Petition request

That the House of Representatives remove the requirement in section 8(3) of the New Zealand Superannuation and Retirement Income Act 2001 that to be eligible for NZ Super a person must have been resident and present in NZ, the Cook Islands, Niue and/or Tokelau for 5 years since the age of 50.

Petition reason

I feel the rule serves no purpose and discriminates against me. I have contacted politicians to ask the reason for it. Social Development Minister Louise Upston’s reply was that it is to establish that applicants have a recent connection with New Zealand through periods of actual physical residence. But I feel this is contradictory, because an applicant can live in a country with a Social Security Agreement with New Zealand, such as Guernsey, South Korea or Denmark, and still be eligible.

Signatures are now being accepted
35 days left
Closing date: 02 Dec 2026 11:59 PM NZST

Petition progress

  • Open for signatures
  • Closed for signatures
  • Select Committee
  • Reported
  • Referred to Minister
Number of signatures: 12
Closing date: 02 Dec 2026