JUNE 2005

War Pensions

There is some apprehension by our younger veterans in taking that “one pace forward” to ask about War Disablement Pensions, and I believe that it is up to all of us in the RSA movement to help ease that apprehension and ensure that everyone gets his or her entitlements.

As we should all know how a person can apply for a War Disablement Pension if he or she had what is now termed Routine Service prior to 1 April 1974, or served in a War, Emergency or Peacekeeping Operation recognised under the War Pensions Act before or after that date.

What are the later Wars, Emergencies and Peacekeeping Operations that are included for War Pensions purposes? Just about everyone knows of the Vietnam War of the mid 1960s to 1972, and the two ships that went to Mururoa to witness the French nuclear bomb tests in the mid-1970s. There was service in Rhodesia (Operation Midford). There was a hiatus of about a decade to the next War – The Gulf Conflict of December 1990 to April 1991. The men and women who served in that war will probably be in their 30s up to their 50s and maybe early 60s now, and will perhaps be noticing that their hearing is not quite what it once was, their knees and ankles are getting stiff, or they have unexplained illnesses that might have something to do with the weaponry that was used in that war.

The Peacekeeping Operations New Zealanders took part in during the 1990s and into the 21st Century also have War Pensions cover, UNAVEM II and III in Angola, the continuing operations in the Former Yugoslavia (UNPROFOR); Sierra Leone with either UNOMSIL or UNAMSIL; East Timor; Operation Enduring Freedom, in the Gulf area again and Afghanistan. Each of these operations had its own dangers.

The youngest veterans may only into their be early 20s and the time they have spent in a war zone may only have been a few months. This does not mean that that have not been caused injury, either physically or mentally. Being on the wrong end of a mortar round in Iraq whilst on duty there trying to rebuild infrastructure after the Second Gulf War is not much different from being at the wrong end of a mortar round in any other conflict over the last century and more. Being fearful for your life, or seeing your friends badly hurt or killed still causes anguish.

All veterans deserve the same chance to have their disabilities and health conditions assessed in relation to their service, if they consider that the disability or health condition has its foundation in a declared War or Emergency under the War Pensions Act, 1954; or in Routine Service prior to 1 April 1974 when ACC came in and provided cover for our military and police personnel during normal peacetime activities.
My message is for all veterans from any period, all ex-Service personnel from before 1 April 1974, and their families, please don’t hang back. War Disablement Pensions can be paid because of something that happened due to your service. They are compensation payments, not charity. They are tax free, and are not counted as income in relation to most WINZ benefits such as Disability Allowance, or in relation to Residential Care Subsidy. Receipt of a War Disablement Pension also entitles you to free treatment for the accepted disability, and that can be worth quite a lot in this day and age.

(If you would like to receive a full list of the Wars and Emergencies you can obtain one from me at RNZRSA Headquarters, or through Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand.)

VETERAN’S PENSION

To be eligible for a Veteran’s Pension you have to have served in a War or Emergency under the War Pensions Act. That is the first qualification and it is obviously very important. There is another qualification for those who served with other Commonwealth country forces, but who were ordinarily resident in New Zealand at the start of that war or emergency; but that would apply to only a few New Zealanders and anyone in that position should ask about their entitlement.

The second qualification depends on your age. For those who are over 65, the age at which you qualify for New Zealand Superannuation, the second qualification is that you must be in receipt of 70% or more of the War Disablement Pension. This can be made up from a number of disabilities and health conditions each attracting only a few percent, or it could be from one or two disabilities that have taken you over the threshold. The main thing is to reach that 70%.

For the over 65s the Veteran’s Pension takes the place of the New Zealand Superannuation. It is paid at the same rate and your spouse or partner can move onto this Pension as well. If it is paid at the same rate what is the advantage to the veteran? You are automatically entitled to a Community Services Card regardless of your income and assets. If you have to go into hospital and you spend more than 13 weeks as an inpatient there your Veteran’s Pension will not reduce. If you were to be receiving New Zealand Superannuation your Super would reduce to Pocket Money. There is a lump sum that is paid on the death of a veteran, currently $4,670.25, if he or she has a spouse or partner or dependent children. Similarly there is a lump sum paid on the death of the spouse or partner. This is currently $3,561.20. These sums will go some way to giving the veteran and spouse or partner the funeral they deserve.

For those under 65 years, the second qualification is quite different. You do not have to be in receipt of a War Disablement Pension at all. The qualification for you is very different. I shall quote from the Act - A person “because of any mental or physical infirmity, is, in the Secretary (for War Pensions)’s opinion, prevented from undertaking employment and, because of that infirmity, is likely to be prevented from undertaking employment permanently or for a substantial period.”

That means that if you are under 65 years old and have served in a recognised War or Emergency and you are no longer able to work due to your ill health, mental or physical; whether that ill health was caused by your service or not, then you can claim a Veteran’s Pension. All the advantages that are noted above are available, but the most important thing is that Veteran’s Pension is paid at a higher level that the Invalid’s Benefit, which would be the best WINZ benefit alternative.

Also for the under 65s there is the chance that the veteran may become well enough to start back to work, at least part-time. In that case the veteran does not necessarily lose the Veteran’s Pension immediately. There is an abatement scheme that depends on the amount of income the veteran earns, and that should be discussed in depth with appropriate WINZ or VANZ staff.

Again the message is please don’t miss out on entitlements. If you have any doubts or queries there are many people out there who can help – your local RSA Pensions or Welfare Officer, if he or she does not have all the answers, should be able to point you in the right direction to obtain the information you need.