Social obligations

A client and their partner (if any) receiving Emergency Benefit have social obligations that apply for each dependent child in their care. This includes any children for whom Orphans Benefit or Unsupported Childs Benefit is being paid.

A client and their partner (if any) must take all reasonable steps to meet all of the social obligations that apply for each child. The social obligations that apply for each child depend on the age of the child.

Where the client is in a relationship the social obligations apply to both the client and their partner.

When required, clients and their partner (if any) need to take all reasonable steps to meet the following social obligations. The child must be:

• enrolled with a registered medical practitioner, nurse practitioner, or a medical practice that is part of a Primary Health Organisation and
• up-to-date with their core Well Child/Tamariki Ora checks (for children aged under 5 years old) and
• enrolled in and attending 1 of the following from 3 years of age until they start school:
  • an approved early childhood education programme or
  • Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu - The Correspondence School or
  • another approved parenting and early childhood home education programme
• enrolled in and attending school from the age of 5 or 6 years of age (depending on when they start school)

When required, a client and their partner (if any) must:

• attend and participate in interviews with MSD to discuss meeting their social obligations and
• advise on progress where they have not been able to meet their social obligations

A client is only required to meet social obligations from the time they begin to receive a benefit.

Clients in the process of applying for Emergency Benefit or who have a future commencement date of their Emergency Benefit are not required to meet their social obligations. Clients are also not required to meet social obligations that would have been relevant prior to them receiving a benefit.

For example, a client who starts receiving a benefit when their child is between 3 and 4 months old cannot be sanctioned for not having completed the core Well Child/Tamariki Ora checks a child should have at ages 4 to 6 weeks.