If you manage or work in an aged residential care facility in New Zealand, you need to know exactly what the law says about staffing. This guide covers the key requirements under Nga Paerewa Health and Disability Services Standard (NZS 8134:2021), the Health and Disability Services (Safety) Act 2001, and the oversight of the Aged Care Commissioner. All information is current as of May 2026.
Key rule – Standard 1.3 Staffing
Every provider must have enough staff who are competent, qualified, and available to meet the assessed needs of residents. This includes having a documented staffing plan that is reviewed at least every 12 months.
Standard 1.3 of Nga Paerewa is the core staffing requirement. It says:
Warning – Non-compliance risk
If your facility does not have a current staffing plan that matches resident needs, you risk a certification non-compliance finding from HealthCERT, which can lead to suspension of your provider agreement or closure.
Under Standard 1.3.5, a registered nurse (RN) must be on site 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in all aged residential care facilities that provide hospital-level or rest home-level care. This includes:
There is no exemption for weekends or public holidays. If you cannot meet this requirement, you must apply for a variance from HealthCERT – and these are rarely granted.
While Nga Paerewa does not prescribe a single fixed ratio for HCAs to residents, the Ministry of Health’s Age-Related Residential Care Services Agreement (ARRC) and the Care Capacity Demand Management (CCDM) programme set out minimum expectations:
Key rule – Acuity-based ratios
These are minimums. If your residents have higher needs (e.g., high falls risk, complex wounds, challenging behaviours), you must increase staffing accordingly. The InterRAI assessment for each resident must be used to calculate actual staffing needs.
Your staffing plan (Standard 1.3.3) must be a written document that includes:
The plan must be signed off by the facility manager and the clinical lead (usually the Director of Nursing). It must be available for inspection by HealthCERT auditors and the Aged Care Commissioner.
The Aged Care Commissioner (part of the Health and Disability Commissioner) investigates complaints about staffing levels. If a complaint is upheld, the Commissioner can:
Since 2024, the Commissioner has issued three public reports specifically about staffing ratios, all finding that the provider failed to meet Standard 1.3. In each case, the facility was required to increase RN hours and HCA numbers within 30 days.
Warning – Complaints are rising
In 2025, the Commissioner received 47 complaints about staffing levels – up 30% from 2024. Most were from families concerned about insufficient care hours. Ensure your staffing plan is transparent and shared with residents and families on request.
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There is no single fixed RN-to-resident ratio in NZ law. However, Standard 1.3 requires an RN on site 24/7 for facilities with 10+ beds. The actual number of RNs depends on resident acuity – typically 1 RN per 30 residents during the day, but this can vary.
No, unless you have a formal variance from HealthCERT. For facilities with 10+ beds, an RN must be physically present 24/7. For smaller facilities, the RN must be on call and able to attend within 30 minutes.
At least every 12 months, or more often if there is a significant change in resident numbers or acuity. The review must be documented and signed off.
You must document the reason (e.g., sick leave, unexpected admission) and take immediate corrective action, such as calling in agency staff or redeploying from another unit. Repeated breaches can lead to a complaint to the Aged Care Commissioner.