Who can make a claim of abuse with the Ministry of Social Development?

Contact MSD if you were in their guardianship, custody, or care before 1 April 2017

You can make a claim of abuse or neglect to the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) if you: 

• were in the care, custody, guardianship, or came to the notice of one of these government agencies before 1 April 2017: 
  
  • the Child Welfare Division 
  • the Department of Social Welfare 
  • the New Zealand Children and Young Persons Service or  Child, Youth and Family (CYF) or
  • the Ministry of Social Development, and 
• you were harmed because of abuse or neglect while you were in these agencies' care, custody or guardianship, or after you had come to the notice of those agencies. 

‘Coming to the notice of’ one of the above government agencies means having some contact with them that is related to care and protection or welfare.  

It can be helpful to have someone to talk to before, during and after making a claims, about how you are feeling. Learn where you can find support.open_in_new 

You can contact Oranga Tamariki for claims after 31 March 2017

If you were in the care of others after 31 March 2017, you can make a claim with Oranga Tamariki.

If you were in care both before and after 31 March 2017, you can make a claim with both MSD and Oranga Tamariki.

Find out how to make a claim to Oranga Tamariki. 

If you are unsure who to make a claim to, you can ask MSD

If you are not sure whether you are eligible to make a claim to MSD you can ask them, by: 

• phone: 0800 631 127 and speaking with a Historic Claims staff member 
• email: historicclaims@msd.govt.nz    
• writing to the Ministry of Social Development, Historic Claims, PO Box 1556, Wellington 6140. 

Learn more about redress and what it means to make a claim.