Working for Families in New Zealand: the four payments explained, and who qualifies
Financial advice is provided by Craig Smith Business Services Limited, trading as Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, a licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931). QuoteHub is a trading name.
Working for Families is four separate Inland Revenue payments for families with dependent children: the Family Tax Credit, the In-Work Tax Credit, Best Start and the Minimum Family Tax Credit, each with its own eligibility test (Inland Revenue, retrieved 9 September 2026). Most families qualify for more than one at the same time, and the amount you get depends on your income, how many children you have and whether you are in paid work.
The four Working for Families payments, side by side
Each payment targets a different situation: general family income support, a reward for paid work, a top-up for a young child, and a floor under working families on low pay. The table below is the fastest way to see which apply to you.
Working for Families pays through four separate credits, and the table below sets out what each one is for and its current rate.
| Payment | What it's for | Current maximum rate | Works even without paid work? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Family Tax Credit | The main payment for any qualifying caregiver | $7,921 a year eldest child, $6,454 each other child | Yes |
| In-Work Tax Credit | A top-up for families in paid work | $147 a week (1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027), reverting to $97 | No, requires paid work and no main benefit |
| Best Start | Support for a child's first 3 years | $77 a week | Yes |
| Minimum Family Tax Credit | A floor for full-time working families on low pay | Tops income up to $703 a week after tax | No, requires salary/wage work at minimum hours |
(Inland Revenue: Types of Working for Families payment, retrieved 9 September 2026.)
Who qualifies for Working for Families in NZ?
You can get Working for Families if you are aged 16 or over, care for a dependent child, are that child's principal caregiver, and meet the residency requirements (Inland Revenue, retrieved 9 September 2026). Which of the four specific payments you receive, and how much, then depends on your income, employment status and how many children you have.
How much do you get for Working for Families?
There is no single figure, because it depends on which of the four credits you qualify for and your family income. A family with one child on a modest income, in paid work, could receive the Family Tax Credit ($7,921 a year), the In-Work Tax Credit (up to $147 a week) and Best Start ($77 a week) at the same time, well over $15,000 a year combined before any abatement (Inland Revenue, retrieved 9 September 2026). Inland Revenue's own online estimator gives a figure specific to your circumstances.
Who is eligible for the $350 payment in NZ?
This most likely refers to the temporary Cost of Living Payment made in 2022-23, which has ended and is not a current Working for Families payment (Inland Revenue, retrieved 9 September 2026). The closest ongoing equivalent for a working family with children in 2026 is the In-Work Tax Credit, which pays up to $147 a week under its temporary 2026/27 increase.
How many hours do you need to work to get Working for Families?
It depends which payment. The Family Tax Credit and Best Start do not require any minimum hours. The In-Work Tax Credit has no minimum-hours test since 1 July 2020, only that you are earning income from paid work and not on a main benefit. The Minimum Family Tax Credit is the one payment with a strict hours test: a single parent must work at least 20 hours a week, or a couple at least 30 hours a week between them, on a salary or wage (Inland Revenue: Minimum family tax credit, retrieved 9 September 2026).
What is the income threshold for Working for Families in 2026?
The Family Tax Credit and In-Work Tax Credit start to abate once family income passes $44,900 a year, reducing by 27.5 cents for every dollar above that (Inland Revenue, retrieved 9 September 2026). The Minimum Family Tax Credit has a separate, much lower income limit: net family income under $36,604 a year ($703 a week after tax) (Inland Revenue: Minimum family tax credit, retrieved 9 September 2026). Best Start has its own $79,000 threshold, covered in full on our Best Start page.
What is the maximum you can earn for family tax benefit?
There is no hard maximum for the Family Tax Credit because it abates gradually rather than cutting off at a fixed income. A larger family with a bigger full-year entitlement can still receive a partial payment at a higher income than a smaller family, since the 27.5% abatement is applied to the total entitlement, not a per-child cap (Inland Revenue, retrieved 9 September 2026). Our Family Tax Credit guide has the exact rates and worked abatement maths.
What is the Minimum Family Tax Credit and who gets it?
A top-up that guarantees a full-time working family a minimum after-tax income of $703 a week, provided a single parent works at least 20 hours a week or a couple works at least 30 hours a week between them on a salary or wage, and net family income is under $36,604 a year (Inland Revenue, retrieved 9 September 2026). It is not available to the self-employed, a partner in a partnership, or a major shareholder-employee (10% or more of shares) without PAYE deductions, on that income alone.
Can I get more than one Working for Families payment at once?
Yes, and most families do. It is common to receive the Family Tax Credit, the In-Work Tax Credit and Best Start together, since each has a different test and none of them exclude the others on their own terms (Inland Revenue, retrieved 9 September 2026). Whether you actually qualify for each one still depends on meeting that payment's specific rules.
Does receiving a benefit affect my Working for Families payments?
It depends which payment. A main benefit still allows the Family Tax Credit and Best Start, but blocks the In-Work Tax Credit and the Minimum Family Tax Credit (Inland Revenue: Government payments that affect your Working for Families, retrieved 9 September 2026). Our In-Work Tax Credit guide sets out the full comparison table for every government payment.
Does Inland Revenue or Work and Income pay Working for Families?
Either can, depending on your situation. Inland Revenue administers all four Working for Families tax credits directly for most families, while Work and Income can pay Working for Families alongside a benefit for its clients (Inland Revenue, retrieved 9 September 2026). If you already deal with Work and Income for other support, they can usually set up your Working for Families payments as part of that relationship.
How do I apply for Working for Families?
You register through myIR or Inland Revenue's SmartStart service, and new parents are usually prompted to register as part of registering their baby's birth (Inland Revenue, retrieved 9 September 2026). Work and Income clients can apply through Work and Income instead. Inland Revenue can also process a claim for a previous year if you did not apply at the time.
What is "family income" for Working for Families purposes?
Family income is your income and your partner's income added together, plus or minus specific adjustments Inland Revenue makes, such as certain trust distributions and passive income of children over $500 (Inland Revenue: Working out your family income, retrieved 9 September 2026). It is this adjusted "family scheme income" figure, not simply your salary, that every threshold on this page is tested against.
Each payment also uses a slightly different income threshold before it starts to reduce, and the table below lines them up together for comparison.
| Payment | Income threshold where reduction starts |
|---|---|
| Family Tax Credit | $44,900 a year (abates at 27.5%) |
| In-Work Tax Credit | $44,900 a year (shares the same abatement) |
| Best Start | $79,000 a year, for a child born on or after 1 April 2026 |
| Minimum Family Tax Credit | $36,604 a year net (a hard limit, not a gradual abatement) |
(Inland Revenue: Types of Working for Families payment, retrieved 9 September 2026.)
Where to go for the detail on each payment
This page is the map. Each payment has its own full page with the current rates, the eligibility edge cases and worked examples.
| Payment | Full guide |
|---|---|
| Family Tax Credit | Family Tax Credit NZ: rates and who qualifies |
| In-Work Tax Credit | In-Work Tax Credit NZ: amount and eligibility |
| Best Start | Best Start payment NZ: amount, who qualifies, apply |
| Childcare help (not Working for Families, but assessed alongside it) | Childcare Subsidy NZ |
QuoteHub built this overview because families tend to apply for one Working for Families payment and stop, without realising up to three more may apply. Once you know your household's real ongoing income after these payments, that is the right moment to check whether your life insurance or income protection cover still matches what your family actually needs, since none of these tax credits replace an income lost to death, illness or injury. Financial advice is provided by Craig Smith Business Services Limited, trading as Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, a licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931). QuoteHub is a trading name. If you would like a licensed adviser to review your cover, start a free comparison.
The rest of the new-baby checklist
Working for Families is one part of a bigger financial picture around a new baby. Parental leave and paid parental leave come first chronologically, followed by Best Start once paid parental leave ends, and the Family Tax Credit and In-Work Tax Credit running alongside or after that depending on your work situation. If you are returning to paid work, the Childcare Subsidy is worth checking before you commit to daycare hours, and our cost of raising a child in New Zealand guide sets real numbers against all of these payments combined. The new baby checklist puts every step, including the insurance and will decisions, in the order most families actually need it.
Adviser's view
QuoteHub's read is that families lose money by treating Working for Families as a single application. It is four separate credits with four separate tests, and the two most commonly missed are the Minimum Family Tax Credit, which requires salary or wage income specifically, and the In-Work Tax Credit, which cuts out the moment you move onto a main benefit even though the Family Tax Credit does not.
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Cite this page QuoteHub NZ (2026). Working for Families NZ 2026: Payments Explained. www.quotehub.co.nz/guides/new-baby/working-for-families-nz. Updated 2026-09-09.
References
- Inland Revenue: Types of Working for Families payment
- Inland Revenue: Working for Families eligibility
- Inland Revenue: Family tax credit
- Inland Revenue: Minimum family tax credit
- Inland Revenue: Government payments that affect your Working for Families
- Inland Revenue: Working out your family income
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