that you potentially should have paid tax on the shares in Australia when you stopped being an Australian resident. Assuming that didn't happen, the Australian Tax Office is likely to be expecting capital gains tax to be paid on them when they are sold. You aren't likely to have any New Zealand tax obligations. Tax experts tell me that the authorities have access to a lot of data these days so it's possible that the Australian Tax Office will find out about any share sale and might get in touch with you. I am 78 years of age and still work part time and also still contribute to my KiwiSaver. Am I eligible for the government contribution? Sorry, no. While the government said it was going to start making contributions to 16 and 17-year-olds' accounts, it hasn't budged on the upper limit of 65.
Scoop
3 hours ago
- Scoop
HMAC Welcomes Government Health Changes
Press Release – HMAC Chair Parekawhia McLean said the change allows the committee to provide both Minister and Health New Zealand strong and clear advice on Mori health priorities and support to improve Mori health outcomes. The Hauora Māori Advisory Committee (HMAC) welcomes the Government's decision to elevate its role to directly advise Health New Zealand and the Minister of Health on Māori health matters. Chair Parekawhia McLean said the change allows the committee to provide both Minister and Health New Zealand strong and clear advice on Māori health priorities and support to improve Māori health outcomes. 'The Minister has made it clear that the committee's role is to be directly focused on improving Māori health. We accept the challenge. 'The evidence is irrefutable that Māori health needs are huge. It is clear improving Māori health is good for the whole country,' she said. HMAC is also looking forward to working with the Iwi Māori Partnership Boards to support the critical role they play in local health planning and advocating for quality health services and improved outcomes.
