Social Security Amendment Act 2015

1: Title
This Act is the Social Security Amendment Act 2015.
2: Commencement
This Act comes into force on the day after the date on which it receives the Royal assent.
3: Principal Act amended
This Act amends the Social Security Act 1964 2015-04-10 Social Security Act 1964
1: Amendments to principal Act
4: Accommodation supplement
1: Section 61EA(4)
ab: would be eligible to receive a basic grant or an independent circumstances grant under the Student Allowances Regulations 1998, if he or she were to apply for the grant; or
2: Section 61EA(4)﻿(b) or spouse or partner, were the person to apply for the grant parents
5: Deduction of weekly compensation from income-tested benefits
Section 71A
3: In this section, weekly compensation
6: New section 79 substituted
Section 79
79: Persons who have had income tax deducted or withheld on earnings from employment overseas to be treated as resident and present in New Zealand
1: This section applies to any person who was employed outside New Zealand if, with respect to the person's period of employment, the person's employer (or other relevant person) makes—
a: PAYE income payments (as that term is used in the Income Tax Act 2007) from which the person, employer, or other relevant person must withhold an amount of tax under the PAYE rules as defined in that Act:
b: source deduction payments,—
i: as that term is used in the Income Tax Act 2004, from which the person, employer, or other relevant person must withhold an amount of tax under the PAYE rules as defined in that Act:
ii: as that term is used in the Income Tax Act 1994, from which the person, employer, or other relevant person must make a tax deduction under the PAYE rules as defined in that Act:
iii: as that term is used in the Income Tax Act 1976, from which the person, employer, or other relevant person must make a tax deduction under Part 11 of that Act:
iv: as that term is used in the Income Tax Assessment Act 1957, from which the person, employer, or other relevant person must make a tax deduction under Part 2 of that Act.
2: This section applies in respect of a period of employment, whether or not the person's employer (or other relevant person) failed to pay an amount of tax deducted or withheld to the Commissioner of Inland Revenue if the chief executive is satisfied that—
a: the employer (or other relevant person) deducted or withheld tax under subsection (1)
b: the person did not contribute to the employer's (or other relevant person's) failure to pay that tax to the Commissioner.
3: For the purposes of satisfying the residential qualification for any benefit after the return to New Zealand, on or after 23 June 1987, of the person to whom this section applies or the spouse or partner or any child of that person,—
a: that person must be treated as being resident and present in New Zealand during the period to which this section applies:
b: if the spouse or partner or any child of that person was with the person during that period or any part of it, the spouse or partner or child must be treated as being resident and present in New Zealand during that period or that part of it, as the case may be:
c: any child of that person born outside New Zealand during that period must be treated as having been born in New Zealand.
4: Nothing in subsection (3)
7: Benefit applications by claimants under Injury Prevention, Rehabilitation, and Compensation Act 2001
1: The heading to section 80D Injury Prevention, Rehabilitation, and Compensation Act 2001 Accident Compensation Act 2001
2: Section 80D
a: weekly compensation is paid by or on behalf of the Accident Compensation Corporation, or by or on behalf of an accredited employer within the meaning of section 181 of the Accident Compensation Act 2001, in respect of a claim made under that Act; and
8: Schedule 6 amended
The proviso to item 1 of Schedule 6
9: Schedule 18 amended
Part 1 of Schedule 18
ia: in the case of a sole parent, at the appropriate maximum rate in item 1(ba) or (c) of Schedule 9 as if Income Test 3 applied to that rate instead of Income Test 1; or
2: Validation, savings, and consequential amendments
10: Validation
1: For the purpose of calculating the rate of reduction of a benefit payable to a person in accordance with section 71A section 5 relevant period weekly compensation
a: the Accident Insurance Act 1998 1998 Act
b: the Injury Prevention, Rehabilitation, and Compensation Act 2001, renamed the Accident Compensation Act 2001 2001 Act specified payer
a: an insurer as defined in section 13(1) section 341(1)
b: the Accident Compensation Corporation established by section 328 of the 1998 Act and continued by section 259(1)
c: an accredited employer as defined in section 326A of the 1998 Act or section 181
2: For the purpose of determining the residential qualifications of any person for any benefit on and after 23 June 1987, the principal Act must be read as if section 79 section 6
3: For the purposes of determining the validity of the rate of any supported living payment in the period beginning with 15 July 2013 and ending on the commencement of section 8 Social Security Act 1964 Schedule 6 section 8
4: For the purposes of determining the validity of the rate of any accommodation supplement or any decision to refuse to grant an accommodation supplement on account of income in the period beginning with 15 July 2013 and ending on the commencement of section 9 Social Security Act 1964 Schedule 18 section 9
11: Savings
1: Section 79 section 6
a: does not apply in respect of any application, appeal, or proceedings of a kind specified in subsection (3) that alleged an invalidity in the assessment of whether a person was liable for the payment of income tax on earnings from employment outside New Zealand under section 79(1)
b: does not affect the rights of any person who made an application to which paragraph (a) applies, or was a party to an appeal or other proceedings to which paragraph (a) applies, under—
i: any decision, or any judgment of a court, in relation to that application or appeal or those proceedings, as the case may be; or
ii: any decision or judgment given on appeal from that decision or judgment.
2: Section 10
a: does not apply in respect of any application, appeal, or proceedings of a kind specified in subsection (3) that alleged an invalidity in a rate of benefit reduced or purported to be reduced under section 71A(2)
b: does not affect the rights of any person who made an application to which paragraph (a) applies, or was a party to an appeal or other proceedings to which paragraph (a) applies, under—
i: any decision, or any judgment of a court, in relation to that application or appeal or those proceedings, as the case may be; or
ii: any decision or judgment given on appeal from that decision or judgment.
3: Subsection (1)﻿(a) or (2)﻿(a) applies in respect of each of the following:
a: an application for review under section 10A
b: an appeal under section 12J 12Q 12R
c: any other proceedings.
12: Consequential amendments
The Acts set out in the Schedule 2015-04-10 New Zealand Superannuation and Retirement Income Act 2001 Veterans’ Support Act 2014