Off work sick in New Zealand: your leave, the benefits, ACC and insurance, in order

Written by Henry Smith · Reviewed by Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931) · Updated 2026-09-09 · Reviewed annually, or sooner if the rules it describes change.

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.

Being off work sick in New Zealand runs through up to four systems in sequence: 10 days of paid sick leave, then ACC (80% of earnings, capped at $2,466.20 a week) for an accident, or a Work and Income benefit ($372.55 to $424.60 a week) for an illness, then government support and private insurance (Employment New Zealand, retrieved 9 September 2026; ACC, retrieved 9 September 2026). This is QuoteHub's index to the full cluster.

Every guide in this cluster, at a glance

The table below lists every page with the single figure it answers, so you can jump straight to the one you need.

Guide	The figure it answers
Sick leave entitlement NZ	10 paid days a year, carry-over to 20
Medical certificate NZ	From $12.95 online, employer pays if under 3 days
Financial help when sick NZ	9 separate systems, in the order to check them
ACC vs sickness benefit NZ	ACC 80% vs a flat $372.55 to $424.60 a week
National Travel Assistance NZ	$0.44/km, up to $140/night accommodation
Cancer financial support NZ	At least 6 separate funding systems
Paying for non-Pharmac drugs NZ	7 funding routes, from NPPA to trials
How long can you be off work sick NZ	No fixed maximum; pay and job security change at set stages
Returning to work after illness NZ	No legal duty to hold a role open indefinitely
Telling your employer you are sick NZ	Tell them ASAP; no duty to disclose a diagnosis

(Each figure sourced and dated on its own guide; see the References section of this page and each linked guide.)

The route, in order

Use your statutory sick leave first. 10 paid days a year once you qualify. See sick leave entitlement NZ.
Tell your employer as soon as possible. You do not have to give a diagnosis. See telling your employer you are sick NZ.
Get a medical certificate if your employer asks, or if you are off 3+ days. See medical certificate NZ for who pays and current published costs.
Work out if it is an accident or an illness. That decides whether ACC or Work and Income applies. See ACC vs sickness benefit NZ.
Check every other income source at once. See financial help when sick NZ for the complete list.
If specialist travel is involved, register for National Travel Assistance. See National Travel Assistance NZ.
If the diagnosis is cancer, use the cancer-specific support map. See cancer financial support NZ.
If a medicine is not funded by Pharmac, work through the funding routes in order. See paying for non-Pharmac drugs NZ.
Understand the stages ahead if the absence runs long. See how long can you be off work sick NZ.
Know your rights and your employer's obligations on the way back. See returning to work after illness NZ.

The four systems, side by side

Which system applies depends on the cause of your absence and how long it runs, and the table below lines up the four you are most likely to use.

System	What it pays	Cause it covers
Statutory sick leave	Your normal daily pay	Any illness or injury, first 10 to 20 days
ACC weekly compensation	80% of pre-injury earnings, capped at $2,466.20/week	Accident-caused injury only
Jobseeker Support / Supported Living Payment	$372.55 to $424.60/week flat	Illness, injury or disability, not from an accident
Income protection insurance	An agreed % of income, per your policy	Whatever your policy defines, if arranged beforehand

(Employment New Zealand; ACC; Work and Income; retrieved 9 September 2026.)

Leave and pay: the short answers

How many sick days do I get in New Zealand?

Eligible employees get 10 days of paid sick leave a year once they have worked for the same employer for 6 months, with carry-over up to a 20-day maximum balance (Employment New Zealand, retrieved 9 September 2026). See sick leave entitlement NZ for the full qualifying rules.

Do I qualify for sick leave straight away in a new job?

No. You qualify after 6 months with the same employer, either continuously or, for casual work, averaging at least 10 hours a week with at least 1 hour every week or 40 hours every month over that period (Employment New Zealand, retrieved 9 September 2026).

Can my employer ask for a doctor's note?

Yes, and if you have been sick 3 or more days in a row, you pay for it; if it is less than 3 days, your employer must ask promptly and pay (Employment New Zealand, retrieved 9 September 2026). Current published certificate costs are on medical certificate NZ.

How much does a medical certificate cost in New Zealand?

Published online telehealth prices currently range from about $12.95 (with a Community Services Card) to around $45 to $79 for a casual patient without one, depending on the provider (Tend, retrieved 9 September 2026; Bettr, retrieved 9 September 2026). No fixed national certificate fee is published, since it is charged as part of a GP consultation. Full detail is on medical certificate NZ.

Do I have to tell my employer what is wrong with me?

No. You must tell your employer you need sick leave as soon as possible, but you are not required to disclose a diagnosis; the Privacy Act 2020 governs what your employer can then collect and use (Employment New Zealand, retrieved 9 September 2026). See telling your employer you are sick NZ.

ACC and benefits: the short answers

Does ACC pay if I am sick, not injured?

No. ACC only covers personal injury caused by an accident; illness of any kind falls outside ACC entirely, and a Work and Income benefit is the relevant system instead (ACC, retrieved 9 September 2026). See ACC vs sickness benefit NZ for the full comparison.

How much does ACC pay each week?

Up to 80% of your pre-injury average weekly earnings before tax, capped at $2,466.20 a week from 1 July 2026 and floored at $766.40 a week for a full-time earner from 1 April 2026 (ACC, retrieved 9 September 2026; ACC, retrieved 9 September 2026). Full detail is on ACC weekly compensation explained.

How much does Jobseeker Support pay if I have a health condition?

$372.55 a week net for a single applicant aged 25 or over, with a Work Capacity Medical Certificate confirming the condition and its impact on your ability to work (Work and Income, retrieved 9 September 2026).

How much does Supported Living Payment pay?

$424.60 a week net for a single applicant aged 18 or over, where a health condition, injury or disability severely limits your ability to work (Work and Income, retrieved 9 September 2026).

What is the difference between Jobseeker Support and Supported Living Payment?

Jobseeker Support is for a condition that affects your ability to work; Supported Living Payment is for one that severely limits it, and it pays more ($424.60 against $372.55 a week for a single adult) (Work and Income, retrieved 9 September 2026).

Can sick leave top up my ACC payment?

Yes, by agreement, once you have been on ACC for more than 5 days: 1 day of sick leave tops up 5 days of ACC from 80% to 100% of usual earnings (Employment New Zealand, retrieved 9 September 2026).

Travel, cancer and medicines: the short answers

Does National Travel Assistance help with specialist appointments?

Yes, if you are referred by one specialist to another within a government-funded service and meet the distance or frequency thresholds; it pays $0.44 a kilometre from 2 April 2026 and up to $140 a night for accommodation with an invoice (Health New Zealand, retrieved 9 September 2026). See National Travel Assistance NZ.

What financial help exists specifically for cancer patients?

At least six separate systems: Work and Income benefits, National Travel Assistance, Cancer Society NZ's referrals and helpline (0800 226 237), Blood Cancer NZ's case-by-case support, trauma insurance if already held, and Pharmac's exceptional-circumstances process for medicines (Cancer Society NZ, retrieved 9 September 2026). See cancer financial support NZ.

What if Pharmac does not fund the medicine I need?

Pharmac's Exceptional Circumstances Framework, including the Named Patient Pharmaceutical Assessment (NPPA) policy, can fund an individual patient's access to a medicine outside the standard Schedule, usually applied for by your specialist (Pharmac, retrieved 9 September 2026). All seven funding routes are set out on paying for non-Pharmac drugs NZ.

How long, and what happens to my job: the short answers

How long can I be off work sick before my job is at risk?

There is no fixed number of days in law. Your employer must reasonably believe you can no longer do the job and that the role genuinely cannot be kept open, after weighing a defined list of factors, and any such process commonly takes weeks to months (Employment New Zealand, retrieved 9 September 2026). See how long can you be off work sick NZ.

Can my employer just dismiss me for being off sick too long?

Not without a fair and reasonable process. Employers must consider factors including your length of service, the size of the organisation, your chance of recovery based on objective medical evidence, and reasonable alternatives to dismissal such as reduced hours (Employment New Zealand, retrieved 9 September 2026). See returning to work after illness NZ.

Do I have to give my employer access to my medical records?

No. You can refuse to give your employer access to your medical information unless your employment agreement requires it, and you can still decline even then, in which case your employer decides based only on the information it already has (Employment New Zealand, retrieved 9 September 2026).

What does a graduated return to work actually involve?

There is no single mandated format; Employment New Zealand expects an employer to genuinely consider rehabilitation steps such as part-time hours, reduced hours or light duties before deciding a role cannot be kept open (Employment New Zealand, retrieved 9 September 2026).

Can I get a benefit while I am still using paid sick leave?

Generally no. While you are receiving your normal pay through paid sick leave, you are not in the position Work and Income benefits are designed for; the practical point to apply is once your paid leave and pay stop.

Money you might be missing: the short answers

What is the single biggest gap between what I earn and what any of these systems pay?

For a mid-to-high earner, it is the gap between ACC's 80% figure (itself capped at $2,466.20 a week) or a flat Work and Income rate ($372.55 to $424.60 a week), and their actual former income (ACC, retrieved 9 September 2026; Work and Income, retrieved 9 September 2026). Private income protection insurance is designed to close some of that gap; see the income protection guide and the income protection calculator.

Is income protection insurance useful if I am already insured through work?

It can still be worth checking: many workplace group policies have caps, definitions or a shorter benefit period than an individual policy, and none of them survive if you change jobs. Compare do I need income protection insurance, best income protection insurance NZ and income protection cost NZ.

Does a serious diagnosis trigger any other insurance payout?

If you hold a trauma (critical illness) policy taken out before diagnosis, a covered condition can trigger a separate lump-sum payout, on top of any income protection or health insurance you hold. See the trauma cover guide and the trauma calculator.

What if the absence turns into redundancy instead?

That is a separate legal process: redundancy is about whether the role still exists, not about your capacity to do it, and there is no legal minimum redundancy payment: whether one is paid depends entirely on your employment agreement (Employment New Zealand, retrieved 9 September 2026). See redundancy pay NZ.

Where this cluster connects to insurance

Every system above has a limit, and the table below shows where private cover is designed to pick up what public support does not.

Gap	What closes it
ACC's 20% shortfall against pre-injury earnings, plus its weekly cap	Income protection insurance
The flat Work and Income rate against your actual former income	Income protection insurance
A lump sum on diagnosis of a serious illness	Trauma cover
Private treatment cost outside the public queue	Health insurance

(QuoteHub's own guides; figures sourced above.)

What this cluster does not cover

This cluster covers the practical, financial and employment steps around being off work sick. It does not give medical advice, does not cover ACC sensitive-claims routing, and does not cover KiwiSaver. For a death rather than an ongoing illness, see when someone dies in New Zealand; for redundancy specifically, see redundancy pay NZ.

QuoteHub built this cluster because sick leave, ACC, Work and Income and private insurance are four different systems a person off work sick often has to work out at the same time, and getting the order right protects both income and job security. 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 today's reading has made you think about your own cover, start a free comparison, or read our guides to income protection, trauma cover and health insurance.

Adviser's view

The pattern QuoteHub sees across this cluster is not people underclaiming one system, it is people assuming a single system, usually sick leave, is the whole answer. Most longer absences genuinely need two or three systems working together, leave, then ACC or a benefit, then possibly travel or medicine support, and missing that sequence is what actually costs people money, not the illness itself.

Henry Smith, Financial Adviser (FSP1010699). General information, not personalised financial advice.

13 pages in this section

ACC vs Income Protection Insurance NZ: The Real Gap — ACC pays up to 80% of your earnings if an accident stops you working, but it does not pay a cent if illness, not an accident, is what stops you working.
ACC vs Sickness Benefit NZ: Which Pays More (2026) — ACC pays up to 80% of your pre-injury earnings; Work and Income pays a flat weekly rate that does not depend on what you earned. Which one applies depends entirely on cause, not severity.
Cancer Financial Support NZ: Grants, Benefits (2026) — No single New Zealand payment exists for a cancer diagnosis. Support comes from at least six separate systems, from a $372.55 weekly benefit to travel assistance and charity grants.
Financial Help When Sick in NZ: Every Option (2026) — Nine separate New Zealand systems can help when illness stops your income, from 10 days of paid sick leave to a $424.60 weekly benefit. Here is the order to check them in.
How Long Can You Be Off Work Sick in NZ? (2026) — New Zealand sets no maximum number of days you can be off work sick, but what you are paid, and how secure your job is, changes at defined points along the way.
Medical Certificate NZ: cost, rules and who issues — Medical certificate rules in New Zealand, including the 3-day proof rule, telehealth options and published consultation costs.
National Travel Assistance NZ: who qualifies — Who qualifies for National Travel Assistance in New Zealand, current mileage and accommodation rates, and how to claim.
Off Work Sick in NZ: Leave, Benefits and Insurance — Being off work sick in New Zealand runs through at least four separate systems: statutory sick leave, ACC or a Work and Income benefit, government support schemes, and private insurance.
Paying for a Non-Pharmac Drug in NZ: Every Route — A medicine outside Pharmac's schedule has at least seven possible funding routes in New Zealand, from an insurer's own benefit to a Pharmac exceptional-circumstances application.
Returning to Work After Illness NZ: Rights and Pay — New Zealand employers are not legally required to hold a role open indefinitely, but ending employment for medical incapacity must follow a fair process that commonly takes weeks to months.
Sick Leave Entitlement NZ 2026: 10 Days — New Zealand employees who qualify get 10 days of paid sick leave a year, with carry-over up to 20 days total.
Stress Leave NZ: Your Rights and How It Works — New Zealand law has no separate 'stress leave' entitlement; if stress is making you unwell, ordinary sick leave applies the same way it would for any illness.
Telling Your Employer You Are Sick in NZ: Rights — New Zealand law requires you to tell your employer you are sick as soon as possible, but not what is wrong with you. The Privacy Act 2020 governs the rest.

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Cite this page QuoteHub NZ (2026). Off Work Sick in NZ: Leave, Benefits and Insurance. www.quotehub.co.nz/guides/off-work-sick. Updated 2026-09-09.