Who can get it

To get this payment, you must meet all of the following:

• you’re a non-protected Special Category visa (subclass 444) holder
• you’ve paid tax in Australia for at least one year in the past 3 financial years, or will do so before 4 February 2026.
• you’re 16 or older at the time of this disaster
• you’re adversely affected in a declared area.

Adversely affected means that you or an eligible child you care for must have been directly affected by the declared disaster. This includes one or more of the following:

• major damage to your principal place of residence
• major damage to a major asset or assets that you own at your principal place of residence
• serious injury
• an immediate family member who is an Australian citizen or resident has died or is missing.

You can only get NZ DRP once for this disaster.

What these terms mean

For this payment, we use the following definitions.

Eligible child you care for

You’re the carer of an eligible child if on the first day you were affected by the declared disaster, either of the following applies:

• the child’s 15 or younger
• you get Family Tax Benefit for that child
• you have at least 66% care of the child.

If this doesn’t apply, you must be the principal carer of the child you’re claiming for. This means that both of the following apply:

• you have a legal responsibility for the day-to-day care, welfare and development of the child
• the child’s 15 or younger, and dependent on you on the first day you were affected by the declared disaster.

When you share the care of a child with your partner, only one of you can get NZ DRP for the child.

Principal place of residence

Your principal place of residence is the main place where you have a right or licence to live. It doesn’t include holiday homes, investment properties, temporary stays with family or friends, detention facilities or prison.

If you have more than one principal place of residence, you’ll be asked to give details of each residence.

Major damage to your principal place of residence

Your principal place of residence has experienced major damage if, for example:

• it’s been destroyed or must be demolished
• it’s been declared structurally unsound
• this disaster has exposed the interior to the elements
• sewage has gotten inside it.

Examples of major damage to the interior of your principal place of residence are:

• flooring or furniture needs refinishing or replacing
• electrical items such as a refrigerator or washing machine have been damaged and need replacing
• metal has begun to rust, pit and corrode and needs replacing.

Major damage to a major asset or assets

A major asset or assets you own must be located at your principal place of residence.

Your major assets have experienced major damage if:

• they have become unusable and need to be replaced
• a water tank is damaged and needs repairing or cleaning, or the water needs to be replaced.

The asset or assets must have a combined market value of $20,000 or more. This may include buildings, vehicles, caravans, water tanks or large-scale machinery.