The new social security agreement with Australia was signed today, Acting Foreign Affairs Minister Jim Sutton said.
The treaty was signed in Canberra by New Zealand High Commissioner Simon Murdoch and Australian Minister for Family and
Community Services Senator Amanda Vanstone.
Mr Sutton said the agreement would set up a new cost-sharing mechanism in respect of payments to superannuitants,
veterans, and people with severe disabilities who have lived on both sides of the Tasman.
"The revised system will ensure that the contributions people have made to each country during their working lives are
properly reflected in the payments they receive," Mr Sutton said.
People already receiving payments under the terms of the existing agreement will not be affected by the changes.
Further information on how the agreement affects individual circumstances can be obtained from the Department of Work
and Income on the free phone number 0800 777577.