How Much Does Respite Care Cost in NZ (and Who Pays)
You have probably reached a point where you feel a proper break should be in order. Or perhaps you have been covering the nights for months already. You find yourself skipping events that you never thought you'd miss out on. A wedding, a work trip, and even that long overdue medical appointment.
Whatever reason you have for browsing this page, the fact is, the question that you have in your mind is most likely the one that others have thought of as well. How much does respite care cost in NZ, and who actually pays for it?
The answer will depend on the type of care your parent needs, how long you need it, and whether a needs assessment has happened yet.
Quick Summary
Families in New Zealand pay for respite care privately. They may also use subsidised support that follows a local needs assessment. Privately arranged in-home respite generally costs somewhere between $28 and $60 an hour, with overnight cover charged nightly.
Health New Zealand funds subsidised residential respite at the residential care rate, which starts at around $200 a day. The Carer Support Subsidy reimburses part of the cost of respite care, and ACC funds respite after an accepted injury. Respite care is not entirely free; a top-up is usual, and the cost of respite care is not tax-deductible.
How much does respite care cost in NZ?
Respite care in New Zealand costs from roughly $28 an hour for in-home support. A subsidised stay in residential care costs around $200 a day. Published rate cards from various providers may also show varying differences.
- Mycare lists companionship at $28 to $30 an hour and personal care at $30 to $40 an hour. Overnight support on their platform starts at $180 a night, plus a platform fee.
- Home Carers publishes agency pricing and reports most families spending $169 to $799 a week. Its overnight cover starts at $329 plus GST.
- Eldernet reports that the subsidy for residential respite matches the residential care rate, which starts at around $200 a day.
Why the difference in these costs? Since families directly connect with individual carers on a marketplace platform, rates here can be significantly lower. Agencies take it a step further by spending extra for police vetting, training, insurance and replacement cover when a carer becomes unavailable. This, of course, drives the rates higher than those seen in the marketplace.
Both paths are common and legal. The only thing to consider is how much of the organising you are willing to delegate, and the budget that it entails.
What are your respite care options, and what does each cost?
New Zealand providers price aged care services by format or scope of their services. The cost of respite care therefore depends far more on the type of care you choose than on the provider. There are five common formats, as you can see below.
| Type of respite | How it is charged | Indicative NZ cost |
|---|---|---|
| In-home respite, a few hours at a time | Hourly | About $28 to $60 an hour |
| Overnight respite at home | Flat nightly rate | About $180 to $349 a night |
| 24-hour or live-in respite at home | Daily rate | From around $1,297 a day |
| Day programme in the community | Per session, often subsidised | Varies by region |
| Residential respite in a rest home | Daily rate, often subsidised | From around $200 a day |
There are two things worth taking note of at this point. Home respite care keeps your parent in familiar surroundings, which matters most when your parent has memory loss. Though residential respite is usually cheaper once a subsidy applies, it often means a temporary move.
Providers price emergency respite care the same way, although availability drives the real cost at short notice.
Who pays for respite care, and is respite care free?
Respite care is not entirely free in New Zealand, and most families shoulder some of its expenses in one form or another. Health New Zealand, Te Whatu Ora pays for respite care once an assessment confirms that your parent is eligible.
Planned respite gives people who meet the criteria an allocation of up to 28 days per year. If you are wondering how long respite care is in NZ, that annual number of days gives the practical answer. Immediate respite may also be available at short notice for people without pre-allocated days. Access runs through your local Needs Assessment and Service Coordination service, or NASC.
Funded respite is practically helpful in reducing the bill, though it may not entirely shoulder the expenses. Eldernet is clear that subsidised respite services generally require a private top-up. The Ministry of Social Development says the same in its guide for carers. So if you are hoping for free respite care, the honest answer is that a subsidy lowers the cost rather than clearing all of it.
One further point that families often discover later is that funded residential respite only means a short stay in a rest home. It does not offer care at your parent's own house. So if your mum is more comfortable staying home than adjusting in unfamiliar places, the other cheaper option may not necessarily be the better one.
How much does the Carer Support Subsidy actually cover?
The Carer Support Subsidy is a reimbursement towards replacement care, not a payment for your time. It covers part of the cost only. Health New Zealand describes it as a subsidy that pays some of the costs of care while a full-time carer takes a break.
Disability Support Services publishes a worked example of how the maths lands. A carer allocated 28 days at $85 a day holds a total annual budget of $2,380. The carer can spend that budget across the year rather than strictly day by day.
Published daily rates range roughly from $80 to $85, and Health New Zealand reviews them periodically. Treat any figure you read as indicative. To count as a full-time carer, you must provide more than four hours a day of unpaid care. That threshold comes from the Ministry of Social Development.
Health New Zealand and your regional NASC arrange allocations for older people.
Does ACC pay for respite care?
Yes, ACC may fund respite where the person you care for has an accepted injury claim. The Ministry of Social Development confirms that ACC funds respite when the person you care for has an injury. Eldernet also emphasises this. It notes that ACC may help make arrangements so a carer can take a break.
There are two things to consider for families:
- ACC support covers only injured persons. ACC will not fund a parent who has an age-related condition and no accepted claim. The NASC pathway is the one to pursue instead.
- Overnight cover is worth asking about specifically. Whether ACC will pay for overnight respite care depends on the agreed support plan. Do not assume anything about the support plan until you clear it with your case manager.
Is respite care tax deductible in New Zealand?
Not really. New Zealand does not allow deductions from care costs that a family pays for a parent since this is considered private expenses. Care costs do not appear on the list of non-business expenses an individual can claim as per Inland Revenue.
There is one tax point worth mentioning here as well. Inland Revenue likewise treats the Carer Support payment as a reimbursement. The payment is not taxable where the support carer provides the care in their own home. It becomes taxable where the support carer works somewhere else.
Inland Revenue generally classes support carers working 30 hours a week or less as private domestic workers. Those carers register as IR56 workers. If Carer Support pays a family member, that person needs to know this. Treat all of the above as general information, and check your own situation with an accountant.
What does respite care cost with Personal Assistance?
Personal Assistance prices respite care against the care plan rather than a fixed package. This ensures that the program and the cost that it entails truly reflect what your parent actually needs. Three things determine your quote:
- The number of hours each week sets the base cost. Two mornings a week costs far less than continuous cover across a fortnight.
- The level of care changes the rate. We staff and price companionship, hands-on personal care and in-home nursing differently.
- The timing of the care matters. We charge overnight, weekend and public holiday cover at different rates to weekday support.
Personal Assistance is owned and personally operated by Brigid Chunn and Jackie McDiarmid. Every carer is police-vetted and first-aid trained.
We build each care plan around the individual and adjust it as needs change. Regular family updates are never compromised. Registered nurses are available where clinical care is part of the plan.
Frequently asked questions
How much does respite care cost in NZ?
Usually from $28 to $60 an hour. However, providers may charge roughly $180 to $349 as a flat nightly rate if you will require overnight cover. The format or scope matters far more to the total than the provider does.
Is respite care free?
Respite care is rarely free. Health New Zealand funds respite for people assessed as eligible. Eldernet and the Ministry of Social Development both note that most families still pay a private top-up.
Who pays for respite care?
Funding comes from three places. Health New Zealand pays for assessed, eligible respite through your regional NASC. ACC pays where the person you care for has an accepted injury claim. Families pay privately for anything beyond the funded allocation.
Does ACC pay for respite care?
Yes, where ACC covers your parent for an injury. ACC funding follows the accepted claim rather than the person. A parent with an age-related need and no claim would go through the NASC pathway instead.
Is respite care tax deductible?
No. Inland Revenue does not list care costs among the non-business expenses an individual can claim. Families cannot deduct what they pay for a parent's respite care. Carer Support payments received by a support carer have their own separate tax treatment.
Talk it through before you book anything
Working out the cost of respite care in NZ ultimately points back to the unique needs of your parents and the kind of break that you need as well.
It's worth having a conversation with someone who arranges respite every week. Personal Assistance offers a walkthrough on the choices that you have: in-home respite care, overnight cover and 24/7 support. We can also give you an indicative figure for your parent's situation.
Showing that you care starts with a conversation. Call Brigid or Jackie, or send us a message, and let's talk about what is going on and what might help.
For the wider picture, start with our guide to respite care for elderly parents in New Zealand.
References
Disability Support Services. (n.d.). How to access Carer Support. https://www.disabilitysupport.govt.nz/carers/what-is-carer-support
Eldernet. (n.d.). Who pays for respite care? https://www.eldernet.co.nz/knowledge-lab/home-community/respite-short-term-care/who-pays-for-respite-care
Health New Zealand, Te Whatu Ora. (n.d.). Carer Support Subsidy. https://www.healthnz.govt.nz/hospitals-services/eligibility-subsidies/carer-support-subsidy
Health New Zealand, Te Whatu Ora. (n.d.). Respite care for older people. https://www.healthnz.govt.nz/hospitals-services/services-support/older-people/respite-care
Home Carers. (n.d.). Home care costs NZ. https://homecarers.co.nz/home-care-costs-nz/
Inland Revenue. (n.d.). Carer Support payments. https://www.ird.govt.nz/income-tax/income-tax-for-individuals/types-of-individual-income/carer-support-payments
Inland Revenue. (n.d.). Non-business expenses. https://www.ird.govt.nz/income-tax/income-tax-for-individuals/types-of-individual-expenses/non-business-expenses
Ministry of Social Development. (n.d.). Taking a break from caring (respite). https://www.msd.govt.nz/what-we-can-do/community/carers/guide-for-carers/people/taking-a-break-from-caring-respite.html
Mycare. (n.d.). Mycare pricing. https://www.mycare.co.nz/pricing