Students
A student can qualify for a Community Services Card if they:
- meet the income test
- are ordinarily resident in New Zealand and
- are undertaking a recognised course of study in a full-time course at a tertiary institution that qualifies for a Student Allowance
For more information see:
Secondary school students cannot get a Community Services Card.
A student may get a Community Services Card automatically if they meet the following criteria:
- Student Allowance status in SAL is either "partially approved" or "approved"
- they are single or they have a dependent partner and
- their client information in SAL and CMS matches
Community Services Cards for students are valid for 12 months. If a student continues their course of study and meets the criteria, their card will automatically be renewed.
Working partners or getting Student Loan only
Students who have a working partner, or who only get a Student Loan, need to apply for a Community Services Card.
Income
Students must declare the value of any:
- Student Allowance
- Child Support received
- bursaries/scholarships
- vacation work and
- any other goods or services received, including board and lodgings
16 or 17 year olds
16 or 17 year old students can still be included in their parent/caregiver's family unit when deciding eligibility for their card, whether or not the 16 or 17 year old qualifies for a card in their own right.
For more information see:
Legislation
- Eligibility for community services cards regulation 8 Health Entitlement Cards Regulations 1993
