Thousands of young people will lose access to unemployment benefits due to parental income testing being brought in on Monday.
The government has ended Jobseeker payments for 18 and 19-year-olds whose parents earn a combined income of more than $67,225.
In October last year, it was estimated that about 4300 young people would become ineligible for support as a result.
The change leaves some 18 and 19-year-olds to rely on their parents for support, unless they can prove they are unable or unwilling to.
Unemployment rates are currently at an 11-year high of 5.6%.
Beneficiary advocate Kay Brereton told Checkpoint the cut-off point of $67,225 was outrageously low.
"If that offspring was 17, you'd still be getting a family tax credit at that rate.
"When this was introduced, we thought they would at least be looking at the same income cut-offs as they do for student allowance."
The cut-off for student allowance payments is currently a combined parental income of $131,670 when living at home with parents, or $141,451 if living away from parents.
With the end of the university year approaching and many students on the hunt for summer jobs, Brereton said she worries that many will be left in the lurch if they can't find work.
"I'm really worried that there's a whole lot of students, and they will look for holiday jobs. They don't all find holiday jobs, they're not necessarily living at home, they're living out there in flats, wherever the university is, and they're going to have no benefit to fall back on.
"I think a whole lot of students are on student allowance, where the cut-off's around $131,000, will be really shocked when they find out they can't get a student hardship job seeker during the holidays, [then they] can't pay their rent, they might have to move home, there might not be any room for them."
Brereton said she thought thousands of students would find themselves in this position, including those that don't qualify for student allowance.
"If they can't find a job during the holidays, they can still get, they could until now, still get the job seeker student hardship. So, more students were able to get job seeker student hardship than could get student allowance."
She said she worried that some students may have to put their study on pause as a result.
The money from the jobseeker student hardship benefit was also important to use while job seeking, for covering costs like getting to and from interviews, Brereton said.
She said young people should be considered independent in terms of state support from the age of 18.
"[That's] when they can vote, get married, go to war, all of those things – that seems to mean they're adults and we should consider them independent."
Brereton was also concerned that the changes may have a societal impact.
"It's saying they're not grown up yet. It's a real kick in the guts in terms of confidence that the world sees you as an adult."
Unemployment among 15 to 19-year-olds is currently sitting at 25.3%.
Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston had previously said the legislation reflected the government's commitment to reduce benefit dependency and encourage people into work.
"This legislation reinforces the expectation that young people who are not in employment, education or training should be financially supported by their parents, not by taxpayers through the welfare system," she said.
"New Zealanders deserve a welfare system that is firm, fair and simple."
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