Funeral help through employers, unions and workplace cover
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.
New Zealand has no standard workplace funeral payment. The law gives employees bereavement leave, an employer who still owes the person pay may be able to release it, and some workplaces have group life cover or a union or society that pays a death benefit. Whether any of these exists depends on the employer, the scheme and the union rules, so the first step is a phone call to HR or payroll, and to the union if the person belonged to one.
Workplace help usually arrives in one of four forms: pay and leave owing to the person who died, a death benefit from a group life policy the employer arranged, a payment from a union or other member organisation, and time off for the people arranging the funeral. Only the last is set by law. Pay owing becomes part of the estate. A group life benefit is paid under the scheme's rules, which may name who receives it. A union or society payment depends on its own rules, and we found none published on the home pages of E tū or the New Zealand Nurses Organisation. This is general information as at 20 October 2026, not legal advice.
What can come from an employer
Pay and leave still owing. The Administration Act 1969 lets a payer such as the deceased's employer (if the person worked for them at or within 6 months before death) pay a sum up to the prescribed amount without a court grant, but only to certain people, only if they apply or consent, and the payer may choose not to (Administration Act 1969, s 65). The prescribed amount is $40,000 from 24 September 2025 (Administration (Prescribed Amounts) Regulations, SL 2025/158). The amount is per payer, not for the whole estate. If the employer cannot find the person's executor, Inland Revenue says holiday pay becomes unclaimed money 5 years after it is calculated as owing (Inland Revenue: Holding unclaimed money), so ask the employer before then.
Group life or death-in-service cover. Some employers pay for life cover for staff. We found no New Zealand source that sets a typical amount, so we give none. Inland Revenue's tax rulings say that a death claim on an employer-owned term life policy is not taxable income of the employee or their estate, and that where the employee owns the policy and the employer pays the premiums, lump sum claims are not taxable either (Inland Revenue QB 18/03 and QB 18/02). Tax is only part of it. Who is paid depends on who owns the policy and any named beneficiary, as our guide to who gets a life insurance payout explains. Ask HR for the scheme booklet and the insurer's claim form.
Bereavement leave. Employees with 6 months of current continuous employment (or a regular pattern of at least 10 hours a week over that time) get 3 days' leave for the death of a spouse or partner, parent, child, sibling, grandparent, grandchild or a spouse's or partner's parent, and 1 day for anyone else if the employer accepts a bereavement, taking into account closeness, responsibility for arrangements and "any cultural responsibilities of the employee" (Holidays Act 2003, ss 63, 69 to 71). Employment New Zealand says the days need not be consecutive and an employer "cannot make you take bereavement leave as annual holidays" (Employment NZ). Our bereavement leave guide covers the detail.
Unions, societies and benevolent funds
A union or society may pay a member's family a bereavement grant, but there is no common rule. We looked at the home pages of E tū and NZNO and found no published funeral or death benefit. NZNO's home page links a member hardship fund and member benefits that we did not open, and a union may publish its rules for members only, so that does not prove none exists. Ask the delegate or the member line, and ask four things: whether a payment exists, how much, who it is paid to, and what proof it needs. Be cautious about any figure you see quoted online without a source, including quoted ranges for "union bereavement grants".
Worked example
These numbers are round and invented to show how the pieces fit; they are not typical.
| Item | Illustration | Who it goes to |
|---|---|---|
| Final pay and holiday pay owing | $3,000 | The estate (employer may pay it under the $40,000 route if the right person applies) |
| Group life benefit under a scheme | $50,000 | Whoever the scheme rules or policy name, otherwise the estate |
| Union grant | $0, none exists | Not applicable |
| Funeral cost | $11,700 | The person arranging the funeral |
The $11,700 is FDANZ's 2026 average for a full cremation funeral at a funeral home (FDANZ 2026 Industry Trends Report). Money that reaches the estate can pay it. Money paid straight to a named person generally does not pass through the estate, so confirm with the scheme who is paid.
How this fits with ACC and the Work and Income grant
Workplace payments are separate from the state routes. ACC's funeral grant is up to $8,236.40 where the death resulted from a covered injury (ACC), and Work and Income's Funeral Grant is up to $2,697.43, with asset tests. Work and Income counts life insurance proceeds as cash assets, and it does not pay if an ACC funeral grant is payable (Work and Income: Funeral Grant). So a group life payment can reduce or remove the grant in some cases. Read our Funeral Grant guide and ACC funeral grant guide before you assume either way.
What the employer or union will ask for
No source sets one list for every workplace. For comparison, Asteron Life asks for a death certificate, plus the will if the insured was the sole owner, letters of administration if there is no will, or probate where the sum is over $40,000 (Asteron Life: Claims). Expect similar proof of death and of who you are. Our who to notify guide lists the other organisations to tell.
If workplace help is not enough
Many people find nothing is payable through work. The other sources are the estate, the bank (which can release funds for the funeral), the Funeral Grant, ACC and, for a person with no means, the council. Our paying for a funeral guide lists them in order, and funeral costs shows what a funeral usually costs.
Momentum Life and this page
The buttons on this page open Momentum Life's online quote, which is one option if you are thinking about your own cover, whereas cover that comes with a job is governed by the scheme's own rules. Momentum Life's Funeral Insurance, issued by Momentum Life Limited, takes New Zealanders aged 40 to 75 with no health questions and pays a fixed benefit of $3,000 to $30,000 towards costs. In the first 24 months it pays only for accidental death within 90 days of the accident; for any other death the premiums for that person are refunded. Total premiums can end up larger than the benefit, and the benefit may not cover the whole funeral. Quick Life takes ages 18 to 65 with no health questions, but excludes pre-existing conditions and suicide for the first 2 years. Neither is open over 75. Momentum Life Limited's A.M. Best rating is B (Fair), in the "Vulnerable" range; see its financial strength page. Saving the money yourself is another route; see funeral insurance for how the products compare.
QuoteHub is a Momentum Life partner and Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver may receive a commission if you buy a Momentum policy; see how we are paid. Advice is provided by Craig Smith Business Services Limited, trading as Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, a licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931). General information, not advice. Back to the when someone dies hub.
Adviser's view
Treat workplace help as something to ask about, not something to count on. New Zealand law sets bereavement leave, but we found no rule that makes an employer or union pay towards a funeral. Group life cover and union benefits exist in some workplaces, so phone HR or the union early, and keep the Work and Income and ACC routes open in case nothing is payable.
Talk to a licensed adviser about funeral cover · free, no obligation.
Cite this page QuoteHub NZ (2026). Workplace Funeral Support NZ: Employer and Union Help. www.quotehub.co.nz/guides/when-someone-dies/workplace-funeral-support-nz. Updated 2026-10-20.
References
- Administration Act 1969, New Zealand Legislation
- Administration (Prescribed Amounts) Regulations, SL 2025/158
- Holidays Act 2003, New Zealand Legislation
- Employment New Zealand: Taking bereavement leave
- Inland Revenue: QB 18/03, employer-owned term life policies
- Inland Revenue: QB 18/02, employee-owned policies with employer-paid premiums
- Inland Revenue: Holding unclaimed money
- Work and Income: Funeral Grant
- ACC: Financial support after death
- Asteron Life: Claims
- FDANZ 2026 Industry Trends Report
- Momentum Life: Financial strength
Explore related pages: Life Insurance, Income Protection, Health Insurance, Trauma Insurance, Referral.