New Zealand First has pledged to restrict Superannuation to citizens only from 2029 if elected.
Leader Winston Peters, announcing the policy at a public meeting in Hamilton on Sunday, said many had raised concerns about the affordability of Superannuation.
“With our growing older population and the increasing costs of Super on taxpayers, how is it fair that the tax burden of supporting seniors now goes to paying for the full retirement of someone who has migrated to our country and only lived and paid taxes for sometimes less than half of the time compared to those who have worked their whole lives here?” he said.
“New Zealand First believes we need to instil some meaning and value back into being a Kiwi, and back into being a New Zealand Citizen.”
The establishment of New Zealand Super in 1977 did not account for current immigration levels, Peters said.
He described the cost of Superannuation for migrants as a “ticking timebomb”.
“If you want to get NZ Super then you need to sign up, be proud enough of New Zealand, and show full commitment to our country and become a citizen.
“Our taxpayers should no longer continue to be used as a bottomless pit by some migrants to our country,” Peters said.
“This is about economic fairness, and it is about putting New Zealanders first.”
New Zealand First was not supporting other changes to entitlement or eligibility for New Zealand Superannuation, nor raising the age to 67.