Advance Health Care Directives
Take Control of Your Future Medical Care
If you were very unwell and couldn't speak for yourself, who would decide what treatment you receive — and how would they know what you really want? An advance health care directive lets you answer those questions now.
Advance Health Care Directives
A simple, low-cost way to record your wishes about future medical care — completed in your own time, at home.
An advance health care directive lets you set out, in advance, the medical treatment you would or would not want if there came a time when you could no longer speak for yourself. We offer it as a do-it-yourself document so that it stays affordable. Preparing it in the traditional way — with meetings and drafting time — would cost a great deal more than the document is worth to most people.
It also works better this way. These are personal decisions that deserve careful thought. Completing the questionnaire at home, in your own time, gives you the space to consider each choice properly — rather than under pressure in a meeting.
| Service | 1 Person | Couple |
|---|---|---|
| Advance Health Care Directive | $23.00 | $46.00 |
All fees include GST. This is a do-it-yourself document and does not include legal advice — if you would like advice, it is charged on a time basis. Printing and witnessing are not included; additional fees apply if required.
All you need to do
1. Read the preparation guide. It shows you exactly what the questionnaire will ask, so you can think things through before you start.
2. Complete the online questionnaire. Answer the questions from the comfort of your home. It takes around 15–25 minutes and saves automatically, so you can stop and return whenever you like.
A Superpower for Your Health Care Decisions
The most complete advance health care directive we know of — guided, online, in plain English and checked by our lawyers/legal executives. NZ$300.00 for 1 person and NZ$600.00 for a couple.
An advance health care directive is a written record of your wishes about medical treatment if, in the future, you can't make or communicate decisions yourself — for example, after a serious accident, stroke, or during advanced illness.
Most directives stop at a single page of tick-boxes. Ours goes much further. It reads in your own words, is grounded in the leading court decisions and the law of every place it applies, and covers far more of what actually matters at the end of life:
- A true living will, with three independent grounds — terminal illness, permanent coma, or irreversible mental incapacity such as advanced dementia — and a dementia trigger you define yourself, in plain terms. Any one is enough.
- A summary for medical professionals at the very front, so the people treating you grasp your key decisions in seconds.
- A values statement that records what makes your life meaningful, what you fear most, and the trade-offs you would make — not just which treatments to stop.
- Comfort and dignity wishes most directives never ask about: the light and music in your room, who you want beside you, your pets, and how you like to be cared for.
- Specific-treatment choices — resuscitation, ventilation, dialysis and blood — each with accept, refuse, or a time-limited trial, and room to say what "meaningful improvement" would mean to you.
- A culturally inclusive section for people of every background — Māori tikanga, Pacific, and all others — with space to record your own traditions in your own words.
- Your spiritual and religious wishes, organ and body donation, your welfare attorney, and the person who knows you best.
Health professionals must take your views into account when deciding on your treatment, especially where you made those views clear in advance, under the Health and Disability Commissioner (Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers' Rights) Regulations 1996.
Our advance health care directive is unique. It is a common-law directive. It can be used in New Zealand, the Pacific Islands, and the Australian states other than the Australian Capital Territory, Northern Territory, South Australia and Western Australia, which require their own statutory forms to be used.
In New Zealand, wishes for assisted dying cannot be included in advance health care directives.
Three Pillars of a Great Advance Health Care Directive
Your advance health care directive can record:
- Your GP and specialist details
- Your wishes about life-support and resuscitation in certain situations
- Your preferences for palliative care and pain relief
- Whether you wish to donate organs
- Whether you want your body used for medical research or teaching
Your directive works hand-in-hand with your enduring power of attorney (EPA) for personal care and welfare. Your welfare attorney is the person who makes decisions if you can't — your advance directive gives them clear guidance on what you would choose for yourself.
This means less uncertainty and stress for your loved ones, fewer disagreements between family members, and decisions that better reflect your values and beliefs.
When your wishes are written down and easy to find, you can relax knowing you've done everything you reasonably can. Your family aren't left to make impossible choices in a crisis, and your medical team can focus on providing care that aligns with your preferences.
The best advance health care directive is one that people actually know about. We encourage you to:
- Share a copy with your welfare attorney, close family members, and GP
- Tell key people where the original is kept
- Include it as part of your wider estate planning folder (wills, EPAs, trust documents)
That way, if something happens suddenly, your loved ones and doctors can quickly access your directive and follow your wishes.
Part of Your Estate Plan
Enduring Powers of Attorney
Appoint someone to make decisions about your property and personal care.
Funeral Directives
Record your wishes for burial, cremation, and your farewell service.
Will-Based Estate Plans
A coordinated plan including your will, EPAs, directives and more.
Trust-Based Estate Plans
Extra protection for your home, business, and family through a trust.