KiwiSaver: significant financial hardship

The Significant Financial Hardship Withdrawal (Hardship) online application requires a number of supporting documents to be provided in order for an assessment to be made. You will need to have the following documents ready to provide with your online application:

Bank statements showing the daily transactions for the last 3 months for all your bank accounts (and your partner's if applicable)

Evidence of your living arrangements:
- your most recent mortgage statements if a homeowner,
- a copy of your tenancy agreement or
- the completed living arrangement form (available for download in step 4 of the application)

Proof of income:
- 3 of your most recent payslips
- if you are self-employed, please provide a letter from an accountant confirming the drawings for the last 3 months. Alternatively, please provide a screenshot of your IRD income summary for the last 3 months.
- If you are unemployed, we will require either a letter from WINZ confirming your request for assistance has been declined or a letter confirming the benefit entitlement you will be receiving.

Overdue bills:
- The must be less than 30 days old & outline the outstanding balance and regular minimum payments required.
- This includes utility bills (e.g. electricity), store cards, personal or car loans or any other overdue accounts

Statutory Declaration: Print and take the statutory declaration to a Justice of the peace (JP), Solicitor, Notary Public, or other person authorised to take a statutory declaration.

If you find you need additional documents when you are completing the online form you can easily save and come back later.

Significant financial hardship applications are assessed and approved by Public Trust, the Supervisor of the AMP KiwiSaver Scheme. The Supervisor is a legally appointed, independent guardian of AMP investments and investors. They will decide how much you can withdraw based on your circumstances. AMP will help submit your application so that it will be considered by the Supervisor. All KiwiSaver providers undergo the same assessment process and methodology which is overseen by an appointed third-party Supervisor who reviews all Hardship requests.

Financial hardship applications can take up to 15 business days once all required documents have been received. Once we have completed our assessment, your case will be submitted to our Scheme Supervisor for review and a final decision will be made within 3 business days of it being submitted to them. We will communicate the outcome with you as soon as possible.

Below is a breakdown of the steps involved when you submit a Financial Hardship application.

Step 1:
We’ll check your application and supporting documents. If anything is missing, we’ll let you know what we need. It’s important that we have everything we need before we can start assessing your application. The Supervisor may decline your application if they do not have sufficient information.

Step 2:
We’ll do an initial assessment of your application and send it to the Scheme Supervisor who will make the final decision.

Step 3:
We will contact you as soon as we have a decision from the Scheme Supervisor.

Step 4:
If your application is approved, you’ll receive an amount that, in the Supervisor’s opinion, is required to relieve your hardship. Generally this covers any shortfall for your minimum living expenses for three months, plus any amount to pay overdue bills or arrears. It is important to note that this may differ from the amount you have requested. Please note that under financial hardship, we are unable to pay off a credit card or loans in full.

If you are experiencing financial hardship, there are several alternatives to withdrawing your KiwiSaver funds that may provide more immediate or ongoing support.

• Work and Income (WINZ): You can contact WINZ to explore government support options, including benefits, emergency assistance, and help with housing or living costs.
• Budgeting help (Sorted or MoneyTalks): Free budgeting services like Sorted and MoneyTalks can support you in managing your finances, creating a plan, and accessing professional financial guidance.
• Advice (Citizens Advice Bureau): The Citizens Advice Bureau offers free, confidential advice on your rights and the support services available to you.
• Justice of the Peace (JP Finder): If you need documents witnessed or certified, a Justice of the Peace can assist at no cost, and you can find one easily using the JP Finder tool.
• Further information (MoneyHub): MoneyHub provides clear, detailed guidance on KiwiSaver hardship withdrawals and alternative options, helping you make informed financial decisions.
• Savings suspension (Inland Revenue): If KiwiSaver contributions are putting pressure on your finances, you can apply to Inland Revenue for a temporary suspension to your Kiwisaver contributions, which can help to improve your cash flow. For information, see below.