Dear New Zealand Defence Force, Veterans’ Affairs OIA Team,

Under the Official Information Act 1982, I request information relating to whether a national register or dataset exists identifying individuals who meet the definition of “veteran” under the Veterans’ Support Act 2014.

Specifically, I request:

1. Confirmation of whether Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand maintains, administers, or has access to any national register, database, or dataset identifying individuals who meet the definition of “veteran” under the Veterans’ Support Act 2014.

2. If such a register or dataset exists, please provide:

a. The name of the system or dataset.
b. The agency responsible for maintaining it.
c. A description of the data fields recorded (for example: service history, deployment status, operational service classification, entitlement status, or exposure indicators).
d. The approximate number of individuals recorded in the dataset.
e. Whether the dataset is linked to any other government systems, including but not limited to the National Health Index, Integrated Data Infrastructure, or other cross-agency administrative datasets.

3. Any policy papers, briefings, internal reviews, or advice to Ministers that discuss the creation, maintenance, or absence of a national veteran population register.

4. Any reports, briefings, or analyses estimating the total number of individuals who meet the definition of “veteran” under the Veterans’ Support Act 2014.

If the information cannot be released in full, I request that any reasonably available information be released in summary or aggregated form.

If any part of this request is likely to be refused under section 18(f) of the Official Information Act, I would welcome assistance under section 13 to refine the request.

Kind regards,
Spencer Jones