Baby on The Way

LBobby123 on 07/11/2016 - 15:07
Last edited 07/11/2016 - 15:37 by 1 other user

Hi All!

My wife and I are expecting our little girl in December, but I'm a little confused with what I can claim in terms of parental leave etc and would really appreciate some help from an Aussie!

I'm from the UK originally, my wife and I moved over to SA (Adelaide) from London on Jan 1st 2016. I have permanent residency with my spouse visa (no working restrictions etc), and I had a temporary job after about a week of being in the country (pretty lucky!). I now have a permanent job as of May, but the company isn't very progressive (no study leave, no maternity etc).

My wife hasn't been working at all since we moved over, she's had to look after her family, help them build a house and also 'be pregnant'(!). She's a 'full' Aussie.

I'm just wondering what the most efficient thing to do will be when my baby is born as we're both currently living off my salary (~60k), and we've had our own private rental property since about March, so things are already a little tight!

I'm looking at the two weeks 'Dad' leave that I might be able to claim (where I take two weeks off work unpaid but receive 2 weeks basic pay from centrelink) so I can help at home after she's born.

I'm just wondering if there's anything glaringly obvious I've missed in terms of claiming or tax benefit? My wife has never claimed anything (and neither have I, even while I lived in England) but like I said things are tight now and If i can persuade her to that would be great!

Thanks in advance!

Rob

Financial

Comments

  • mrham on 07/11/2016 - 15:38
    +3

    Call or better yet go and visit Centrelink.

  • obiwanmy on 07/11/2016 - 15:43

    I think there is working "requirement" i.e. working at least 10 months out of the last 13 months to be able to claim the parental leave - if you only started in May i think you might not be able to qualify.

    There are other payments though which I believe you can qualify (unless your income is more than the threshold). As mrham state, best to check with centrelink.

  • Bobby123 on 07/11/2016 - 15:45

    Ok thanks, i'll pop in at the weekend!

    • clarebear on 07/11/2016 - 16:07

      They are not open on weekends.

      • Bobby123 on 07/11/2016 - 16:29

        Hmmm…! Looks like i'll have to take a half day then lol

  • tomsco on 07/11/2016 - 15:46

    I'd follow mrham, as they would be the best to advise you, but as a guess, as a PR, I'd say you would be eligible.

  • Triple J on 07/11/2016 - 16:52

    Congratulations on your baby girl !

    • Bobby123 on 07/11/2016 - 17:19

      Thank you!

  • cypher67 on 07/11/2016 - 16:54
    +1

    Need to change your name to Baby123, Congratz

    • Bobby123 on 07/11/2016 - 17:19

      Cheers!

  • whodidthat on 07/11/2016 - 16:59

    Congratulations fellow pom.

    We know what you've been doing 3:) and it's not been buying you know what's.

    • Bobby123 on 07/11/2016 - 17:20

      couldn't find a good deal for them on here ;)

  • mskeggs on 07/11/2016 - 17:05

    I think your timing hasn't been great, unfortunately.
    I think to claim the parental leave payment there is work requirement in the previous 12 months that I am guessing you will fail.
    Best to take a look at the Centrelink website initially, then to visit an office in a lunch break and explain you are doing it tough, expecting a kid, and need to understand any entitlements.
    Be aware you should qualify for regular parenting payments (FTB-A and B) after the kid is born, which will help.

    • Bobby123 on 07/11/2016 - 17:26

      I think i'll be ok for this. I was working 20-35hrs per week from Jan-May, then from May to December i'll have been working 38hrs. I think that's enough to qualify from what I've read on the eligibility criteria?
      I'll look into the FTB A/B payments tonight.

  • resisting the urge on 07/11/2016 - 17:38
    -3

    Perhaps delay having a kid till you can afford one. They cost you:

    • Everything, if the gamble doesn't work out (they come out half-baked, with faults or are missing any important pieces)
    • $200k to do badly (this is likely to provide poor ROI, be a bad investment, require rehab later on, etc.)
    • $400-750k to do well, and you still have a very real chance of catastrophic failure (and a negative ROI), massive lost opportunity cost, etc.

    Social security provides you nothing worth banking on.

    Our brilliant ex-Treasurer said, get a better paid job. And after failing at his own job, did just that: And became our Ambassador in America.

    http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/joe-ho…

    It's also better as he doesn't get caught out puffing on cigars over there.

    Certainly, it'd be best to become a millionaire first, especially if you want to have anything left for your retirement, which will unlikely be funded by the government or your superannuation. Affording the insurance, warranty costs, etc. is near impossible otherwise. it's all enormous when you add it up. Doing it on the cheap raises your risk equation through the roof.

    • Bobby123 on 08/11/2016 - 09:13

      Lol i voted this up :)

      This sounds like me!

      • resisting the urge on 08/11/2016 - 09:30
        -1

        Thank you :-)

        Both down-voters threw stones and ran, didn't bother to explain themselves. But I am surprised more have not down-voted my contribution for being anti-baby.

        Also surprised, since this is OzB, that no-one suggested selling off the new-born, investing the money and having another later on. Or if it's too late, going overseas to get one more cheaply once enough funds can be allocated to make the exercise a success.

        After all people of all shapes and sizes have been making an industry out of that for decades. Not that I would suggest it personally though!

  • skaterollie0 on 08/11/2016 - 09:21

    Unsure if relevant but some center link payments require you to have been a resident for 104 week before you can make a claim,

  • danyool on 09/11/2016 - 14:05

    so I can help at home after she's born.

    Even if you aren't eligible for the dad pay, I'd still take some time off to try and ease into your new roles. It's a massive change!

    Not specifically about payments, but there's a big thread with new baby advice here - https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/245177

    One of the big things we heeded - don't buy a heap of stuff, (clothes etc) - you will probably be given some as gifts, and possibly as hand me downs if you have any other family or friends in the area. We've got a 3 month old now, and apart from one outfit we bought early, a pram and new mattress for second hand cot, we haven't bought a lot of other stuff. We were given some new clothes and gifts at baby shower, and then a couple of bags of second hand (or maybe 3rd hand or 4th hand) clothes from friends who have kids a bit older than us. We've already started passing stuff onto a friend who is due any day now! (At this age they grow out of it before wearing it out)

    If you don't have many family/friends nearby, you could also check out Freecycle/Facebook groups that might be giving stuff away/selling cheap.

    All the best for it!

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