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

Policy snapshot: 23 October 2026 · New Zealand general election: 7 November 2026

The main dividing lines between the parties are whether NZ Super should remain available from age 65, how much people should be expected to save privately for retirement, and how aged care should be funded and delivered.

There is broad support for retaining a universal pension, but significant differences over the qualifying age, KiwiSaver and the rules for retirement villages. The detail of aged-care funding and access to residential care is a separate issue from NZ Super, and not every party has published a comprehensive plan covering both. Where the parties stand on New Zealand SuperHow parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersElection 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?

1. NZ Super: when can you receive it, and who qualifies?

Here is the current comparison of the seven main parties.

Party	Position on NZ Super
National	Supports universal, non-means-tested Super, but proposes gradually raising the eligibility age from 65 to 67 starting in 2044. It has sought cross-party discussion. Where the parties stand on New Zealand SuperElection 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?
Labour	Keep the eligibility age at 65 and do not introduce means testing. How parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersWhere the parties stand on New Zealand Super
Green Party	Keep universal Super at 65, focus on whether it adequately covers living costs, and restore a 10-year residence requirement. How parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersElection 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?
New Zealand First	Keep the age at 65, oppose means testing, and maintain the pension at 66% of the net average wage. Proposes restricting eligibility to New Zealand citizens from 2029. Winston Peters - “Seniors Sole Defender”NZFirst Campaign Announcement: NZ Super for Citizens Only
ACT	Raise the age to 67 over eight years, with an exemption route for people who have spent at least 20 years in physically demanding work. Where the parties stand on New Zealand SuperElection 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?
The Opportunities Party (TOP)	Replace NZ Super with a broader Citizen’s Income system, initially topped up to current Super levels. Future top-ups could be reduced in line with income as private savings grow. Where the parties stand on New Zealand SuperElection 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?
Te Pāti Māori	Has previously advocated for Māori to qualify 7–10 years earlier, citing life-expectancy differences. Its full 2026 NZ Super policy was not available in the cited party comparison. Where the parties stand on New Zealand SuperElection Survey 2026 - National Council of Women of New Zealand

An important distinction: National and ACT both support lifting the qualifying age, but on different timetables. National's proposed change starts in 2044, while ACT proposes completing its transition by 2035. Labour, the Greens and NZ First explicitly support keeping the age at 65. TOP proposes a different retirement-income structure altogether. Where the parties stand on New Zealand SuperElection 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?

2. Retirement income and KiwiSaver

NZ Super is only one part of retirement income. The parties also differ on compulsory saving, government contributions and how much people should fund through KiwiSaver.

National

Proposes compulsory KiwiSaver enrolment for workers from July 2028, increasing employer and employee contribution rates progressively to 6% each by 2032, and a $1,500 government contribution for babies born in New Zealand. Employer contributions would continue for workers aged over 65. Election 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?2026 Election Policy Summaries

Labour

Proposes lifting the default employee KiwiSaver contribution rate to 4%, increasing compulsory employer contributions to 6% by 2032, and continuing employer contributions for workers aged 65 and over. It also proposes preventing new total-remuneration contracts from absorbing employer contributions into salaries. Election 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?2026 Election Policy Summaries

Green Party

Supports keeping universal NZ Super at 65 and ensuring older people can meet everyday costs. Its approach places substantial emphasis on public services, affordable housing, energy costs and access to healthcare, alongside retirement income. How parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersElection 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?

New Zealand First

Proposes compulsory KiwiSaver enrolment, an automatic $1,000 government contribution at birth, and employee and employer contribution rates rising to 8% initially and eventually 10%. Its stated policy is to protect the existing NZ Super eligibility age. Winston Peters - “Seniors Sole Defender”Election 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?

ACT

Supports raising the Super age to 67, exempting qualifying long-term physical workers from the increase. It proposes removing tax on KiwiSaver investment earnings but ending the government KiwiSaver contribution. Where the parties stand on New Zealand SuperElection 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?

The Opportunities Party (TOP)

Proposes compulsory KiwiSaver 2.0, with employer and employee contributions rising to 6% each. Its Citizen’s Income model would replace NZ Super with a general income payment and a supplementary amount for retirees, with potential longer-term adjustments based on other income. Where the parties stand on New Zealand SuperElection 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?

Te Pāti Māori

Has advocated for earlier Super eligibility for Māori. Its detailed current KiwiSaver and retirement-income settings were not established by the sources reviewed here, so these should not be assumed. Where the parties stand on New Zealand SuperElection Survey 2026 - National Council of Women of New Zealand

The main practical differences are compulsory saving, the share of retirement income coming from the state versus private savings, and whether the government continues contributing directly to KiwiSaver. The precise effects will depend on each proposal's final eligibility rules, implementation dates and legislation. Election 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?2026 Election Policy Summaries

3. Aged care, home support and retirement villages

Aged care covers several different things: help with daily living at home, residential care and dementia services, support for unpaid family carers, and retirement-village contracts. The parties' policies vary across these areas.

The following comparison draws on the parties' responses to Grey Power and the National Council of Women of New Zealand, as well as published election policy summaries. How parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersElection Survey 2026 - National Council of Women of New Zealand2026 Election Policy Summaries

Party	Main stated direction on aged care and older people's services
National	Emphasises healthcare delivery, medicines and cancer screening, alongside housing affordability and support for seniors. Its retirement-village proposal would require repayment within nine months, with 10% of net termination proceeds paid within four weeks, for qualifying future agreements. How parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersElection 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?
Labour	Proposes three free GP visits a year through a Medicard and a $4-an-hour pay rise for care and support workers. It proposes requiring retirement villages to repay departing residents or their estates within three months, including existing residents and contracts. How parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersElection Survey 2026 - National Council of Women of New Zealand2026 Election Policy Summaries
Green Party	Proposes a state-owned, not-for-profit retirement-village system, stronger publicly funded health and aged-care services, and full implementation of the national dementia action plan over five years. It also emphasises accessible housing and community support. How parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersElection Survey 2026 - National Council of Women of New Zealand2026 Election Policy Summaries
New Zealand First	Identifies aged-care reform as a priority, supporting better coordination between primary healthcare, community services and aged care, and practical support for older people who need care. It has also proposed a seniors' housing plan. How parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersElection Survey 2026 - National Council of Women of New Zealand
ACT	Its detailed response to Grey Power's older-person questionnaire was not supplied. Its published health proposals include expanding pharmacists' roles and increasing funding for medicines. These are relevant to older people but do not, by themselves, establish a comprehensive aged-care policy. How parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders2026 Election Policy Summaries
TOP	Emphasises community-based healthcare, preventive care and helping people age at home. It proposes a 10-year cross-party health plan and changes to housing support, including replacing the Accommodation Supplement with a universal housing payment. How parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders2026 Election Policy Summaries
Te Pāti Māori	Has committed to implementing recommendations from the Ministerial Advisory Group's aged-care report and rebuilding the Māori Health Authority. Its approach places emphasis on culturally appropriate support and Māori health needs. Election Survey 2026 - National Council of Women of New ZealandElection 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?

Retirement villages: a particularly clear policy difference

National

Repayment within nine months, with an initial 10% payment within four weeks. The proposed rules apply to qualifying future occupation-right agreements, rather than existing agreements. Election 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?

Labour

Proposes repayment within three months, covering existing residents and contracts as well as future ones. A separate proposal would require 10% repayment within five working days. Election Survey 2026 - National Council of Women of New ZealandElection 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?

Greens

Proposes developing a state-owned, not-for-profit retirement-village system, alongside broader investment in public services for older people. How parties stand on issues affecting older New ZealandersElection 2026: What’s in it for seniors so far?

These proposals concern retirement villages, where residents commonly have occupation-right agreements. They are not the same as rules for publicly funded residential aged care, such as rest homes and hospital-level care.

4. The bigger question: will there be enough aged care?

The Government's Aged Care Ministerial Advisory Group published its report, A place to grow old: Securing the future of aged care, in August 2026. It identifies growing demand, insufficient residential-care capacity, fragmented services and gaps in support for family carers. It recommends more integrated care, better support for people to remain at home, and changes to funding and residential-care capacity. A place to grow old: Securing the future of aged careAged Care Ministerial Advisory Group: Frequently asked questions September 2026

This matters when assessing the parties because a commitment to free GP visits, higher care-worker wages or a new retirement-village model is not necessarily a complete answer to the shortage of home-care hours, dementia support or residential-care beds.

Three questions worth asking each party are:

• Funding: How will it pay for additional home support, dementia care and residential-care places as demand increases?
• Workforce: How will it recruit and retain enough nurses, care workers and home-support workers, and what pay and training arrangements will apply?
• Access: How will it make sure people in rural communities, Māori, and people with complex needs can obtain appropriate care without unreasonable delays?

The published aged-care report provides a useful benchmark for comparing the parties' proposals against the system's identified needs. A place to grow old: Securing the future of aged careAged Care Ministerial Advisory Group: Frequently asked questions September 2026

5. Where to check the policies before election day

These sources are useful for checking the original proposals and any further announcements before 7 November.

• Grey Power — How parties stand on issues affecting older New Zealanders
• Lifetime Income — Election 2026: What's in it for seniors so far?
• National Council of Women — 2026 election survey
• Ministry of Health — Aged Care Ministerial Advisory Group report
• Labour — 2026 election policies

In short: the central retirement-income choice is between retaining NZ Super at 65, increasing the qualifying age, and restructuring the wider income system. For aged care, compare the parties separately on home support, residential-care capacity, workforce funding, dementia services and retirement-village protections. Their policies in one area should not be taken as proof of a fully specified plan in another.