WELFARE MATTERS
Eligibility for Burial in Service Cemeteries
Ex-service personnel who have had war service, or service that is defined as equivalent to war service, and their spouses may be buried in a Services Cemetery.
Eligibility
1914-1918 War (World War 1)
Members of the New Zealand, Imperial, and Allied Forces who served overseas or at home between 4 August 1914 and 31 August 1921. Included are service personnel who were attested for overseas service but did not proceed overseas; New Zealand servicemen who served in Home Service Units between 4 August 1914 and 31 August 1921; and those who served in the Merchant Navy in the waters of a war zone.
1939-1945 War (World War 2)
Members of the New Zealand, Commonwealth and Allied Forces who served overseas or at home between 3 September 1939 and 31 December 1947. Included are New Zealand servicemen who were attested for overseas service but did not proceed overseas; New Zealand servicemen who served in Home Service Units between 3 September 1939 and 31 December 1947; and those who served in the Merchant Navy in the waters of a war zone. Those who served in Japan with "J" Force between August 1945 and March 1949 also qualify.
Korean War
Members of the New Zealand, Commonwealth and Allied Forces who served in Korea, or in Korean waters, between 27 June 1950 and 27 July 1957.
Operation Grapple
Members of Her Majestys' New Zealand Ships HMNZS PUKAKI and ROTOITI at the Christmas and Malden Islands, during 1957 to 1958. Malayan Emergency and Confrontation with Indonesia Members of the New Zealand and Commonwealth Forces who served in the Federated States of Malaya, Malaysia, Singapore, Borneo or surrounding waters from 16 June 1948 to 1966. Personnel who served in operations on the Thailand - Malaya border against Communist insurgents between 1960 and 1964 are also eligible.
Vietnam War
Members of the New Zealand and Australian Armed Forces who served in Vietnam or in Vietnamese waters between 24 December 1962 and 24 December 1972. Personnel of the United States of America, Korea and Thailand who defended the Republic of Vietnam, became New Zealand citizens and lived permanently in New Zealand immediately prior to their death are also eligible.
The Gulf War
Members of the New Zealand Armed Forces who served in the operational area between 18 December 1990 and 13 April 1991. Peacekeeping Service
India-Pakistan
Members of the New Zealand Armed Forces who served in the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) and the United Nations India-Pakistan Observation Mission (UNIPOM) between January 1952 and 31 March 1974.
Palestine Yemen Lebanon Congo
Members of the New Zealand Armed Forces who served in the United Nations Truce Supervision Organisation (UNTSO) in Palestine-Israel, and its detachments, the United Nations Yemen Observer Mission (UNYOM), the United Nations Observation Group in Lebanon (UNOGIL) or the United Nations Operation in the Congo (ONUC) between July 1954 and 31 March 1974.
Mururoa Atoll
Members of the New Zealand Armed Forces who served onboard Her Majestys' New Zealand Ships OTAGO and CANTERBURY while observing French nuclear tests at Mururoa Atoll on 22 and 28 July 1973.
Angola
Personnel who served with the United Nations in Angola between 10 October 1992 and 6 March 1993.
Yugoslavia
Personnel who served with the United Nations in the former Yugoslavia (Bosnia, Herzegovina, Coatia, Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia) from 23 March 1992.
Sierra Leone
Members of the New Zealand Defence Force who deployed to the United Nations Observers Mission in Sierra Leone (UNOMSIL) from 11 August 1998 until 31 October 1999 and subsequent service with the United Nations Mission Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) from 1 November 1999 onwards.
East Timor
Members of the New Zealand Defence Force who deployed to the United Nations Mission in East Timor (UNAMET) and the United Nations Sanctioned International Force East Timor (INTERFET) from 30 August 1999, and subsequent service with the United Nations Transitional Authority East Timor (UNTAET) from 23 February 2000 onwards.
Spouse/Partner Interments in Services Cemeteries
Legislation
In 1983 an amendment was made to Section 15(1) of the Burial and Cremation Act 1964 to allow for the spouse of an eligible veteran to be interred in a Services Cemetery. Section 15(1) of the Act reads:
(1) Notwithstanding anything in this Act, a local authority may
(a) Set aside permanently a part of any cemetery under its control and management to be used for the burial of the bodies of
(i) Persons who have been on operational service in Her Majesty's Forces;
(ii) The wives or husbands of, or persons who have lived in a relationship in the nature of marriage with, a person who has been on operational service in Her Majesty's Forces.
Practice
There is nothing in this section of the Burial and Cremation Act 1964 to prohibit the spouse/partner of a veteran being buried in a Services Cemetery prior to the burial of the veteran. However, since this amendment was introduced in December 1983, it has been the practice to inter a spouse/partner after the eligible veteran.
This practice has come about because if a spouse/partner is interred first, there is no guarantee that the veteran will be interred in the same plot upon the veteran' subsequent death. Personal circumstances do change in that the veteran may move away from the area, enter into a new relationship, or for some other reason never end up being interred with the spouse in the Services Cemetery. These changes in circumstances result in a spouse/partner occupying a plot which was set aside for an eligible veteran.
Legal responsibility for the management of Services Cemeteries rests with the cemetery authorities, not Veterans' Affairs New Zealand. Individual cemetery authorities can set by-laws and many cemetery authorities have by-laws specifically for Services Cemeteries. Through those by-laws, cemetery authorities can ensure that custom and practice is adhered to. If you have queries relating to the by-laws that operate in your local Services Cemetery, then you should contact your local cemetery authority.
