New Zealand 2026 election: NZ Super, retirement income and aged care

Policy snapshot: 11 October 2026 · New Zealand-wide

The main dividing line in the 2026 general election is whether NZ Super should remain available from age 65, and how New Zealand should fund retirement as its population ages. There are also differences in how parties propose to support people who need home-based care, residential aged care, dementia services and affordable retirement housing.

Four parties — Labour, the Greens, New Zealand First and The Opportunities Party (TOP) — have explicitly committed to retaining the NZ Super eligibility age at 65. National supports universal superannuation but has not confirmed whether it will keep the age at 65. ACT proposes gradually raising it to 67 by 2035. How parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersACT New Zealand

1. NZ Super: the main party differences

Party	Current position on NZ Super
National	Supports universal NZ Super and opposes means-testing it. Has not yet confirmed whether eligibility will remain at 65; its full policy was still to be announced closer to the election in the latest Grey Power assessment. How parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders
Labour	Commits to keeping the eligibility age at 65 and retaining universal superannuation. Leader Chris Hipkins has rejected raising the age as current Labour policy. What should we do about New Zealand’s soaring superannuation bill?How parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders
Green Party	Commits to retaining eligibility at 65 and supports universal superannuation. It is open to exploring individual rather than couple payment rates in future. How parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersManifesto 2026
ACT	Proposes gradually increasing the eligibility age to 67 by 2035, with compassionate early access for people who have spent much of their careers in physically demanding jobs. Its fiscal plan also proposes removing the government KiwiSaver contribution. ACT New Zealand
New Zealand First	Explicitly opposes raising the age to 67 and means-testing NZ Super. It also commits to maintaining superannuation at 66% of the net average wage. Winston Peters - “Seniors Sole Defender”How parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders
The Opportunities Party (TOP)	Commits to keeping the age at 65, but proposes a more fundamental redesign of retirement income through a universal Citizen's Income and compulsory KiwiSaver 2.0. How parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersTax Reset
Te Pāti Māori	Has previously proposed lowering the eligibility age for Māori to approximately 55–58, citing shorter average life expectancy. It did not respond to Grey Power's September 2026 questionnaire, so its current election commitment should be checked against its latest official policy. What should we do about New Zealand’s soaring superannuation bill?How parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders

An important distinction: raising the eligibility age is not the same as means-testing. ACT's proposal changes when people can qualify. Means-testing would change who qualifies based on income or assets. The parties responding to Grey Power generally supported universal entitlement, even where they differed on the eligibility age or the wider retirement-income system. How parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersACT New Zealand

2. Retirement income and KiwiSaver

NZ Super is only one part of retirement income. The parties also differ on how much people should be expected to save through KiwiSaver and how the state should help people who have not accumulated enough savings.

National

National has announced a compulsory KiwiSaver policy for workers from July 2028, alongside a $1,500 payment and automatic KiwiSaver enrolment for children born from July 2027. It also proposes employer contributions for workers over 65. These measures are intended to strengthen private retirement savings alongside NZ Super. KiwiSaver mandated for all workers if National re-elected2026 Election Policy

Labour

Labour's KiwiSaver policy also proposes compulsory employer contributions from July 2028, rising to 6% by 2032, with a default employee contribution of 4%. It would extend employer contributions to workers over 65 and provide additional support for parents on paid parental leave. Labour's 2026 Election PoliciesLabour's 2026 Election Policies

ACT

ACT's emphasis is on fiscal sustainability, personal saving and reducing government spending. Its current fiscal plan proposes raising the NZ Super age to 67 and removing the government KiwiSaver contribution, changing both the timing and some of the incentives for retirement saving. ACT New Zealand

Green Party

The Greens support keeping NZ Super at 65 and frame retirement around an adequate income, dignity and equitable support for older people. Their wider approach includes a fairer tax system and stronger public services, rather than making a higher retirement age the central solution. Manifesto 2026How parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders

New Zealand First

Its position is to protect the existing universal pension, maintain the 66%-of-net-average-wage benchmark and reject both means-testing and an increase to 67. Its stated approach prioritises preserving the existing entitlement. Winston Peters - “Seniors Sole Defender”How parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders

The Opportunities Party (TOP)

TOP proposes replacing the current income-support structure with a Citizen's Income of up to $370 a week for almost all adults, plus additional support for superannuitants to bring their total into line with current NZ Super rates. It also proposes compulsory KiwiSaver contributions that eventually rise to 6% from both employees and employers. Under its proposal, the superannuation top-up could be reduced over time as people's KiwiSaver balances grow. Tax ResetHow parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders

What these differences mean

• If keeping NZ Super at 65 is your priority: Labour, the Greens and New Zealand First have made explicit commitments; TOP has too, although its longer-term payment model differs. National's age commitment remains unresolved in the cited assessment.
• If you are concerned about future private savings: National and Labour both propose compulsory KiwiSaver changes, but their contribution settings and additional measures differ.
• If you are interested in a different retirement-income model: TOP's Citizen's Income and KiwiSaver 2.0 would represent a more substantial redesign than simply changing the NZ Super age.

These are policy differences, not predictions of what any party would ultimately enact. How parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersKiwiSaver mandated for all workers if National re-electedTax Reset

3. Aged care, home support and dementia care

Aged care is a broader policy question than NZ Super. It includes funding for rest homes and hospital-level residential care, help with everyday tasks at home, dementia services, the care workforce and support for family carers.

The September 2026 assessment by Grey Power found that all five parties that responded — National, Labour, the Greens, New Zealand First and TOP — supported pay equity for aged-care workers. Their approaches to services and funding differ. How parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders

Party	Main positions relevant to older people
National	Emphasises healthcare delivery, additional doctors and nurses, medicines, elective surgery and cancer screening. It points to increased Accommodation Supplement payments and expanded rates rebates as measures relevant to older people. Its full health policy was still to be released in the Grey Power assessment. How parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders2026 Election Policy
Labour	Proposes restoring pay equity legislation and giving care and support workers an immediate $4-an-hour pay rise from 1 January 2027. Its broader healthcare programme includes three free GP visits a year and free prescriptions from July 2027. It has separately proposed legislation requiring retirement villages to repay residents' money within three months of departure, subject to a targeted hardship exception for qualifying operators. Labour's 2026 Election PoliciesRelease: Labour to reform retirement village repayments
Green Party	Calls for long-term investment in both home-based and residential aged care, better conditions for the aged-care workforce, and care that enables older people to live with dignity and autonomy. It has also committed to restoring pay equity protections and funding a settlement for affected care and support workers. Long-term investment in aged care can't wait - delaying it will only increase the cost
ACT	Its position on aged-care-specific funding is less clearly established in the sources reviewed. ACT's published fiscal plan emphasises lower government spending outside protected frontline services and changes to NZ Super eligibility. It did not complete Grey Power's older-person policy questionnaire. ACT New ZealandHow parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders
New Zealand First	Identifies aged-care reform as a priority and supports better coordination between primary healthcare, community services and aged care. It also proposes a Seniors Housing Plan and more options for ageing in place. How parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders
The Opportunities Party (TOP)	Emphasises community-based healthcare, preventive care and a proposed 10-year cross-party Health Plan. Its approach includes enabling more older people to remain at home, with greater support for family carers. How parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders
Te Pāti Māori	A current, detailed aged-care commitment could not be established from the sources reviewed. The party did not respond to Grey Power's questionnaire, so its position should not be inferred from its separate proposal on Māori retirement age. How parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders

What about dementia and support to age at home?

Three areas deserve particular attention:

• Dementia care: The Greens have committed to fully implementing the national Dementia Mate Wareware Action Plan over five years. How parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders
• Home-based care: The Greens and TOP particularly emphasise community-based support and helping older people remain at home for longer. New Zealand First also identifies better coordination of aged-care services as a priority. How parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersLong-term investment in aged care can't wait - delaying it will only increase the cost
• Care-worker pay and retention: Labour and the Greens have specific pay-equity commitments. The other parties that responded to Grey Power also support pay equity, although the details of their implementation plans differ or are less explicit. Labour's 2026 Election PoliciesLong-term investment in aged care can't wait - delaying it will only increase the costHow parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders

One important caveat: a commitment to improve aged care is not necessarily a commitment to a specific increase in rest-home beds, home-care hours or public funding. Those details need to be checked in each party's full policy and costings.

4. Retirement housing and the cost of living

Retirement security also depends on housing costs, rates, transport, heating and the ability to access money tied up in a home or retirement village.

The parties have made the following proposals:

• National: expanded rates rebates, higher Accommodation Supplement payments and housing-supply reforms.
• Labour: a $20 weekly cap on public transport fares and measures to reduce household costs; it has also proposed the three-month retirement-village repayment rule.
• Greens: more accessible public housing, a state-owned not-for-profit retirement-village scheme, home insulation and solar support, and a proposed limit on annual rent increases.
• TOP: a universal housing payment, additional social housing and interest-free rates deferral for older homeowners.
• New Zealand First: a Seniors Housing Plan and more options for ageing in place.

These are proposals reported in Grey Power's September 2026 comparison, rather than a guarantee that every measure would be enacted. How parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersRelease: Labour to reform retirement village repayments

5. Where the parties differ most

Retirement age

The clearest divide is between ACT's plan to raise eligibility to 67 by 2035 and the explicit commitments from Labour, the Greens, New Zealand First and TOP to retain age 65. National's position was not confirmed in the cited assessment.

Universal pension versus a redesigned system

New Zealand First strongly defends the existing universal model. TOP proposes a Citizen's Income plus a superannuation top-up and compulsory retirement savings. ACT focuses on changing eligibility and reducing the government's contribution to KiwiSaver.

Aged-care services

The Greens emphasise long-term investment and dementia care; Labour has specific care-worker pay and retirement-village proposals; TOP stresses long-term health planning and community care; New Zealand First highlights aged-care reform and coordination. National emphasises its wider health-service programme.

Funding and delivery

A promise to maintain NZ Super does not by itself settle how future pension costs will be funded. Likewise, support for aged care does not establish how many additional staff, beds or home-care hours would be delivered. These questions require the parties' detailed costings and implementation plans.

Sources to check before election day

These are useful starting points for the latest announcements and detailed policy wording:

• Grey Power: How parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders — a cross-party comparison published 6 September 2026.
• National's 2026 election policies
• Labour's 2026 election policies
• Green Party 2026 manifesto
• ACT's fiscal plan
• New Zealand First: Winston Peters on superannuation
• TOP's Tax Reset and retirement-income proposal

Bottom line: If you are comparing parties specifically on retirement, the most consequential questions are whether they will preserve NZ Super at 65, whether they will change how retirement savings are accumulated, and what concrete funding and workforce commitments they will make for aged care. The parties' stated positions differ on all three, and the most detailed policy costings are essential for comparing what each proposal would mean in practice.