Imprisonment

When an Emergency Maintenance Allowance client is imprisoned or detained in custody, they are generally no longer entitled to get the Emergency Maintenance Allowance.

In some circumstances Emergency Maintenance Allowance can continue when the client is imprisoned.

Generally to receive an Emergency Maintenance Allowance the client must be the parent of one or more dependent children.

As the client is in prison or remanded in custody the client generally is no longer the caregiver of dependent children.

The Emergency Maintenance Allowance should stop from the day following the date of imprisonment.

MSD must decide whether to suspend or cancel the Emergency Maintenance Allowance after considering the likely period in prison and whether the client has dependent children.

The client may be imprisoned for less than one year and a temporary caregiver will be caring for the client's dependent children. In this situation, all or part of the Emergency Maintenance Allowance may continue and be paid to the temporary caregiver caring for the client's dependent children.

There is also discretion to continue payment if the client is remanded in custody pending a further court appearance.

If a sole caregiver is remanded in custody and/or sentenced to a term of imprisonment, the case must be referred to Oranga Tamariki.

In other situations, if MSD believes any child has been, or is likely to be, harmed (physically, emotionally or sexually), ill-treated, abused, neglected, deprived or MSD has concerns about the wellbeing of the child, the case must be referred to Oranga Tamariki.