Christchurch, New Zealand Overseas Allowances
DSSR · Overseas Allowances

Christchurch, New Zealand Overseas Allowances (DSSR)

Effective date: July 12, 2026 Last updated: July 12, 2026
COLA (post allowance)
10%
% of spendable income
Hardship differential
0%
% of basic pay
Danger pay
0%
% of basic pay

Historical rate trend

Christchurch rate history — Allowance rate (%). Query any past effective date directly via the API.

Effective date COLA (post allowance) Hardship differential Danger pay
Jul 12, 2026 10% 0% 0%
May 31, 2026 10% 0% 0%
May 17, 2026 15% 0% 0%
Apr 5, 2026 10% 0% 0%
Feb 8, 2026 15% 0% 0%
Dec 14, 2025 10% 0% 0%
Nov 30, 2025 5% 0% 0%
Jul 27, 2025 10% 0% 0%
Jun 15, 2025 15% 0% 0%
Jun 1, 2025 10% 0% 0%
May 4, 2025 15% 0% 0%
Apr 20, 2025 5% 0% 0%
Feb 9, 2025 10% 0% 0%
Jan 12, 2025 5% 0% 0%
Dec 1, 2024 10% 0% 0%
Oct 6, 2024 15% 0% 0%
Aug 25, 2024 10% 0% 0%
Aug 11, 2024 5% 0% 0%
May 19, 2024 10% 0% 0%
May 5, 2024 5% 0% 0%
Dec 3, 2023 10% 0% 0%
Nov 19, 2023 5% 0% 0%
Aug 27, 2023 10% 0% 0%
Feb 26, 2023 15% 0% 0%
Jan 29, 2023 20% 0% 0%
Dec 4, 2022 15% 0% 0%
Nov 6, 2022 10% 0% 0%
Oct 9, 2022 5% 0% 0%
Jul 3, 2022 10% 0% 0%
Jun 5, 2022 15% 0% 0%
May 22, 2022 10% 0% 0%
May 8, 2022 15% 0% 0%
Dec 5, 2021 20% 0% 0%
Oct 24, 2021 25% 0% 0%
Oct 10, 2021 20% 0% 0%
Jul 4, 2021 10% 0% 0%
May 9, 2021 15% 0% 0%
Apr 11, 2021 10% 0% 0%
Feb 14, 2021 15% 0% 0%
Jan 31, 2021 10% 0% 0%
Oct 11, 2020 5% 0% 0%
Sep 13, 2020 20% 0% 0%
Jun 21, 2020 15% 0% 0%
Apr 26, 2020 10% 0% 0%
Mar 29, 2020 5% 0% 0%
Mar 15, 2020 10% 0% 0%
Nov 10, 2019 15% 0% 0%
Oct 13, 2019 10% 0% 0%
Aug 18, 2019 15% 0% 0%
Aug 4, 2019 20% 0% 0%
Jul 21, 2019 15% 0% 0%
Jul 7, 2019 20% 0% 0%
May 12, 2019 15% 0% 0%
Nov 25, 2018 20% 0% 0%
Sep 16, 2018 15% 0% 0%
Jul 8, 2018 20% 0% 0%
Jun 24, 2018 25% 0% 0%
May 27, 2018 20% 0% 0%
Jan 7, 2018 25% 0% 0%
Nov 12, 2017 20% 0% 0%
Aug 20, 2017 25% 0% 0%
Aug 6, 2017 30% 0% 0%
Jun 11, 2017 25% 0% 0%
May 14, 2017 20% 0% 0%
Apr 30, 2017 25% 0% 0%
Apr 16, 2017 20% 0% 0%
Apr 2, 2017 25% 0% 0%
Mar 19, 2017 20% 0% 0%
Feb 5, 2017 25% 0% 0%
Oct 30, 2016 35% 0% 0%
Sep 4, 2016 42% 0% 0%
Aug 7, 2016 35% 0% 0%
Jul 24, 2016 42% 0% 0%
Jun 26, 2016 35% 0% 0%
May 29, 2016 30% 0% 0%
May 1, 2016 35% 0% 0%
Feb 21, 2016 30% 0% 0%
Jan 24, 2016 25% 0% 0%
Dec 13, 2015 30% 0% 0%
Nov 29, 2015 25% 0% 0%
Nov 1, 2015 30% 0% 0%
Aug 23, 2015 25% 0% 0%
Jul 12, 2015 30% 0% 0%
Jun 14, 2015 35% 0% 0%
Feb 8, 2015 42% 0% 0%
Sep 7, 2014 50% 0% 0%
Mar 23, 2014 60% 0% 0%
Jan 12, 2014 50% 0% 0%
Page of · 88 rows

Related rates for this location

The same location's rates under other U.S. travel-rate systems:

DTMO OCONUS per diem (DoD travel)→ DSSR per diem - State Dept.→ DSSR living quarters allowance (LQA) - State Dept.→ DSSR education allowance - State Dept.→

How this rate is used

These three DSSR allowances compensate U.S. government civilian employees assigned to Christchurch. The post (cost-of-living) allowance offsets higher overseas costs of goods and services; the hardship differential pays for service where conditions are notably more difficult than in the continental U.S.; and danger pay applies during periods of civil insurrection, terrorism or war. COLA is a percentage of spendable income, while hardship and danger pay are percentages of basic pay -- mobility, HR and payroll teams combine them to compute total overseas compensation.

Get this data from the API

The exact request that returns this page's data. Change the date parameter to query any historical effective date, or pull it straight into your ERP, payroll, or expense system. 

curl -H "X-API-Key: YOUR_KEY" \
  "https://api.allowancesapi.com/v1/dssr/allowances/NZ"
Sample response
{
  "effective_date": "2026-07-12",
  "results": [
    {
      "cola": {
        "effective_date": "2026-07-12",
        "rate": 10
      },
      "danger_pay": {
        "effective_date": null,
        "rate": null
      },
      "hardship": {
        "effective_date": "2026-07-12",
        "rate": 0
      },
      "iso_code": "NZ",
      "location": "Christchurch",
      "postcode": "10297"
    }
  ],
  "verification_url": "https://aoprals.state.gov/content.asp?content_id=184\u0026menu_id=78"
}
Get a free API key API reference

Christchurch rate FAQ

What overseas allowances apply to Christchurch, New Zealand?

As of Jul 12, 2026, the DSSR allowances for Christchurch, New Zealand are: COLA (post allowance) 10%, hardship differential 0%, and danger pay 0%. Each is shown with its full history in the chart and table above.

What is the difference between COLA, hardship and danger pay for Christchurch?

COLA (the post allowance) offsets higher local costs of goods and services and is a percentage of spendable income. The hardship differential compensates for difficult living conditions, and danger pay for civil unrest, terrorism or war conditions -- both are percentages of basic pay.

How have the Christchurch allowances changed over time?

The chart and table above show every change in COLA, hardship and danger pay for Christchurch back to Jan 12, 2014, and each is queryable by effective date via the API.

Source & methodology

Effective period
Effective Jul 12, 2026
Last updated
July 12, 2026

Allowances API is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by any U.S. Government agency. All rate data is sourced from official public rate tables and re-published in a normalized format.

Related locations

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See all New Zealand overseas allowances →