The Government is tightening up its screening for the $350 cost of living payment, after it faced criticism when ineligible New Zealanders living overseas and a small number of deceased people received the first instalment.
It will impact 31,000 people.
Revenue Minister David Parker announced on Monday Inland Revenue will refine the screening tests for eligibility to reduce the likelihood of overseas New Zealanders receiving the payment.
It will mean a reduced number of people will be receiving the second $116 payment.
Parker said the 31,000 people won't get the second payment "until they provide further information to Inland Revenue to confirm they are in the country".
The Government copped criticism when ineligible New Zealanders living overseas and a small number of deceased people received the first instalment. (Source: 1News)
"Requiring some people to confirm they are in New Zealand is a result of the extra screening put in place by Inland Revenue - which improves the accuracy of the data they are using," he said.
READ MORE: How far can the cost of living support payment go each week?
Parker said most eligible New Zealanders "won't need to do anything extra to receive the second and third payments".
"The extra screening will for instance cross match other data and look for where an overseas IP address has been used to log into myIR, or where a non-resident individual income tax return has been filed for the 2021-22 year."
Some Kiwis received the payment on Monday despite being ineligible, National finance spokesperson Nicola Willis said. (Source: 1News)
"This might apply, for example, to people who have been overseas for more than six months with a student loan, or have filed a non-resident tax return," Parker said.
"Of course, if any of these people have been earning wages in New Zealand recently, or receiving Working for Families, they will still get the payment automatically."
By August 4, 3158 people had voluntarily opted out of the cost of living payment. By August 29, 4782 people had opted out.
National requested an independent investigation of the $350 cost of living payment, wanting to determine the scale of the issue.
Breakfast looks at what $27 can get the average Kiwi. (Source: Breakfast)
The first of three instalments was automatically sent out to more than 2 million people on August 1. Two further instalments are set for September 1 and October 3.
To be eligible, a person must be a New Zealand tax resident aged 18 and over, who earns $70,000 or less per year, and who is not receiving the winter energy payment. The initiative, which is projected to cost $816 million, was announced in Budget 2022.
SHARE ME