The Labour Party is proposing to let beneficiaries keep more of what they earn through part-time work.
Labour's leader Helen Clark announced in Hamilton on Thursday 16 October that if the party remains in Government, it would raise the amount to $100 from April next year, and to $140 in 2012.
Beneficiaries currently can earn $80 before their payments are reduced.
The change would cost the Government $133 million over three years.
Miss Clark says raising the threshold would help beneficiaries make the transition back to work.
National's proposed policy is to lift the rate to $100.
It was last changed in 1996 when the National Government lifted it from $50 to $80.