Q My job was getting too strenuous for me, so I resigned three months ago. I have been looking for a more suitable job but, at my age in my mid-50s, it isn't easy, and we are living on my wife's income. We are worried about rising interest rates and the impact that will have on our mortgage repayments. Over the past 10 years, I have been contributing to KiwiSaver and my balance is now over $42,000. What is happening with my KiwiSaver?
A While you are not working, your KiwiSaver account is still active but no employee or employer contributions will be going into it. Those payments will have stopped when you got your last pay check.
If you haven't already done so, set up a MyIR login with Inland Revenue so that you can track your payments. You can also see how much you have earned, and how much tax you have paid. You can also check your account by creating a login on your provider's website, or by internet banking if your provider is also your bank.
Because you are over 18 and under 65, you should receive a top-up from the government into your KiwiSaver by the middle of July. This will be up to $521 depending on how much you have contributed since July 1 last year. This top-up will go through whether you are currently working or not.
If you can afford to make payments to your KiwiSaver account directly, saving $20 per week will entitle you to the full Government contribution in July next year. You can set up an automatic payment to your KiwiSaver provider. You should be able to find their bank account details through internet banking. If money is tight, wait until you have a job and in June next year you can work out if you need to top up your account then and by how much to get the full amount — if you are in a position to do so.