Getting mental health help in New Zealand: from free to private

Right now: someone to talk to today

If you need to talk to a person in the next few minutes, these services are free and confidential, and all except Lifeline are open around the clock:

• 1737: call or text 1737 any time to reach a trained counsellor or peer support worker. Run by Whakarongorau Aotearoa and publicly funded.
• Lifeline: 0800 543 354, or free text 4357 (HELP), 7am to midnight every day.
• Anxiety NZ helpline: 0800 269 4389 (0800 ANXIETY), 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, run by Anxiety New Zealand.
• Safe to Talk: 0800 044 334, or text 4334, for anyone affected by sexual harm, 24/7.

If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 111. Your local Health New Zealand mental health crisis team can also be reached on the crisis number for your area, listed on the Health New Zealand website (info.health.nz). Helplines are for support in the moment; they are not therapy, and the people who answer will say so and point you to the next step.

Free self-help with real evidence: Just a Thought

Just a Thought offers free online courses built on cognitive behavioural therapy, made in New Zealand and used by thousands of health workers as something to prescribe. Courses cover generalised anxiety, social anxiety, health anxiety, panic, OCD, depression, mixed depression and anxiety, insomnia, stress, and pregnancy and postnatal wellbeing, with two available in New Zealand Sign Language.

Each course is a series of story-based lessons you work through at your own pace, with exercises between lessons. Research on guided internet CBT finds it can match face-to-face CBT for many common problems. Just a Thought courses are self-paced, and a health professional can prescribe one and follow your progress, which makes them a real first step rather than a consolation prize. It suits someone whose anxiety is bothersome but manageable, who wants to understand the pattern and try the skills before, or alongside, seeing a professional. It is less suited to severe or complex difficulties, where a clinician is needed to tailor the approach.

Through your GP practice: HIPs, health coaches and referrals

Your GP practice is the hub of the public system. Under the Access and Choice programme, many practices have a Health Improvement Practitioner (HIP) and a health coach on site. HIPs are registered health professionals, often psychologists, and you can ask to see one yourself without a GP referral. Sessions are free for enrolled patients, run 15 to 30 minutes, are often available the same day, and focus on a practical plan: sleep, stress, a spike in anxiety, a hard decision. HIPs are explicit that they do not provide long-term therapy or trauma therapy; they help quickly and refer on when more is needed.

For more severe or complex difficulties, your GP can refer you to the local community mental health service, where clinical psychologists, psychiatrists and nurses work in teams. It is free, but there are thresholds and waiting lists, and the service decides what it can offer. Your GP is also the route to a psychiatrist if medication is part of the picture, and can discuss medication themselves. A psychologist does not prescribe, so any medication question goes to your GP or psychiatrist.

Book a session How booking works →

Free or funded therapy by situation

Several schemes fund proper therapy for particular groups:

• Gumboot Friday (I Am Hope): free counselling for anyone 25 or under. You browse counsellor profiles online, message up to three, and book directly. An initial two sessions are funded, with more available on the counsellor's request.
• EAP through your employer: most large New Zealand employers fund a small number of confidential sessions with a counsellor or psychologist, often around three, sometimes extendable. Your employer learns only anonymised usage figures. Ask HR or check your intranet.
• ACC sensitive claims: if you have experienced sexual abuse or assault, at any time, you can start therapy with an ACC-registered provider found through findsupport.co.nz or Safe to Talk. Up to 14 hours of therapy and 30 hours of other support are available before a cover decision, with no GP referral.
• ACC after a physical injury: mental injury linked to a covered physical injury can be funded through your claim; talk to your case manager.
• Health insurance: many plans include a psychologist benefit with an annual cap, some requiring a GP referral. See our insurance guide.

"Where can I get 6 free counselling sessions?"

This question comes up a lot, and the honest answer is that there is no national entitlement to six free sessions in New Zealand. The number comes from several places that happen to land on similar figures:

• GP-based brief counselling programmes. Some primary health networks fund short courses of counselling through GP practices; West Coast Health's Primary Health Counselling programme, for example, offers six free sessions to eligible adults and young people. Availability and session numbers vary by region, so ask your practice what exists locally.
• EAP packages. Employer schemes commonly fund around three sessions per issue, sometimes up to six.
• Charity programmes. The Cancer Society funds between four and six counselling sessions for people affected by cancer, depending on region.
• Insurer wellbeing benefits. Some insurers add a mental health benefit to their plans; benefits vary, so check your policy.
• Tertiary student services. University and polytechnic counselling services usually offer a limited number of free sessions to enrolled students.

So the practical move is to ask three questions: Does my GP practice have a HIP or a funded counselling programme? Does my employer have an EAP? Does my insurance include mental health consultations? Between them, many people can find a free start.

Paying privately, and when it makes sense

Private psychologists charge per session, with no referral needed and usually the shortest wait. It makes sense when the free routes are not a fit: your difficulty is too specific or persistent for brief help, the public service has declined your referral as mild to moderate, you want to choose who you see and which therapy you get, or you simply cannot wait months. The 2024/25 New Zealand Health Survey, summarised by the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission, found 10.5% of adults wanted professional help and did not get it; cost and waiting are both part of that gap, which is why combining routes matters.

Before paying, check whether insurance can cover part of it, or whether free EAP sessions through your employer are a useful first step. Then compare practices on registration (check the Psychologists Board register), fees, cancellation terms and whether they treat your particular problem. Online practices widen the field beyond your town. Our guides on how to see a psychologist and how to choose one cover the detail.

Where Mindwell sits in this picture

Mindwell is a private, self-funded, online psychology practice: registered psychologists, 50-minute video sessions, $199 + GST ($228.85 incl. GST) per session, adults 18+, anywhere in New Zealand, no referral, with first sessions typically available within 7 days. We provide receipts for insurance claims.

We are not the right service for everyone on this page. Mindwell is not an ACC provider, so sensitive claims and injury-related therapy need an ACC-registered supplier. We are not a crisis service; if you are in immediate danger, call 111, and for urgent support call or text 1737. If a free route above fits your situation, use it; if you later want structured therapy with a psychologist you choose, here is how booking works.

Related support: How to see a psychologist in NZ · Health insurance and psychologists · Online therapy in NZ