Retirement & decumulation
Planning the move from saving to spending — NZ Super, drawing down KiwiSaver at 65, working past 65, and the questions that decide how long your money lasts.
Working While on NZ Super Tax (2026): How Part-Time Work Past 65 Affects Your Super, Tax and KiwiSaver in NZ
Working part-time after 65 does not reduce your NZ Super, because Super is not income-tested. But your tax code does change, and your employer KiwiSaver match and the government contribution both stop. Here is how it all fits together.
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Your Partner Isn't 65 Yet: How NZ Super Works for Couples With an Age Gap
Since November 2020 you can no longer include a partner under 65 in your NZ Super. Here is what the household actually receives in the gap years, what the younger partner can apply for, and how to bridge the income.
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Phased Retirement in NZ (2026): Part-Time Work With NZ Super & KiwiSaver
Winding down to part-time at 60+? Here's how NZ Super (not income-tested), KiwiSaver employer contributions after 65, and tax codes work when you keep earning while drawing your retirement income.
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Residential Care Subsidy in NZ: Asset and Income Thresholds Explained
How the Residential Care Subsidy works in NZ: the 2025/26 asset thresholds, how your home, NZ Super and KiwiSaver are assessed, and the Residential Care Loan alternative.
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The Retirement Income Gap NZ 2026: What NZ Super Leaves You Short Each Week
NZ Super pays a single about $555 a week. A no-frills metro single needs roughly $705. That weekly gap is the retirement income gap, and KiwiSaver is built to close it.
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Retirement Planning for Contractors in NZ: No Employer Match, No PAYE, No Safety Net
Contractors get no employer KiwiSaver match and no auto-deduction. Here is how to systematise retirement saving on lumpy income and still claim the full government contribution.
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Retirement Planning in Your 50s in NZ: Is It Too Late to Catch Up?
Behind on retirement in your 50s? You still have 10-15 years of compounding before 65. Here are the realistic catch-up levers: contributions, KiwiSaver fund risk, debt, and delaying retirement, with the trade-offs spelt out.
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Retiring as a Renter in NZ: How Much More You Need When You'll Never Own a Home
Most NZ retirement numbers quietly assume you own your home outright. If you'll rent for life, rent becomes a permanent line for 25 to 30 years. Here is how much extra that means, what support exists, and how to plan for it.
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Retiring Before 65 in NZ: How to Bridge the Years Before NZ Super and KiwiSaver Kick In
Stop work before 65 and you can't touch KiwiSaver or NZ Super yet. Here's how the bridge years work, where your income comes from, and how to sequence drawdowns so you don't run out.
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Retiring Overseas From New Zealand: What Happens to Your NZ Super and KiwiSaver
Planning to retire abroad? Whether you keep NZ Super depends on where you go, and your KiwiSaver options range from transfer to withdraw to leave invested. Here is how the rules work.
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Retiring With Debt in NZ: Credit Cards, Car Loans and Buy-Now-Pay-Later at 65
Carrying credit cards, a car loan or buy-now-pay-later into retirement? How consumer debt hits a fixed NZ Super income, whether to clear it before 65, and a plain plan for getting there.
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Retiring With a Mortgage or Renting in NZ (2026): How It Changes Your Plan
The standard retirement numbers quietly assume you own your home, mortgage-free. If you'll still be renting or paying a mortgage at 65, your real target is far higher. Here is how much more, and what to do about it.
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Reverse Mortgages and Equity Release in NZ (2026): How They Work and What They Really Cost
A reverse mortgage lets you stay in your home and borrow against it, with nothing to repay until you leave. But compounding interest at rates well above a normal home loan steadily erodes your equity. Here is the real picture, including the protections and the alternatives.
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Safe Withdrawal Rates in NZ 2026: The 4%, 6% and Spend-Down Rules Explained
Does the US 4% rule work in New Zealand? The NZ rules of thumb, the 6% rule, divide-by-years, and how NZ Super lets you safely draw more from your savings.
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Section 70 NZ Super and an Overseas Pension: How the Deduction Works (NZ)
If you hold an overseas state pension, Section 70 means it is deducted dollar-for-dollar from your NZ Super. Here is which pensions count, how the deduction works, what changed in 2020, and a worked example.
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Self-Employed Retirement Planning NZ 2026: Building a Nest Egg Without Employer Contributions
No employer paying into your KiwiSaver? Here is the four-move plan to build a real retirement on your own terms, using KiwiSaver, your business and NZ Super, with 2026 NZ numbers.
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Sold Your Business in NZ: How to Plan the Proceeds for Retirement
A 2026 guide to turning business-sale proceeds into reliable retirement income in NZ — tax, a safe drawdown rate, KiwiSaver, NZ Super and protecting the money in a relationship and your estate.
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Sequencing-of-Returns Risk in Retirement (NZ, 2026): Why the First Five Years Decide Everything
Two retirees can earn the exact same average return and end up with wildly different outcomes — purely because of when the bad years land. Here is how sequencing-of-returns risk works, and the practical NZ defences that blunt it.
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Sequencing Risk and Your KiwiSaver in NZ (2026): Why a Crash Near Retirement Hurts Most
A market fall just before or after you retire does far more damage than the same fall at 40. Here is what sequencing risk is, why cash is not the fix, and how glide paths and buckets help protect a balance in the danger zone.
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Variable vs Fixed Drawdown in Retirement (NZ, 2026): How to Decide How Much to Take Each Year
Fixed-dollar, fixed-percentage or guardrails? Here is how the main retirement drawdown methods behave in good years and bad ones, and how to set up flexible payments from a KiwiSaver in NZ.
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When Can You Retire in NZ? A Readiness Checklist (2026)
NZ Super starts at 65, but eligible and able to afford it are two different questions. Here is a 7-point readiness checklist plus how to bridge the gap if you want to stop work earlier.
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The Women's Retirement Gap in NZ: Why Women Retire With Less and How to Close It
Women in NZ retire with materially less than men: KiwiSaver balances average $34,185 for women versus $42,664 for men, a gap of about 25%. Here is why it exists, where it is widest, and practical steps to close it.
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Working Past 65 in NZ: Can You Get NZ Super and a Salary at the Same Time?
You can draw NZ Super and keep earning a wage — Super is not income-tested, so a job does not reduce it. What changes is your tax code, your end-of-year position and your KiwiSaver. Here is how Super, salary and tax fit together past 65.
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