Sections 69G - 70, Social
Security Act 1964
69G Reasonable
steps to be taken to obtain overseas pension
(1)
Every
applicant for a benefit under this Act or under the Social Welfare
(Transitional Provisions) Act 1990 or under the New Zealand Superannuation Act
2001 shall provide to the chief
executive information establishing, to the satisfaction of the chief
executive,—
(a)
that
the applicant and the spouse of the applicant have taken all reasonable
steps
to obtain any overseas pension to which either or both of them may be
entitled
or that may be granted to either or both of them; and
(b)
that
the applicant has taken all reasonable steps to obtain any overseas
pension to
which any dependant of the applicant may be entitled or that may be
granted to
any dependant of the applicant.
(2)
The
chief executive may give to—
(a)
an
applicant for a benefit under this Act or under the Social Welfare
(Transitional Provisions) Act 1990 or under the New Zealand Superannuation Act
2001; or
(b)
a
beneficiary under this Act or under the Social Welfare (Transitional
Provisions) Act 1990 or under the New
Zealand Superannuation Act 2001; or
(c)
the
spouse of an applicant for a benefit under this Act or under the Social
Welfare
(Transitional Provisions) Act 1990 or under the New Zealand Superannuation Act
2001; or
(d)
the
spouse of a beneficiary under this Act or under the Social Welfare
(Transitional Provisions) Act 1990 or under the New Zealand Superannuation Act
2001—
a written notice
requiring that
person to take all reasonable steps, within a period specified by the
chief
executive, to obtain any overseas pension to which that person may be
entitled
or that may be granted to that person.
(3)
The
chief executive may give to—
(a)
an
applicant for a benefit under this Act or under the Social Welfare
(Transitional Provisions) Act 1990 or under the New Zealand Superannuation Act
2001; or
(b)
a
beneficiary under this Act or under the Social Welfare (Transitional
Provisions) Act 1990 or under the New
Zealand Superannuation Act 2001—
a written notice
requiring that
person to take all reasonable steps, within a period specified by the
chief
executive, to obtain any overseas pension to which any dependant of
that person
may be entitled or that may be granted to any dependant of that person.
(4)
Where
a person does not comply with a notice given by the chief executive
under
subsection (2) or subsection (3) of this section, the chief executive
may—
(a)
refuse
to grant the benefit applied for by the applicant:
(b)
suspend,
from such date as the chief executive determines, the benefit granted
to the
beneficiary until either—
(i)
the
beneficiary provides information establishing, to the satisfaction of
the chief
executive, that the beneficiary and the spouse of the beneficiary have
taken
all reasonable steps to obtain any overseas pension to which either or
both of
them may be entitled or that may be granted to either or both of them
or, as
the case requires, that the beneficiary has taken all reasonable steps
to
obtain any overseas pension to which any dependant of the beneficiary
may be
entitled or that may be granted to any dependant of the beneficiary; or
(ii)
the
benefit is terminated under subsection (5) of this section,—
whichever occurs first.
(5)
Where
a benefit has been suspended under subsection (4) of this section, the
chief
executive may, not less than 40 working days after the suspension,
terminate
the benefit from such date as the chief executive determines.
69H Information
on rate of overseas pension to be provided
(1)
Every
applicant for a benefit under this Act or under the Social Welfare
(Transitional Provisions) Act 1990 or under the New Zealand Superannuation Act
2001 shall provide to the chief
executive information establishing, to the satisfaction of the chief
executive,
the rate of any overseas pension granted to any of the following
persons:
(a)
the applicant:
(b)
the applicant’s spouse:
(c)
any dependant of the applicant.
(2)
Where
an applicant does not comply with subsection (1) of this section within
10
working days after applying for the benefit, the chief executive may
refuse to
grant the benefit applied for.
(3)
Every
beneficiary under this Act or under the Social Welfare (Transitional
Provisions) Act 1990 or under the New
Zealand Superannuation Act 2001 shall provide to the chief
executive, as
requested from time to time in a written notice given to that person by
the
chief executive, information establishing, to the satisfaction of the
chief
executive, the rate of any overseas pension granted to any of the
following
persons:
(a)
the beneficiary:
(b)
the beneficiary’s spouse:
(c)
any dependant of the beneficiary.
(4)
Where
a beneficiary does not comply with subsection (3) of this section
within 10
working days after the notice has been given, the chief executive may
suspend,
from such date as the chief executive determines, the benefit granted
to the
beneficiary until either—
(a)
the beneficiary provides information
establishing, to the satisfaction of the chief executive, the rate of
any overseas
pension granted to the beneficiary or the beneficiary’s spouse or any
dependant
of the beneficiary; or
(b)
the benefit is terminated under subsection
(5) of this section,—
whichever occurs first.
(5)
Where
a benefit has been suspended under subsection (4) of this section, the
chief
executive may, not less than 40 working days after the suspension,
terminate
the benefit from such date as the chief executive determines.
(6)
In
this section, the term rate, in
relation to an overseas pension, means the rate of that pension in the
currency
of the country paying that pension.
69I Duty of chief
executive to assist
It is the duty of the
chief
executive to take all reasonable steps to assist any person to comply
with any
obligation imposed on that person by or under section 69G(1) to (3) or
section
69H(1) or (3) of this Act.
70 Rate of benefits if
overseas pension payable
(1)
For
the purposes of this Act, if—
(a)
Any
person qualified to receive a benefit under this Act or
under the Social Welfare (Transitional Provisions) Act 1990
or under the New Zealand
Superannuation Act 2001 is entitled to receive or
receives, in respect of that person or of that person’s spouse or of
that
person’s dependants, or if that person’s spouse or any of that person’s
dependants
is entitled to receive or receives, a benefit, pension, or periodical
allowance
granted elsewhere than in New Zealand; and
(b)
the
benefit, pension, or periodical allowance, or any part of it, is in the
nature
of a payment which, in the opinion of the chief executive, forms part
of a
programme providing benefits, pensions, or periodical allowances for
any of the
contingencies for which benefits, pensions, or allowances may be paid
under
this Act or under the Social Welfare
(Transitional Provisions) Act 1990 or
under the New Zealand
Superannuation
Act 2001 or under the War Pensions Act 1954 which is administered by or
on
behalf of the Government of the country from which the benefit,
pension, or
periodical allowance is received—
the rate of the benefit
or benefits
that would otherwise be payable under this Act or under the Social
Welfare
(Transitional Provisions) Act 1990 or under the New Zealand Superannuation Act
2001 shall, subject to subsection
(3) of this section, be reduced by the amount of such overseas benefit,
pension, or periodical allowance, or part thereof, as the case may be,
being an
amount determined by the chief executive in accordance with regulations
made
under this Act:
Provided that if the
chief executive
determines that the overseas benefit, pension, or periodical allowance,
or any
part of it, is in the nature of, and is paid for similar purposes as,—
(a)
compensation for injury or death for which
payment could be made under the Injury
Prevention, Rehabilitation, and Compensation Act 2001
if
the injury or death had occurred in New Zealand after the commencement
of that
Act; or
(b)
a war pension or allowance granted under
the War Pensions Act 1954 of a type which would not affect any
recipient’s
entitlement to a benefit in accordance with section 72 of this Act; or
(c)
a disability allowance granted under this
Act—
such overseas benefit,
pension, or
periodical allowance, or part of it, as the case may be, shall be
treated as if
it were in fact such compensation, war pension or allowance, or
disability
allowance.
(2)
Nothing
in subsection (1) of this section shall preclude the chief executive
from
deciding the date on which the chief executive’s determination under
paragraph
(b) of, or the proviso to, the said subsection (1) shall take effect,
which
date may be a date before, on, or after the date of such determination.
(3)
In
any case where paragraph (a) and paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of
this
section apply and the proviso to subsection (1) of this section does
not apply,
the chief executive may—
(a)
make
an arrangement with an overseas pensioner, in accordance with any
regulations
made under section 132C of this Act, to pay to the overseas pensioner
the rate
of the benefit or benefits that is payable under this Act or the Social
Welfare
(Transitional Provisions) Act 1990 or under the New Zealand Superannuation Act
2001 and to receive from the
overseas pensioner an amount equivalent to the amount of the overseas
pension
that the overseas pensioner receives, if—
(i)
the
overseas pensioner agrees to make such an arrangement; and
(ii)
the
overseas pensioner has not previously made such an arrangement and
voluntarily
terminated it; and
(iii)
the
chief executive has not previously ceased to make payments under
paragraph (b)
of this subsection because of the overseas pensioner’s failure to
comply with
such an arrangement; and
(b)
pay
to the overseas pensioner, in accordance with an arrangement made under
paragraph (a) of this subsection, the rate of the benefit or benefits
that is
payable under this Act or the Social Welfare (Transitional Provisions)
Act 1990
or under the New Zealand
Superannuation
Act 2001, if the chief executive receives from the overseas pensioner,
in
accordance with the arrangement, an amount equivalent to the amount of
the overseas
pension that the overseas pensioner receives.
(3A)
The
chief executive may from time to time, on behalf of the Crown, enter
into
contracts with 1 or more registered banks for the purpose of
implementing
arrangements under subsection (3)(a).
(3B)
No
money in a bank account maintained, in accordance with regulations made
under
section 132C, to implement an arrangement under subsection (3)(a) can—
(a)
be
attached or taken in execution under any order or process of any court:
(b)
be
made the subject of any set-off, charge, or assignment:
(c)
be
claimed or deducted under any notice or other instrument issued under
any
enactment (other than under regulations made under section 132C).
(3C)
If
the benefit referred to in an arrangement made under subsection (3)(a)
is New Zealand superannuation,
the chief
executive must pay any amount received from the overseas pensioner
under the
arrangement into the New
Zealand
Superannuation Fund established under the New Zealand Superannuation Act
2001, in accordance with
arrangements made from time to time by the chief executive with the
Guardians
of New Zealand Superannuation.
(4)
For
the purposes of this Act and section CB5(1)(a) and (f) and Subpart JB
of the
Income Tax Act 1994, a payment under subsection (3)(b) of this section
shall,
in respect of the period to which the payment relates, be deemed to be
payment
of—
(a)
the
benefit or benefits that are payable to that overseas pensioner in that
period
under this Act or the Social Welfare (Transitional Provisions) Act 1990
or
under the New Zealand
Superannuation
Act 2001, at the rate at which that benefit or those benefits are so
payable
but reduced in accordance with subsection (1) of this section; and
(b)
the
amount of the overseas pension that that overseas pensioner is entitled
to
receive or has received in that period.
(5)
Subsections
(3) and (4) of this section shall come into force on a date to be
appointed by
the Governor-General by Order in Council.