Pursuant to section 124(1)(d) of the Social Security Act 1964, the Minister for Social Development and Employment establishes and approves the following welfare programme for special assistance.
Dated at Wellington this 23rd day of January 2007.
DAVID BENSON–POPE, Minister for Social Development and Employment.
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P r o g r a m m e
1. Title—This programme is the Transition to Work Grant Programme.
2. Commencement—This programme comes into effect on 30 April 2007.
3. Purpose—The purpose of this programme is to
support people to move into employment by providing
non-recoverable financial assistance for essential costs relating to seeking work, attending job interviews, moving into work and transitioning from one job to another.
4. Interpretation—(1) In this programme, unless the context otherwise requires:
52-week period, in relation to a grant, means
the 52 weeks immediately preceding the date of application for the grant
Act means the Social Security Act 1964
applicant means a person applying for a grant under this programme
employment means paid employment, but does not include:
(a) employment as a sex worker or as an operator of a business of prostitution (as those terms are defined in the Prostitution Reform Act 2003); or
(b) employment in any other occupation of a kind that provides, or directly facilitates the provision of, services:
(i) for the sexual gratification of one or more other persons; and
(ii) that are provided for payment or other reward (irrespective of whether the reward is given to the person providing the services or another person).
exceptional circumstances includes situations where
a person:
(a) has been granted an exemption from enrolment under section 22 of the Education Act 1989;
(b) is the parent of a dependent child or has a spouse or partner who is dependent on the person;
(c) relies on any form of state assistance; or
(d) is in extreme hardship.
full-time employment means:
(a) employment under a contract of service or apprenticeship requiring the employee to work, whether on time or piece rates, an average
(when calculated over a period of 4 consecutive weeks) of at least 30 hours a week; or
(b) employment for any number of hours regarded as full-time employment for the purposes of an award, agreement or contract relating to the employment.
grant means a transition to work grant, being the special assistance under this programme
working age benefit means any of the following benefits:
(a) an unemployment benefit;
(b) a sickness benefit;
(c) a domestic purposes benefit;
(d) an emergency benefit (other than an emergency benefit payable under section 17(2)(c) of the
New Zealand Superannuation and Retirement Income Act 2001);
(e) an independent youth benefit;
(f) an invalid’s benefit;
(g) a widow’s benefit;
(h) New Zealand superannuation if the applicant is the spouse or partner of a person who has elected to receive the appropriate rate set out in clause 2 of Schedule 1 to the New Zealand Superannuation and Retirement Income Act 2001; or
(i) a veteran’s pension if the applicant is the spouse or partner of a person who has elected to receive the appropriate rate set out in clause 2 of Schedule 11 to the War Pensions Act 1954.
(2) Expressions defined in section 3(1) of the Act have the same meaning in this programme.
5. Application of the Social Security Act—(1) Sections 12, 62, 63, 64, 66, 66A, 66B, 68, 68A, 71, 73, 74, 74A, 76, 77, 80A, 81, 82(7), 82A, 84 and 86J of the Act apply to this programme and to any applicant as if the grant was a benefit.
(2) Nothing in subclause (1) limits or affects the application of any other section of the Act.
6. Eligibility—A person is eligible for a grant if he or she is 18 years or over (or who is under the age of 18 years if exceptional circumstances apply) and:
(a) is interacting with the department to find full-time employment (not being temporary employment);
(b) is interacting with the department to find
temporary, seasonal or part-time employment if
the chief executive considers that it is not appropriate or reasonable in the circumstances to require the applicant to enter full-time employment of a permanent kind;
(c) is registered with Student Job Search;
(d) will enter full-time employment (not being temporary employment); or
(e) will enter temporary, seasonal or part-time employment if the chief executive considers that
it is not appropriate or reasonable in the circumstances to require the applicant to enter
full-time employment of a permanent kind.
7. Ineligibility—(1) But a person is not eligible for a grant if he or she:
(a) has cash assets (including the cash assets of his or her spouse or partner, if any) of more than:
(i) in the case of a single person, the amount in clause 1 of Schedule 31 to the Act; or
(ii) in the case of a person who is married, in a
civil union, in a de facto relationship or is
a sole parent, the amount in clause 2 of that Schedule; or
(b) is a person whose income (including the income
of his or her spouse or partner, if any) is more than the appropriate amount set out in Part 2 of Schedule 31 to the Act;
(c) is a recipient of New Zealand superannuation payable under the New Zealand Superannuation and Retirement Income Act 2001 or a veteran’s pension payable under Part 6 of the War Pensions Act
1954, unless the chief executive considers the circumstances of the applicant mean that a grant is appropriate and reasonable in the circumstances.
(2) An applicant is not eligible for a grant to enter:
(a) employment-related training (except for training paid for by the employer as part of the employment the applicant is entering), education, voluntary work or work experience; or
(b) a job seeker development activity.
8. Application form must be completed—(1) A grant may be made to an applicant only if an application form
for the purpose is completed in writing by or on behalf
of the applicant.
(2) The form must be provided by the chief executive.
9. Costs—(1) The chief executive may, in his or her discretion, make a grant to assist an applicant who has
an immediate need for financial assistance for one or more of the following kinds of essential costs:
(a) Job seeking expenses, meaning costs involved with seeking work and attending and participating in job interviews, including:
(i) clothing costs;
(ii) child care costs;
(iii) the cost of an interpreter;
(iv) transport costs;
(v) the costs of tattoo removal if the applicant is referred to a tattoo removal service by a registered medical practitioner.
(b) Job placement expenses, meaning costs that an applicant will need to incur to enter employment (other than training costs) including:
(i) the cost of any necessary job-related clothing
or equipment (not being clothing or equipment the employer is required to supply to comply with the employer’s obligations under the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992);
(ii) the cost of any necessary job-related safety equipment required in order to take up employment that the employer is not required to supply in order to comply with any enactment;
(iii) child care costs up to the date of the applicant’s first payment of wages or salary for their new employment;
(iv) transport costs up to the date of the applicant’s first payment of wages or salary for their new employment;
(v) the costs of tattoo removal if the applicant
is referred to a tattoo removal service by a registered medical practitioner;
(vi) relocation costs, if the applicant needs to relocate his or her place of residence to take
up employment.
(c) Bridging finance expenses, meaning essential living expenses for an applicant (other than a student undertaking holiday employment) who:
(i) requires assistance in the period between the last payment of their working age benefit (or where relevant, the last payment of their wages or salary) and the applicant’s first payment of wages or salary; and either
(A) will enter full-time employment (not being temporary employment) within a period
of less than 4 weeks after the date of application for the grant; or
(B) will have their working age benefit cancelled upon entering full-time employment (not being temporary employment.
(2) A grant may not be made for costs if the applicant
has not taken all necessary steps to obtain any financial assistance towards such costs from any source from which he or she may be eligible to receive such assistance.
10. Amounts of grants—(1) The chief executive must not make grants to an applicant of more than $1,500.00 in total during a 52-week period.
(2) No grant of the following kinds must exceed:
(a) $300.00 for job seeking expenses under clause 9(1)(a); or
(b) an amount of $250.00 per week, or be made for a period of more than 2 weeks at any time, for bridging finance under clause 9(1)(c).
11. Payment of grants—(1) Every grant made in relation to the purchase of goods and services is to be paid:
(a) where practicable, to the person providing the goods or services for which the grant was made; or
(b) at the discretion of the chief executive, to the applicant.
(2) Every grant for bridging finance is to be paid to the applicant.
12. Obligations—(1) An applicant who seeks assistance for job placement expenses under clause 9(1)(b) or bridging finance under clause 9(1)(c) must provide the chief executive with confirmation of the starting date of the employment for which the assistance is required.
(2) When required by the chief executive, an applicant must provide proof of essential costs for job seeking expenses under clause 9(1)(a) and for job placement expenses under clause 9(1)(b).
(3) A person in receipt of a grant must attend and participate in any interview with an officer of the department as required.
13. Revocation—The Work Start Grant Programme* and the Pathways Payment Programme† are revoked.
Explanatory Note
This note is not part of the programme, but is intended to explain its general effect.
This programme, which comes into effect on 30 April
2007, replaces the Work Start Grant Programme and the Pathways Payment Programme. This programme provides non-recoverable financial assistance to meet the essential costs of moving into employment for the purpose of removing financial barriers to entering employment.
*New Zealand Gazette, 8 July 1999, No. 81, page 1890
†New Zealand Gazette, 11 July 2002, No. 78, page 2081