Under 18s

If you're under 18 years old, you'll need your legal guardian(s) consent to join KiwiSaver.

What under 18s are eligible for

On joining, the Government will pay $1,000 into your KiwiSaver account to kick-start your savings.

Until you turn 18 you're not eligible for:

Normal fees charged by KiwiSaver providers will apply.

Making contributions if you're under 18

If you're not working:

You don't have to make KiwiSaver contributions, unless required by your KiwiSaver provider. You or your parents can choose to make voluntary contributions at any time.

If you start working:

You'll have to start contributing 2%, 4% or 8% of your pay like any other KiwiSaver member unless you're still at school and aren’t required to have tax deducted from your pay. 

You're not required to pay tax if your earnings are $2,340 or less per year ($45 a week).

Twelve months after you start contributing you'll be able to take a contributions holiday of between 3 months and 5 years. This means you won't have to have deductions taken from your pay by your employer.

Joining up

To join KiwiSaver you'll need to contact the scheme provider - you can't join through your employer.

If you're under 16 years old, all your legal guardians will need to give their consent.  You can't enrol yourself.

If you're aged 16 to 17 one of your legal guardians must co-sign your application form with you in order to enrol in KiwiSaver. If you don't have a legal guardian, you may enrol yourself directly with a scheme provider.

Once you enrol you can't opt out.

Find out more about how to join.