Extra help and other payments

Most ongoing extra help payments paid to a young person are included in the redirection of payment if the young person is under youth money management, for example:

• Accommodation Supplement
• Temporary Additional Support
• family tax credit
• Best Start tax credit
• Winter Energy Payment

Note because Accommodation Supplement, Temporary Additional Support, family tax credit and Best Start tax credit can only be paid to one person, for couples, the person getting them is generally responsible for any debt created.

The following payments are not included in youth money management and can be paid to the young person, their agent (if authorised) or a supplier (as appropriate):

• Disability Allowance
• Child Disability Allowance
• Flexible Childcare Assistance
• Training Incentive Allowance
• one-off payments of hardship assistance, for example Special Needs Grants for food
• any Advance Payment of Benefit

Flexible Childcare Assistance must be used to pay for costs associated with informal childcare. This means that any amount of Flexible Childcare Assistance a young person gets cannot be used to pay for other essential costs.

Note as Flexible Childcare Assistance is only a contribution towards informal childcare costs, the young person is required to pay any remaining costs from their in-hand allowance or other resources (e.g. if their Flexible Childcare Assistance does not cover their informal childcare cost in full).

For more information see:

Young partners who are required to get Youth Services will not have hardship obligations if they are accessing Special Needs Grants or Advance Payment of Benefits.

These young people are already working with their service provider or MSD 'in-house' service, on activities that already meet the budgeting activity or reasonable steps hardship obligations.

Generally, all clients and their partners, who apply for Special Needs Grants, Advance Payment of Benefits and Recoverable Assistance Payments, have hardship obligations.

Hardship obligations include:

• a reasonable steps obligation and
• a budgeting activity obligation

Generally, clients must meet their hardship obligations before they get any additional payments.

These obligations do not apply to:

• payments to people in specific circumstance
• young people getting youth support payments (Youth Payment or Young Parent Payment) or have youth activity obligations and are required to get Youth Services
• payments to obtain or renew a driver licence