Bereavement of immediate family

It may be determined that a client has an exceptional circumstance for not completing their reapplication process before their expiry date if they have experienced a bereavement of an immediate family member during the notice period which affected their ability to reapply.

Immediate family, for the purposes of exceptional circumstances, are a:

• spouse or partner
• parents (including step-parents and foster parents)
• grandparents (including grandmother and grandfather)
• children (including grandchildren, stepchildren, foster children, mokopuna - those grandchildren who have been raised by the grandparents as the principal caregivers, and whāngai - children who have been raised, normally by a relation or other person within the wider whānau to which the child belongs)
• siblings (including half siblings and step siblings, but excluding members of organisations/gangs referring to themselves as 'blood brothers and sisters')

MSD may require the client to provide evidence of the bereavement. In most cases the client should just be asked to sign a personal statement.

In some cases clients may also be asked to provide further evidence, this could include:

• a death certificate
• a newspaper notice
• an online obituary which clearly shows the date of death
• a birth certificate showing relationship to deceased
• confirmation of the death from the lawyer administering the estate, or from the minister or funeral director.

For more information see:

• Exceptional circumstances for reapplication
• Client does not need to complete the reapplication process