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KiwiSaver for Students NZ: Part-Time Work, Allowances and the Government Contribution

Updated

Students can be KiwiSaver members whether or not they’re working. How it works depends on whether you have a job, how old you are, and whether your income is wages or an allowance. This page covers each case, and how KiwiSaver sits alongside a student loan.

Can Students Join KiwiSaver?

Yes. KiwiSaver is open to New Zealand citizens and people entitled to live here indefinitely who live in New Zealand, of any age, working or not; there’s no minimum income. Starting a job at 18 or over, full time or permanent part time, usually means automatic enrolment through your employer, and without a job you join directly through a provider; how to join KiwiSaver has the steps for both, and under-18s can only join through a provider (see KiwiSaver for kids for who signs).

International students on a student visa can’t join: IRD says you cannot join KiwiSaver on a temporary, visitor, work or student visa. The KiwiSaver rules for visa holders explain what changes if you’re later granted residence.

How KiwiSaver Works for Students

The scheme works the same way for students as for anyone else (what KiwiSaver is and how it works); what differs is where the money comes from.

With a part-time or casual job

If you’re employed, even part-time, you contribute a percentage of your gross wages (the default is 3.5%, raised from 3% on 1 April 2026). If you're aged 16 or over and under 65, in KiwiSaver and contributing from your pay, your employer must contribute at least 3.5% of your gross pay (unless you're on a temporary rate reduction or in a defined benefit scheme), less employer superannuation contribution tax (ESCT).

On $15,000 a year of part-time wages, the minimum employer contribution is $525 a year before ESCT (3.5% of $15,000), and your own contribution at the default 3.5% rate is $525.

If you were automatically enrolled and don’t want to stay in, you can opt out between the end of week 2 and week 8 of starting the job; opting out also ends the employer contribution. See the KiwiSaver opt-out guide.

Without a job

You can still be a member: you join directly with a provider and contribute voluntarily, from savings, an allowance or family support. Without wages there’s no employer contribution, but voluntary contributions count towards the government contribution (below).

Scholarships, stipends and student allowances

Payroll KiwiSaver deductions and employer contributions apply to salary and wages paid by an employer. Scholarships, stipends and the student allowance aren’t wages, so nothing is deducted from them and no employer contribution comes with them. Voluntary contributions can be paid to your provider from any of them.

The Government Contribution for Students

From age 16, the government contribution works the same way for a student as for anyone else, and doesn’t depend on having a job:

  • Contribute at least $1,042.86 between 1 July and 30 June (about $20.06 a week)
  • The government adds 25 cents per dollar, up to $260.72 a year
  • Contributions from pay and voluntary payments both count

If you join, or turn 16, part-way through the year, IRD works out the contribution on the number of days you were an eligible member, so the first year’s maximum is smaller (IRD: Getting the government contribution). The full eligibility rules are on the KiwiSaver government contribution page.

The First-Home Withdrawal Clock

The first-home withdrawal needs at least 3 years in KiwiSaver (earlier membership of a complying superannuation fund can also count); your provider can confirm the start date it holds for you. A student who joins at 19 has met the membership part of the test by 22, whereas someone who first joins at their first full-time job starts the count then. The other criteria (property ownership, living in the home and more) are in first home withdrawal eligibility; see also KiwiSaver as a house deposit.

Fund Type and a Long Horizon

A student’s savings are generally locked until 65 or a first home, so the horizon for retirement money is long and the horizon for a first-home deposit may be short. How conservative, balanced and growth funds have behaved over different horizons is covered in fund types by time horizon. Since 2021 the default funds that automatically enrolled members are placed in have been balanced funds, so if you never chose a fund you’re probably in one; your provider’s statement shows which.

Fees take a larger share of a small balance when they include a fixed dollar fee as well as a percentage. KiwiSaver fees compared sets out each provider’s fees.

Pausing Contributions

A member of 12 months or more who’s finding deductions hard to afford (or one with less time in hardship) can apply for a savings suspension, which stops contributions from pay for a time without leaving KiwiSaver; you will not get employer contributions during it unless your employment agreement states otherwise, and you may need to make voluntary payments to still get the government contribution. The rules, including how long a suspension lasts and when you can apply, are on the KiwiSaver savings suspension page. Your membership continues during a suspension, so the 3-year first-home count keeps running.

KiwiSaver and Student Loans

KiwiSaver and student loans are separate. KiwiSaver contributions don’t reduce your loan, and loan repayments, deducted from income above $24,128 a year, are worked out separately from KiwiSaver deductions. NZ student loans are interest-free for borrowers based in New Zealand. How the two compare when deciding where spare money goes is covered in KiwiSaver and your student loan.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I join KiwiSaver as a student if I’m not working? Yes. You join through a provider and contribute voluntarily; from 16, contributing $1,042.86 in the year earns the maximum $260.72 government contribution, and the 3-year first-home count starts when you join.

Does being a student affect my employer contributions? Only through whether you’re employed. Employer contributions come with wages; scholarships, the student allowance and family support don’t bring any.

What happens to my KiwiSaver when I graduate and start full-time work? Your account continues: tell your new employer you’re already a member and deductions go to your existing scheme. Nothing restarts.

I’m an international student. Can I join KiwiSaver? Not on a student visa. KiwiSaver is for New Zealand citizens and people entitled to live here indefinitely who live or normally live in New Zealand.