You've got some money sitting in your KiwiSaver, but you have no idea how to use these funds.
Someone at work said you need three years of contributions. Someone else said the money turns up in your bank account the week before settlement. Both of those are wrong, and the second one has cost people their settlement date.
This page sets out what the rules actually say, checked against Inland Revenue and Kāinga Ora on 15 August 2026. What qualifies you, what you can and can't take out, where the money goes, and what shifted in 2025 and 2026.
The short answer
You need to have been a KiwiSaver member for at least three years. That's membership, not contributions, and a dormant account still counts.
You must leave $1,000 in the account. Everything above that you can withdraw for your first home OR retirement.
You can take your own contributions, your employer's, the government contributions and the returns on all of it. You can't take money transferred in from an Australian complying superannuation scheme (Inland Revenue).
The money is paid to your lawyer's trust account before settlement. It never lands in your bank account.
In June 2026, 4,370 members withdrew $200.9 million between them for a first home, an average of about $46,000 each, per Inland Revenue figures published 24 July 2026.
What is the KiwiSaver first home withdrawal?
It's a rule that lets you pull almost your whole KiwiSaver balance out early and put it into your first home. It isn't a loan and it isn't a grant, it's your own money released ahead of schedule for one purpose.
You have to intend to live in the property. Kāinga Ora is clear about it: "It cannot be used to buy an investment property."
For most Auckland first home buyers this is the largest single line in the deposit. At about $46,000 per member on average (Inland Revenue, published 24 July 2026), a couple together could be looking at about $90,000 combined that they can put towards their first home deposit.
Is it three years of contributions, or three years of membership?
Membership. This trips up more people than any other part of the rule, and it usually works in your favour.
Inland Revenue's wording is "You must be in KiwiSaver for at least 3 years before you withdraw funds for your first home." The test is the date you joined, not how consistently you've made contributions. Signed up at 18, spent four years overseas contributing nothing, came home last March: you've still been a member the whole time.
That's not a maybe, it's a rule. The date that sets your buying window is sitting in an email from your provider, not in your contribution history. Find it before you start going to open homes.
Call us on 022 305 5696 and we'll work your three year date out with you in about five minutes.
How much of it can I take out?
Everything except the last $1,000. Inland Revenue puts it plainly: "You must leave $1,000 in your account."
What's available above that line:
Your own contributions, including any voluntary top-ups.
Your employer's contributions.
The government contributions you've received over the years.
The interest and investment returns earned on all of it.
Fee subsidies, if you received them back when those existed.
For all the Kiwi’s working in Australia contributing to an Australian Superannuation scheme... Inland Revenue clearly states: "Funds transferred from an Australian Complying Superannuation scheme cannot be withdrawn." If you worked in Australia and moved your super across, that portion stays put until retirement, along with the returns attributed to it. Ask your Kiwisaver provider for a split of your Kiwisaver balance, so you’re aware of what amount you can use to go towards your first home purchase.
Do I actually qualify?
Usually yes, if you've never owned property. The disqualifier is ownership, present tense, and Kāinga Ora words it like this: "If you currently own a home, land or have a share in a property, you will not be eligible for this feature (this does not include ownership of Māori land)."
Read that carefully, because it catches people who don't think of themselves as owners.
A quarter share in a family bach counts.
A section you inherited and never built on counts.
Being on a title with a sibling counts, even if you've never lived there.
Ownership of Māori land is specifically excluded, so it doesn't disqualify you.
You also have to intend to live in the house. A property bought to rent out is off the table.
I've owned a home before. Am I out?
Not necessarily, and this is the most under-used route in the system.
If you've owned before but you're now in much the same financial position as a first home buyer, you can apply to Kāinga Ora for a previous home owner determination. It runs in a fixed order:
You apply to Kāinga Ora, not to your KiwiSaver provider and not to us.
You send evidence. Identity documents, details of the property you owned, a settlement statement if you sold inside the last three months, and a declaration of your assets in New Zealand and overseas.
Kāinga Ora assesses it and, if you qualify, confirms in writing that you're a qualifying person.
You give that determination letter to your provider, who handles the withdrawal.
Kāinga Ora sets the asset thresholds and updates them, so check the current criteria at kaingaora.govt.nz rather than trusting a figure on any adviser's website, ours included. If you separated from a partner and walked away with very little, it's worth applying. Worst case, you get a no in writing.
Build it into your timeline before you start looking. It adds weeks.
Where does the money actually go?
To your lawyer's trust account, before settlement. Not to you.
This is the most misunderstood mechanic in the process and it's the one that breaks deals. Your provider pays the withdrawal directly to your lawyer, who holds it and applies it on settlement day alongside the rest of your deposit and the bank's funds. You never see it and you never bank it.
That matters most at auction. Auction deposits are usually due on the fall of the hammer, and KiwiSaver money is rarely in the lawyer's account by then. Where an auction is in play, that deposit generally has to come from cash savings, a bank facility or family, with the KiwiSaver money arriving later to cover settlement. If you need to use your Kiwisaver funds to pay the initial deposit (either with an auction or going unconditional on an offer), you need to let your lawyer know so they can add a Kiwisaver clause in for you. Talk to us on 022 305 5696 before you register to bid, not the morning after.
First home buyer specialists · Low deposit home loans
When should I apply?
Earlier than feels necessary. Providers aren't fast and the paperwork chain has several links in it.
Your lawyer usually starts the application once you have a signed sale and purchase agreement, and providers commonly quote around 10 to 15 working days from a complete application to funds being released. If you’re applying for a second change withdrawal then this will take longer. An incomplete form, a missing bank statement or a signature in the wrong box resets the clock.
The practical version: tell your lawyer the moment your offer goes unconditional, have your membership evidence and identity documents ready beforehand, and never agree to a settlement date shorter than your provider's turnaround time for releasing the Kiwisaver funds.
What changed in 2025 and 2026?
Three things, and they all affect how fast your balance grows from here.
From 1 July 2025, the government contribution halved. It's now 25 cents for every $1 you contribute, capped at $260.72 a year, with no government contribution at all if your income is over $180,000 (Inland Revenue). Eligibility also dropped to age 16, so 16 and 17 year olds became entitled to the government contribution. Compulsory employer contributions for that age group started separately, on 1 April 2026.
From 1 April 2026, the default employee and employer contribution rate rose from 3% to 3.5% (Inland Revenue). If that bites while you're saving hard for a deposit, you can apply for a temporary rate reduction that keeps you at 3% for between 3 and 12 months, and you can reapply when it runs out.
From 1 April 2028, the default rate rises again, to 4% for both you and your employer.
For a deposit saver, the 1 April 2026 increase is quietly useful. Your employer's contribution rose alongside yours.
Is my KiwiSaver in the right fund if I'm buying soon?
People comment all the time about the fluctuations in their Kiwisaver balances. These fluctuations are largely due to the fund type your Kiwisaver is in.
A growth fund is built for a 30 year horizon. It rides out falls because it has decades to recover. Your house deposit doesn't have decades, it has months. If you're buying inside about two years and your balance sits in growth or aggressive, a bad quarter can take a real bite out of your deposit at exactly the wrong moment.
The usual answer is to shift to a lower-risk fund as the purchase gets close, then move back to a more aggressive fund afterwards. It isn't automatic and your provider won't do it for you. It isn't free of trade-offs either: switch too early and you give up returns you might have kept. That's a personalised advice conversation, so make sure you speak with your Kiwisaver specialist to get some advice around this.
How far does $46,000 go on an Auckland house deposit?
Further than most people assume, and not as far as the headlines suggest.
Auckland's median sale price was $940,000 in July 2026 (REINZ, released 13 August 2026), and first home buyers paid a median of $900,000 in the first quarter of 2026 (Cotality-Westpac First Home Buyer Report, May 2026). On that $900,000, a 20% deposit is $180,000, 10% is $90,000, and the 5% Kāinga Ora First Home Loan route is $45,000.
One average withdrawal of about $46,000 covers the 5% route on its own. Two of them get you close to 10%. That matters, because 50.2% of first home buyer mortgages approved in June 2026 had less than a 20% deposit, which was 1,358 out of 2,707 (RBNZ).
You also need to factor in other costs associated with buying property. Such as lawyer fees, a builder's report, a registered valuation if the lender asks for one, and moving costs. We cost these with you when we go through the mortgage application process.
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What to do next
Four steps, in this order, none of which commit you to anything.
Find your join date. Ask your provider for written confirmation. That date will confirm whether you have reached the 3 years to be able to withdraw the funds.
Ask for a “Kiwisaver First Home Withdrawal Letter” from your Kiwisaver provider. This will confirm the balance you can withdraw for your first home.
Check whether you need a Kāinga Ora determination. If you've ever been on a property title, apply early. It runs on their timetable, not yours.
Get your borrowing number before you look at houses. Your KiwiSaver is one half of the equation. You also need to get confirmation from the bank on the mortgage approval amount.
In most cases our advice costs you nothing. We're paid by the lender you choose, and we're paid much the same either way, so the recommendation is about the loan rather than the commission. In a small number of situations a fee applies, and we'll always tell you before any work begins. It's all set out in our disclosure statement.
Call us on 022 305 5696 or send your details through and we'll come back to you the same working day.
We're available 8am to 8pm, seven days. No obligation, and nothing gets submitted to a lender without your say-so. Here to give you guidance and educate you through the process of buying property.
