Beware of scam texts and emails claiming to be from the Ministry of Justice. We do not send payment links in texts or emails. If you are unsure whether a message is genuine, contact our call centre on 0800 4 FINES (0800 434 637) or 0800 COURTS (0800 268 787) before clicking any links or making a payment. Read more about identifying scams.
Legal aid is government funding to pay for legal help for people who cannot afford a lawyer.
Legal aid is an important part of New Zealand's justice system. It helps people to resolve legal problems that may go to court and makes sure that people are not denied justice because they can't afford a lawyer.
Find out about user charges for family and civil matters, including how much the user charge is and where to pay it, and when a user charge doesn't apply.
Find out about legal aid repayments, if you need to make repayments, how to make repayments, if there are problems with repayments and if your debt will be secured over any property you own.