Retirement

Superannuation

In New Zealand, there is no officially designated retirement age. However, many people aim to retire at the age of 65.

From the age of 65, retirement plans, including the government-funded New Zealand Superannuation (NZ Super), KiwiSaver and the University’s UniSaver scheme, begin to pay out savings to beneficiaries.

Superannuation is a biweekly payment provided to individuals aged 65 and above. To be eligible, certain criteria must be met:

Residency in New Zealand for a minimum of 10 years after reaching the age of 20.
At least five of those 10 years must be spent residing in New Zealand after turning 50.

If an individual has spent time living abroad, certain circumstances and countries, such as Australia, may be taken into account for qualification purposes.

Further information regarding eligibility for superannuation can be found on the official Work and Income website of the New Zealand government.

NZ Super

UniSaver

Unisaver is a registered superannuation scheme which is available to all permanent university staff members and to certain employees on fixed-term employment.

UniSaver offers a higher employer subsidy than KiwiSaver. For every 1% employee contribution, the University will match it with 1.35%; up to 6.75% employer contribution.

UniSaver is a not-for-profit organisation; hence their fees are lower than most KiwiSaver schemes.

UniSaver

KiwiSaver

The government of New Zealand has established KiwiSaver, a voluntary savings program designed to assist New Zealanders in saving for their retirement.

KiwiSaver offers a convenient and affordable method to save and invest for the post-retirement years, making it advantageous for most individuals to participate.

For employees, there is flexibility in selecting a personal contribution rate between 3% and 10% of their gross wage or salary, which is deducted before taxes and allocated to their KiwiSaver account. Employers are obligated to contribute 3% of an employee’s gross salary if the employee is making contributions.

Even for non-employees, there is an annual government contribution available, potentially reaching up to $521 per year until the age of 65.

The funds saved are managed and invested on behalf of participants by their chosen KiwiSaver provider.

KiwiSaver