How much can you earn before Jobseeker stops? (New Zealand)

Quick answer

There’s no single fixed dollar amount that makes Jobseeker Support stop for everyone. Work and Income ignores the first $80 of a recipient’s weekly earnings, then reduces the benefit by 70 cents for every dollar earned over that $80.

Your Jobseeker will stop when that reduction equals your weekly Jobseeker payment. Use the formula below to calculate the exact earnings level for your situation.

• Earnings credit ignored: $80 per week (for most recipients)
• Abatement rate: 70% of your earnings over $80
• Benefit stops when 0.7 × (earnings − 80) = your weekly Jobseeker rate

Formula and worked examples

To calculate the earnings level that reduces your Jobseeker to zero, use this formula: earnings_stop = (weekly Jobseeker rate ÷ 0.7) + 80.

Examples below use hypothetical weekly Jobseeker rates — check your exact weekly rate with Work and Income and plug it into the same formula.

• Example A — If your weekly Jobseeker is $300: earnings_stop = (300 ÷ 0.7) + 80 ≈ 429 + 80 ≈ $509 per week. If you earn more than about $509 in a week, your Jobseeker would be abated to zero.
• Example B — If your weekly Jobseeker is $250: earnings_stop = (250 ÷ 0.7) + 80 ≈ 357 + 80 ≈ $437 per week.
• If you are paid fortnightly or monthly, convert your Jobseeker rate and earnings to the same time period before calculating (e.g., fortnightly rate = weekly rate × 2).

How income and household circumstances affect calculations

Work and Income looks at your personal and household situation when calculating entitlement. Partner income, other benefits or pensions, and lump-sum or irregular income can affect your payment.

If you have a partner, the household income test may apply differently; Work and Income assesses combined income and household needs, so check how partner earnings are counted for your case.

• The $80 “earnings credit” generally applies to the benefit recipient’s weekly earnings; other household income is also considered.
• Irregular income (for example, uneven stall takings) should be reported — Work and Income may average or assess income over pay periods.
• Always report earnings promptly to avoid overpayments and entitlements being adjusted later.

Practical tips for stall, market and casual sellers

If you sell goods at markets, busk, do a garage sale or run a small side-hustle, treat those takings as income and keep clear records. Accurate records make it easier to calculate whether your earnings will affect Jobseeker Support.

Plan for variable income: if you have busy and quiet weeks, consider averaging, setting aside taxes/GST, and tracking your gross takings per week or per pay period so you can plug them into the formula.

• Record daily takings (cash and electronic) and keep receipts for purchases/expenses related to the activity.
• If your annual turnover may approach $60,000, look into GST registration rules (you must register for GST once your turnover exceeds the threshold).
• If payments are irregular, convert your takings into the same period used for your Jobseeker payments (weekly/fortnightly) to see the effect on your benefit.

Cashless payments for stalls — why they help

Using cashless payments (card or mobile pay) for market stalls makes tracking income simpler and provides an electronic record that’s useful for reporting to Work and Income and for bookkeeping.

A simple cashless option can reduce the need to carry cash, make change, and manually total takings at the end of each day.

• Digital payments give timestamped receipts and transaction summaries that are easy to total by day or week.
• PocketMoney is one practical option if you want to accept card or mobile payments without carrying a traditional EFTPOS terminal; it helps you take payments and keeps a digital sales record.
• Choose a solution that gives you daily/weekly statements so you can accurately report earnings to Work and Income.

What to do next (actions to take)

1) Find your exact weekly Jobseeker rate — check your most recent payment letter, MyMSD, or contact Work and Income.

2) Use the formula (weekly rate ÷ 0.7) + 80 to estimate the weekly earnings that would reduce your benefit to zero.

3) Keep good income records for stall sales and other casual work. If you use cashless payments, download and keep transaction summaries.

• Report earnings promptly to Work and Income to avoid overpayments.
• If your earnings are seasonal or irregular, ask Work and Income about how they’ll assess your income (they can explain averaging or how pay periods are treated).
• If you’re unsure, call Work and Income or visit a service centre and ask for an earnings assessment using your actual expected takings.