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More than 100,000 households claim rates help
More than 100,000 people have claimed a rates rebate so far this year.
The Rates Rebate scheme helps lower-income household who are struggling to pay their council rates.
From 1 July 2026, the maximum rebate will increase from $805 to $830. The income abatement threshold for SuperGold Cardholders will increase from $45,000 to $46,400.
The income abatement threshold for other ratepayers will increase from $32,210 to $33,210.
A household without a SuperGold Card with rates of $2000 a year can get some level of rebate until they earn $42,026 a year.
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Every household only earning NZ Super with rates of at least $2000 will be able to get the full rebate.
The Department of Internal Affairs said for the current 2025/26 rating year, it had refunded councils 105,698 rates rebate claims.
That covered the period between July last year and March.
In the previous full year, there were 104,344 claims refunded.
“That means with a few months to go we have already exceeded last year’s claims.”
Local Government Minister Simon Watts said: “We know the cost of living is putting immense pressure on Kiwis, with rising rates adding a further burden to household budgets.
“The government is committed to easing cost-of-living pressures for Kiwis. By making increases to the Rates Rebate Scheme, we are delivering targeted support to low-income ratepayers in need of assistance with paying their rates bill.”
Wellington City Council said it had processed 2223 rates rebate applications so far this year and had 244 active payment arrangements.
Hamilton City Council said it had approved 2908 in the current year, up from 2697 in the whole of the previous year. It had also approved 509 under its own council scheme.
Auckland Council said it had approved 14,500 so far this year, 14,800 in the last full year and 16,000 the year before that. It also had 1508 active payment plans in place.
FinCap, the network for financial mentors, said it was seeing an increasing number of debts to local government among people who sought help but a drop in the median amount of the debt.
“FinCap hears regularly from financial mentors who have assisted people with rates arrears as one of their multiple cost of living pressures. Those on fixed incomes, such as super, being stuck financially are often mentioned in this context,” spokesperson Jake Lilley said.
“The support approaches by councils for people who are having difficulty paying rates on time varies a lot across all the communities that financial mentors support. FinCap has recommended that councils look to the guidance in the framework for debt to government for all the debts they might create.”
The Taxpayers Union’s survey of councils showed the average rates bill across the country is now $3386, up $451 from the previous year. It said the highest average was in Porirua, at $5591, and the lowest in Otorohanga, at $2554.
The government is also working on a rates cap plan.
“Everyone is having to prioritise due to the tough economic times – councils are no different. They need guard-rails so that they can focus on prioritisation and make decisions about what it is best to spend their revenue on,” Watts said.
“Councils effectively operate as monopolies, and we have seen year on year rate increases which ratepayers cannot continue to sustain. That’s why we are introducing a rates cap to keep rates under control.”
Details on the final rates cap model are expected to be announced later this year.
RNZ
The chief executive of the Parliamentary Service is confident there will be enough room to accommodate the increased number of MPs and their staff coming into Parliament.
On current numbers, up to 131 MPs could be sitting in the Chamber following the election, brought on by a record overhang result.
Clerk of the House of Representatives Dr David Wilson told the Spinoff that currently the debating chamber had enough chairs to seat 124 MPs – including the Speaker of the House – and work was being done to accommodate more by altering the seating arrangement.
In a statement, Parliamentary Service chief executive Rafael Gonzalez-Montero said planning for a larger Parliament had been going for “some time”.
“Now that the election results have confirmed an increase to the number of members we are looking at several options.
“We are confident we will be able to accommodate all members within the Chamber.”
VNP / Phil Smith
Gonzalez-Montero said office accommodation for members and their staff would be “stretched” for a short time, but the new Members’ Building was only a few months away from “practical completion”.
That building – located behind Parliament – was due to be ready to occupy in April next year and had capacity to accommodate around 30 backbench MPs.
“All members should be in fit-for-purpose accommodation from that point,” Gonzalez-Montero said.
Following the 2023 election, 123 MPs sat in the Chamber – a record number at the time. That decreased to 122 following the resignation of National MP Judith Collins.
Collins held the seat of Papakura and stepped down in May and Parliament voted against holding a by-election because it was too close to the election.
The election result also meant high-ranking National Party MPs like Chris Bishop, Paul Goldsmith, Nicola Willis and Gerry Brownlee – Speaker of the House and an MP for 30 years – would likely not make it back into Parliament.
Only resigning or retiring MPs were permitted to give a valedictory speech meaning none of them would get the chance to give a valedictory statement.
Asked if their would be special allowances for valedictories, Wilson said in a statement that normally only MPs were allowed to speak in the House but the House could suspend its own rules or temporarily alter them.
“It could do so to allow former members to address the House.”
Wilson said no such arrangements could be made until the next Parliament opened and members sworn in.
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