People receiving main benefits in New Zealand
2019 Q2–2024 Q2, number of people
| Quarter | Number of people |
|---|---|
| 2019 Q2 | 291,969 |
| 2019 Q3 | 299,472 |
| 2019 Q4 | 314,409 |
| 2020 Q1 | 309,993 |
| 2020 Q2 | 353,439 |
| 2020 Q3 | 369,300 |
| 2020 Q4 | 389,499 |
| 2021 Q1 | 365,934 |
| 2021 Q2 | 354,744 |
| 2021 Q3 | 359,493 |
| 2021 Q4 | 368,172 |
| 2022 Q1 | 348,339 |
| 2022 Q2 | 344,622 |
| 2022 Q3 | 345,762 |
| 2022 Q4 | 353,904 |
| 2023 Q1 | 345,417 |
| 2023 Q2 | 351,759 |
| 2023 Q3 | 362,094 |
| 2023 Q4 | 378,711 |
| 2024 Q1 | 370,251 |
| 2024 Q2 | 380,889 |
Definitions
Working age: Working-age clients are aged 18-64 years. This definition reflects the minimum age of eligibility for most main benefits and the age of qualification for New Zealand Superannuation. In some cases benefits may be received by individuals outside of 'working age' (i.e. 18-64 years). Examples of this include individuals being eligible for a benefit from a younger age, or people over 65 years receiving the Emergency Benefit due to residency issues impacting on their eligibility for superannuation.
Ethnic group: Ethnic group data is self-identified and multiple ethnic groups may be chosen by an individual as fits their preference or self-concept. Multiple selected groups are then prioritised into a hierarchy. The Māori ethnic group has the highest priority in this hierarchy, followed by Pacific peoples. NZ European has the lowest priority.
Continuous duration: The length of time the client has continuously been receiving any main benefit.
Other main benefits: Includes the remaining benefit categories such as Emergency Benefit and working-age Youth Payment/Young Parent Payment (YP/YPP).
For more information
Data provided by
Ministry of Social Development
Dataset name
Benefit Fact Sheets: National level data tables June 2024
Webpage:
https://www.msd.govt.nz/about-msd-and-our-work/publications-resources/statistics/benefit/index.html
How to find the data
At URL provided, under Excel Tables, select 'National level data tables - June 2024'. All Recipients tables were combined into one tab for processing purposes by Figure.NZ.
Import & extraction details
File as imported: Benefit Fact Sheets: National level data tables June 2024
From the dataset Benefit Fact Sheets: National level data tables June 2024, this data was extracted:
- Sheet: Combined
- Range:
D6:X127 - Provided: 1,953 data points
This data forms the table Benefits - People receiving working age benefits by main type, characteristic 2019 Q2–2024 Q2.
Dataset originally released on:
July 18, 2024
About this dataset
The Benefit Fact Sheets provide a high-level view of trends in social welfare receipt, including Jobseeker Support, Supported Living Payment, Sole Parent Support and other main benefits.