IN-CONFIDENCE
24 July 2026
Monica
[FYI request #35022 email]
Tēnā koe Monica
Official Information Act Request
Thank you for your email of 4 July 2026 to the Ministry of Social Development
(the Ministry), requesting information about policies and procedures following
a decision being overturned by the Benefit Review Committee (BRC).
I have considered your request under the Official Information Act 1982 (the
Act). Please find my decision on your request set out below.
A Review of Decision (RoD) application is an opportunity for Ministry clients to
challenge the Ministry regarding decisions that clients do not agree with,
pursuant to section 391 of the Social Security Act 2018 (the SSA).
The process starts with an administrative review generally referred to as an
internal review through to a Benefits Review Committee (BRC). The RoD
process may be ended by Ministry clients by voluntarily withdrawing their
RoDs. Information about this can be found here:
www.workandincome.govt.nz/map/income-support/core-policy/reviews-and-
appeals/index.html. The BRC is an administrative body established under the SSA to review Ministry
decisions that clients disagree with. It takes a “fresh eyes” approach and it
may confirm, vary, revoke or refer the original decision back to the Ministry
for reconsideration.
The Ministry does not have policy guidelines nor standard operating procedures
about requiring clients to make an appointment with Work and Income after a
successful BRC review. Your request for this information is therefore refused
under section 18(e) of the Act as this document does not exist or, despite
reasonable efforts to locate it, cannot be found.
IN-CONFIDENCE
The Ministry is bound by decisions of BRCs. I encourage anyone who has
questions about a recent BRC decision relating to their benefit to contact the
Ministry about what the next steps will be.
Only Ministry clients have the right of appeal to the Social Security Appeal
Authority (SSAA) post-BRC pursuant to section 395 of the SSA. We have
provided below the relevant link for information regarding this.
www.justice.govt.nz/tribunals/social-security-appeal-authority/make-an-
appeal/. If you wish to discuss this response with us, please feel free to contact
[MSD request email]. If you are not satisfied with my decision on your request, you have the right
to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman. Information about
how to make a complaint is available
at www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or
0800 802 602.
Ngā mihi nui
pp.
Anna Graham
General Manager
Ministerial and Executive Services
Page 2 of 2
Document Outline
