How to let us know when someone has passed away
There are a few ways you can notify us when someone has passed away.
Let us know using myTrove
MyTrove is a free, secure service that lets you notify multiple organisations such as insurers, utility providers and banks of a death through a single online form.
It connects directly to official New Zealand government death records, so there’s no need to provide a physical death certificate.
Let us know us directly
If you’d prefer to notify us directly, fill out the form below. We only need the person’s name, their date of birth, and your contact details. If they were known by another name, include that as well. Please provide your email address, as it’s the fastest way for us to contact you.
Let us know another way
- Email: estates@kiwibank.co.nz
- Phone: 0800 113 355 or from overseas +64 4 473 11 33
Next steps
We'll get in touch with you
Once we’ve reviewed your notification, we’ll contact you within 7-10 business days and will let you know what documents we’ll need to finalise the estate.
Confirm who is authorised to act
We can only take instructions from people legally authorised to manage the estate, including:
- all executor(s)
- administrator(s)
- a person authorised under the Administration Act 1969.
Where probate is required for the estate, we'll only be able to take instructions after probate has been granted.
The estate funds will be released
Once we have everything we need, we'll close the deceased’s personal accounts and release the estate funds as instructed by the authorised person.
Frequently asked questions
If you're using myTrove to notify us of someone’s passing, you don’t need to provide a death certificate, as myTrove connects directly to official government death records in New Zealand.
If you're notifying us directly, you can apply for a death certificate through the Department of Internal Affairs — visit www.dia.govt.nz for details.
Yes. We can usually pay the funeral home directly once we receive the invoice and any supporting information. If there isn’t enough money in the account, we may make a partial payment.
Other funeral‑related costs, such as travel or catering for a wake, can’t be recovered in this way. Contact the Estates team for more information.
You’ll need to contact Work and Income (WINZ) to begin the request. We’ll then send them the information they need. Visit www.workandincome.govt.nz for more details.
When one owner of a joint account passes away the surviving owner will become the sole owner of the account and can continue using the account as usual.
When a joint cardholder passes away, as the survivor, you can request that the card remains open. After carrying out an affordability assessment, we aim to do this within three months to make sure the lending remains affordable for you.
After completing the assessment, we may decide to:
- remove the deceased joint owner from the card account and/or change the credit limit, or
- suspend or close the card account.
Once we’re notified of the death of a joint cardholder, additional cardholders will be suspended from the card. As the survivor, you may ask us to remove the suspension to allow the additional cardholder to use their card or request to remove the additional cardholder(s).
Our specialist team will contact the person administering the estate to discuss what needs to happen next.
Our business banking team will get in touch with the appropriate people to work through any changes needed for business accounts.