Welfare & income support
Net cost in this area
Four-year net. Bars share one scale. Solid adds to the deficit, light reduces it.
Extend paid parental leave from 26 to 30 weeks by 2029+$327mPartyhigh
Announced 26 Jul 2026. 27 weeks in 2027, 28 in 2028, 30 in 2029. National costing: $27m 2027/28, $56.6m 2028/29, $119m 2029/30; 4-yr total $327m, so 2030/31 is about $124.4m (NBR headline: $125m). Parents can also take leave at the same time. Long-term aim is 40 weeks, no date given or costed. From operating allowances.
Source$4/hour interim pay rise for ~65000 care and support workers+$2.50bPartyhigh
$2.5b over four years, in the fiscal plan. Annual = 4-yr / 4.
SourceStrengthen Working for Families (boost Family Tax Credit, reduce abatement, extend IWTC to out-of-work families)+$11.2bPartylow
Party "WFF - Family Top Up" yearly 2481/2702/2821/3153. 2026 manifesto restates the pledge but gives no 2026 costing; figure is the party's own Green Budget 2025 costing (Infometrics-reviewed), used as the best available party figure. Manifesto 2026 Incomes plan item 4. Not costed by TU.
SourceExtend ACC to illness and disability (phase 1: Agency for Comprehensive Care; health-condition benefits to 80% of minimum wage)+$9.31bPartylow
Party yearly -/3066/3096/3148. 2026 manifesto restates the pledge but gives no 2026 costing; figure is the party's own Green Budget 2025 costing (Infometrics-reviewed), used as the best available party figure. GB2025 funded first two years from ACC investment fund returns then new levies (not in 2026 tax plan).
SourceLiveable incomes: Income Guarantee ($395/wk + $140 sole parent top-up) replacing main benefits for people out of work+$8.15bPartylow
Party yearly 2362/1809/1928/2055. 2026 manifesto restates the pledge but gives no 2026 costing; figure is the party's own Green Budget 2025 costing (Infometrics-reviewed), used as the best available party figure. Manifesto 2026: "Increase benefits to liveable rates" and "guarantee a liveable income". Previous version used ~$21bn, which wrongly combined this with the student income guarantee (now a separate row).
SourceUniversal child benefit for the early years (Best Start expansion)+$2.82bPartylow
Party "Expansion of Best Start payment" yearly 700/703/706/709. 2026 manifesto restates the pledge but gives no 2026 costing; figure is the party's own Green Budget 2025 costing (Infometrics-reviewed), used as the best available party figure. Not costed by TU.
SourceAffordable Kai other: Fair Food Fund, doubled Work and Income food grants, food security network, Commerce Commission funding+$1.16bPartymedium
Party yearly figures: Fair Food Fund 150x4; W&I food grants 94/96/98/100; food security network 17/18/18/19; ComCom 25/26/26/27.
SourceKiwi Kids Grant: $5,000/yr for first 3 years of first 3 children+$1.20bPartymedium
NZF: '$400m by the third year once the full cycle is established'. 4-yr assumes build-up of 1/3, 2/3, 3/3, 3/3 of $400m (TU instead used 4x$400m = $1.6b). Independent check: NZF's 36,351 citizen births (2025) x ~90% first-three-children x $5k x 3 cohorts = ~$0.49b/yr at maturity, ~$1.47b over 4 yrs. NZF's figure may be low. Start date not stated.
SourceDouble baseline (main) benefit levels to the upper range of WEAG recommendations+$42.7bOur estimatelow
Method: PREFU 2026 forecasts of Jobseeker Support & Emergency Benefit, Supported Living Payment and Sole Parent Support for 2027/28-2030/31 (10,593/10,424/10,675/10,974 $m) x 100% (doubling). Treated as a lower bound: excludes extra entitlement from higher abatement thresholds and induced take-up; tax clawback minimal under TPM $30k tax-free threshold. No party costing.
SourceMokopuna Maori Authority: reallocate 70% of Oranga Tamariki budget (~$1bn/yr)$0mPartymedium
Reallocation of existing baseline; transition costs not costed.
SourceExtend paid parental leave from 26 to 30 weeks by 2029+$327mPartyhigh
Announced 26 Jul 2026. 27 weeks in 2027, 28 in 2028, 30 in 2029. National costing: $27m 2027/28, $56.6m 2028/29, $119m 2029/30; 4-yr total $327m, so 2030/31 is about $124.4m (NBR headline: $125m). Parents can also take leave at the same time. Long-term aim is 40 weeks, no date given or costed. From operating allowances.
Source$4/hour interim pay rise for ~65000 care and support workers+$2.50bPartyhigh
$2.5b over four years, in the fiscal plan. Annual = 4-yr / 4.
SourceStrengthen Working for Families (boost Family Tax Credit, reduce abatement, extend IWTC to out-of-work families)+$11.2bPartylow
Party "WFF - Family Top Up" yearly 2481/2702/2821/3153. 2026 manifesto restates the pledge but gives no 2026 costing; figure is the party's own Green Budget 2025 costing (Infometrics-reviewed), used as the best available party figure. Manifesto 2026 Incomes plan item 4. Not costed by TU.
SourceExtend ACC to illness and disability (phase 1: Agency for Comprehensive Care; health-condition benefits to 80% of minimum wage)+$9.31bPartylow
Party yearly -/3066/3096/3148. 2026 manifesto restates the pledge but gives no 2026 costing; figure is the party's own Green Budget 2025 costing (Infometrics-reviewed), used as the best available party figure. GB2025 funded first two years from ACC investment fund returns then new levies (not in 2026 tax plan).
SourceLiveable incomes: Income Guarantee ($395/wk + $140 sole parent top-up) replacing main benefits for people out of work+$8.15bPartylow
Party yearly 2362/1809/1928/2055. 2026 manifesto restates the pledge but gives no 2026 costing; figure is the party's own Green Budget 2025 costing (Infometrics-reviewed), used as the best available party figure. Manifesto 2026: "Increase benefits to liveable rates" and "guarantee a liveable income". Previous version used ~$21bn, which wrongly combined this with the student income guarantee (now a separate row).
SourceUniversal child benefit for the early years (Best Start expansion)+$2.82bPartylow
Party "Expansion of Best Start payment" yearly 700/703/706/709. 2026 manifesto restates the pledge but gives no 2026 costing; figure is the party's own Green Budget 2025 costing (Infometrics-reviewed), used as the best available party figure. Not costed by TU.
SourceAffordable Kai other: Fair Food Fund, doubled Work and Income food grants, food security network, Commerce Commission funding+$1.16bPartymedium
Party yearly figures: Fair Food Fund 150x4; W&I food grants 94/96/98/100; food security network 17/18/18/19; ComCom 25/26/26/27.
SourceNothing announced in this area.
Kiwi Kids Grant: $5,000/yr for first 3 years of first 3 children+$1.20bPartymedium
NZF: '$400m by the third year once the full cycle is established'. 4-yr assumes build-up of 1/3, 2/3, 3/3, 3/3 of $400m (TU instead used 4x$400m = $1.6b). Independent check: NZF's 36,351 citizen births (2025) x ~90% first-three-children x $5k x 3 cohorts = ~$0.49b/yr at maturity, ~$1.47b over 4 yrs. NZF's figure may be low. Start date not stated.
SourceDouble baseline (main) benefit levels to the upper range of WEAG recommendations+$42.7bOur estimatelow
Method: PREFU 2026 forecasts of Jobseeker Support & Emergency Benefit, Supported Living Payment and Sole Parent Support for 2027/28-2030/31 (10,593/10,424/10,675/10,974 $m) x 100% (doubling). Treated as a lower bound: excludes extra entitlement from higher abatement thresholds and induced take-up; tax clawback minimal under TPM $30k tax-free threshold. No party costing.
SourceMokopuna Maori Authority: reallocate 70% of Oranga Tamariki budget (~$1bn/yr)$0mPartymedium
Reallocation of existing baseline; transition costs not costed.
SourceNothing announced in this area.
Tags: Capital one-off spending that adds to debt rather than the annual deficit; Aspirational stated as a goal without a firm commitment; In current plans partly funded in Treasury's PREFU 2026 forecasts already. Change the filters above to include or exclude these.