Enable New Zealand, the B4 School Check, Work and Income, ACC and the two free chats Rose Optometry offers — what each covers, the current dollar amounts, and the official source for every rule.
For adults, rarely. New Zealand does not fund routine adult eye examinations, and "free eye test" offers are usually tied to buying glasses. What does exist is a set of targeted schemes, each with its own rules. Here they are, with the official source for each (checked 3 October 2026).
If your child is 15 or younger and you hold a Community Services Card (or your child holds a High Use Health Card), Enable New Zealand pays up to $287.50 a year towards an eye examination, glasses (frames up to $138, plus $51.11 more if adult-size frames are needed), eye patches and repairs. The optometrist applies on your behalf and is paid directly, so you may pay nothing for the examination and a basic pair of glasses. The subsidy year runs from the first examination; unused money does not carry over. Source: Enable New Zealand, Children's spectacles. Tell the practice you have the card when you book; most practices are registered to claim it — ask.
The B4 School Check is free for every four-year-old and includes a distance vision screen by a vision and hearing technician; children who see 6/12 or worse, or have unequal vision, are referred on. Year 7 students are screened at school for short-sightedness. These are screens, not examinations: they can miss long-sightedness, eye-muscle problems and eye health issues, which is why a full examination before starting school is still recommended. Sources: HealthEd, B4 School Check; National Vision and Hearing Screening Protocols.
Work and Income can pay $280 towards an eye test and glasses (single-vision, bifocal or standard progressive lenses, frames, fitting, repairs, a case and a two-year warranty) if you are 16 or over, have an immediate and essential need, and meet the income and asset limits. It is repaid — it is a recoverable payment, not a grant. You apply first, choose a supplier, and the money is loaded on a payment card to use within 21 days. Source: Work and Income, Glasses.
If an accident injures your eye (a foreign body, a scratch, a chemical splash, a blow), ACC contributes to treatment costs; the optometrist lodges the claim and you pay any difference. ACC does not cover illness, ageing or routine vision. Source: ACC, What we cover. Rototuna Optometrists and Rose Optometry both see injury-related cases; most practices do.
Rose Optometry offers two genuinely free 15-minute appointments: a myopia chat for parents weighing up myopia control for a short-sighted child, and an ortho-k chat for anyone considering overnight lenses. They are conversations, not eye tests — no prescription or health check is done — but they are the right first step if you want to understand the options before paying for a specialty consultation. Book the free myopia chat · Book the free ortho-k chat.
There is no national student or SuperGold entitlement. Some practices price students lower (Rose Optometry: $99 tertiary, $79 school) and some chains advertise SuperGold discounts; ask when you book. Hamilton's public hospital eye clinic sees referred patients free of charge, but you need a referral from an optometrist or GP and the examination that finds the problem is not funded.
Listed when the practice's website says it offers children's eye care. Ask the practice to confirm it is registered to claim the Enable subsidy.
Frankton · Independent
Work and Income can advance up to $280 for an eye test and glasses if you are 16 or over, on a low income and have an immediate need. It must be repaid. Apply before the appointment; the money comes on a payment card to use with a supplier within 21 days.
Adults: no. Children 15 and under in a household with a Community Services Card (or holding a High Use Health Card) are covered by the Enable New Zealand subsidy, which pays $287.50 a year towards the examination and glasses.
Vision screening is free at the B4 School Check (age 4) and in Year 7. A full examination is funded only for children who qualify for the Enable subsidy; otherwise it is paid for by the family (for example $79 at Rose Optometry).
No. There is no age-based entitlement for routine eye examinations in New Zealand. Monitoring of diagnosed eye disease through the public hospital is free once you are referred.
If an accident damaged your glasses or your eyes, ACC can contribute to replacement glasses and treatment as part of the claim. Routine prescriptions are not covered.
Rose Optometry (Frankton and Huntly) and Rototuna Optometrists (north Hamilton) list the widest range of services in this guide. Every other Hamilton practice is listed above with its own booking link.