Maternity Payment $3000 or $4000?

[awaitingno1]

Hi,
My hubby & I are due to have our first baby mid July. A friend said yesterday she had heard that the maternity payment would increase from $3000 to $4000 as of 1 July 05 and she had actually heard this on the news on tv (on April Fool's Day but surely no one would joke about something like that?). However from everything official I can find, the maternity payment increases to $4000 only after 1 July 2006. I am interested if anyone knows the score? A healthy baby is the most important thing to us and we are grateful for the $3000 anyway, but budgeting wise would be good to know. Thank you!

[shell]

hi
yes that is right is going up to $4000 after the 1 of july . goog luck with you baby i hope all goes well .


kylie mum of chloe 6 and a half months :)

[awaitingno1]

Thank you - the extra money is not the important thing but i will admit it will come in handy - as I sit here and try to work out everything we need and how long I can afford to have off work! So far my pregnancy has gone well and I feel very lucky so hope that everything continues without problems. thanks again. :)

[H&B'sMum]

I've heard that as of 1 July 2006 it raises again to $5000. Anyone else heard this?????

[samecutie222]

on the news they have said after july 2006.... its goes to $4000
i have heard nothing about $5000

we are having one more (not pregnant yet) and i know exactly what you mean about the money coming in handy

love melissa xxx :rolleyes:

[rachaelkate]

I just thought I would let you know that after you submit your family assistance forms it can take up to 4 weeks to get anything.. so if you are relying on the money pretty much straight after the baby... it is pretty unlikely it will happen that way.

Our family assistance claim for our son was extremely straight forward and it still took the max. time to process.

Good luck.

[vikki a]

Hi, I'm sure i read some where when they first changed the pay ment from $800 to $3000, that its was going up to $4000 for 2005 and then to $5000 for 2006 and then stopping at that amount. (after July1 each year) I know what you mean though, I'm due in August and i would like to know how much, so we can work out what i can afford etc.. Not that the money really counts, its all about getting that beatiful little bub, and i can't wait!! :p

[mumof2girls]

According to the website (family assistance) it is going up to $4000 by july o6 and $5000 by july 08 then it doesn't increase anymore. Hope you find this helpful.

Kay

[kerrie]

Is that right?
I rang centre link and spoke with someone about this two months ago and the woman there told me the $4000 increase was coming in as of July 2005!
I've budgeted for this so I'm hoping she was right. Will call again when I get a chance later today to confirm.
Ho Hum...money!
Kerrie

[PJO27]

Hi There

I thought I'd drop a quick line to say that I too have seen a website, I think it was a Federal Govt website, that said $4k in July 2006, and $5k July 2008.

Perhaps they've brought it forward? would love to know...

[Fostermum]

$4000 as of 1/7/05 & $5000 as of 1/7/06 thats what I hear

[kerrie]

Hi All,
I just called and spoke with C.Link/Family allowance section re the one off maternity payment.....and she said. "We have been advised to notify clients that the one off $3079.00 maternity payment will be increasing over the next few years but we are not aware of when this increase will take place" :mad: Great news for those of us walking the tightrope, trying to budget to be able to stay at home and manage on one wage!!
She (who was actually very nice) also said the Family Tax Benefit part A & B will be increasing in the new financial year...but, once again, unable to advise re amount.
There is also a $900, combined Family Tax Benefit part A&B, SUPPLIMENT that has been put in place as a safety net for those who underestimated their income for the year and need to pay centrelink back....if you dont use this you get the $900.

Clear as mud?

Kerrie :)

[H&B'sMum]

Thanks Kerrie,
That cleared that up.......not!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)

[Indigo]

Hi there,

As a lurker for a while I thought I would pop in & clear up some of the confusion.

I thought this may help you. Its from the Family Assistance website www.familyassist.gov.au

quote:


Maternity Payment
Maternity Payment is paid to families following the birth (including stillborn babies) or adoption of a baby, born on or after 1 July 2004. It recognises the extra costs incurred at the time of a new birth or adoption of a baby and is not income tested.

Note: This payment replaces the Maternity Allowance and Baby Bonus (administered by the Australian Tax Office) from 1 July 2004.

Maternity Payment is a one-off payment of $3 042.00 for each child and is paid as a lump sum. It is payable for each child in a multiple birth. If there is a change in care during the 13 weeks eligibility period, the payment may be apportioned between two carers.

Maternity payment is not income tested, but certain conditions must be met, these are:
Residency; and
dependent child; and
you have care of a newborn child (including stillborn and babies who die shortly after birth) within 13 weeks after the birth; and

A claim must generally be lodged within 26 weeks from the date of birth, or the date the adopted child comes into your care (if adopted the child must have been entrusted to your care within 26 weeks of the child's birth).

The maternity payment rate is currently $3079. It started on 01/07/04 at $3000, but it is indexed to CPI, so it goes up a little bit on 20/09 and 20/03 each year. As it stands at the moment, on 01/07/06 it will jump to $4000, and then on 01/07/08 it will jump again to $5000.

The extra $900 is a combination of the Family Tax Benefit A supplement of $600 that was released when the election was looming last year & the new Family Tax Benefit Supplement payment of $150 this year & then next finanacial year 05/06 it will go up to $300, $600 + $300 = $900.

You can ONLY receive the FTB A $600 after you & your partner have lodged both of your tax returns or you have notified Centrelink that you are a non-lodger (you don't need to lodge a tax return due to certain reasons). If this is done & you don't owe any money to either Centrelink or the Australian Taxation Office, you will receive your supplement of $600.

The FTB B supplement has been backdated to the 1st January, 2005, as we were not going to get this until next finanacial year. So potentially, it is another $150 that you may be entitled to after your tax is done if you owe no $$ to Centrelink or ATO.

Next year, as the FTB B supplement will have been in for a full financial year 010705-300605 it will go up to $300.

I hope that makes it a bit clearer. I just didn't want anyone thinking that they were going to get $4000 in July this year, you won't it is NOT increasing until July 2006.

Bookmark these sites for future reference www.familyassist.gov.au www.centrelink.gov.au

Hope that helps :)

[JulyAngel]

I heard the news too and heard something about the government were happy with the increase of childbirths since the introduction of the maternity allowance and they expect it to increase more when the maternity allowance reaches $4000 on July 1st.

I rang centrelink & they told me that they dont get the updated information just yet, they couldnt rule it out. I spoke to the family assistance office and they told me that they would have the updated information in June.

So Im not banking on it, but I will wait until closer to July to see what the governemt says. They may have decided to increase it due to the high number of births.

Im due mid july also, money is not an issue, but that extra $1000 would be a help.

[pinkandblue]

Hi
I was at the Parent Babies & Childrens Expo today and spoke to a lady at the Centrelink/Family Assistance Office stand and she said the payment was going to $4000 as of july this year, and $5000 of july next year.

[our little treasures]

This is such a confusing topic!!!! Wouldn't it be nice to get some straight answers? Especially as so many of us have spoken to centrelink and keep getting conflicting answers! I'm not even holding my breath as what has just happened to the pre election medicare promise, and I was just a few dollars away from the threshold.
I was looking forward to the rebate as my obs fees are high.
oh well :o

[raziemam]

The Maternity Payment will be introduced on 1 July 2004 and will provide $3,000 to families for each new child born after this date. The rate of the Maternity Payment will be increased to $4,000 for babies born after 1 July 2006 and to $5,000 for babies born after 1 July 2008. The Maternity Payment will not be income tested and will be paid as a lump sum. http://www.budget.gov.au/2004-05/bp2/html/revenue-02.htm
Hope this helps! :)

[maydr]

hi! for more accurate info, try visiting the link below. its the link on the "what, why and how of family assistance". information from family tax benefit, to matenity payment and childcare benefit.

http://www.familyassist.gov.au/internet/FAO/fao1.nsf/content/publications-what_why_how.htm

there's a pdf format file you can download and save as reference for time to time.

hope this would help! :)

[Kirsty_Lane]

Hello,

Just to let you know, my husband and i went down to centrelink last wednesday around 11am and lodged our claim for the $3000 baby bonus. And by Friday Morning we had the money in our account.....we actually got $3075 ( which someone at centrelink had told me prior to this) and we also got the first 2 weeks of family payment of $42...so that was a bonus. And this was also the first time i'd ever claimed anything through centrelink , so we thought it would take longer, but it was great! We are also trying to claim the parenting payment and family part b, so we'll see how long that takes to come through :)

kirsty ( mummy to Hannah 05/05/05) :D

[pippa]

Hi guys,

In our paper on the weekend there was an article that said that the baby bonus increases to $4000 on the first of July this year (2005)??????

Don't know if this is true or not

Cheers Pippa

[cwsmum]

In the centrelink book that was in the first bounty bag, it says that the payment goes up to $4000 in july 2006.
I really want to know what is going on with this payment...only a few weeks before centrelink has to give us some straight answers I guess...and til we have to do our taxes :)

[LittleBoysRock]

Hi All,

I was curious about this as well and I called the Family Assistance office Monday, they said that the baby bonus goes up from July 1st 2006. This is a bummer I know.... My bub is due mid July also so looks like we will miss out too.

We are also grateful for the $3000 but have been told that it can take a number of weeks to be paid. Same with the regular family assistance payments but they back pay you for that.

Hopefully this helps. Goodluck with the baby.
Simone.

[our little treasures]

A friend of ours put her forms in for the payment expecting it to take 21 days but she recieved it two days later.
Probably just a one off. I think the confusion with the payment is with the financial year, I have been told it will be increased in financial year 2006 witch would be next year???

[Marilyn S]

Not to put a downer on things...but it took almost 2 months for a friend of mine to get her payment...

so you just never know how long it will take to get the $$$

good luck everyone!!

[maybe1more]

Hi ladies there seems to be alot of confusing issues re; the baby bonus, in Sundays paper (perth) it said the baby bonus goes up to $4000- this july 2005 and up to $8000- in the next few years. So you will be getting the $4000- if your baby is born after july 31. Hope this helps! :)

Mum to Connor and trying to concieve bub #2

[cwsmum]

$8000? :confused: ? Has anyone else ever heard of the payment increasing to that much? I thought it was stopping at $5000.
This is getting really frustrating, everyone is hearing different things and the government/centrelink people wont give anyone a straight answer.
These government people better decide what is happening soon, less than 2 weeks til the new financial year.
Anyone managed to get an clear answer from centrelink yet?

[maybe1more]

I know its hard to know what is going on. Even Centerlink couldnt even confirm the amount of the baby bonus, they said the federal goverment could change the amount at any time and i never got a straight awnser. :confused:
Mum to Connor

[olliechicken]

I went to my first antenatal class last night, and was pleasnatly surprised when all the mums-to-be were saying that the baby bonus was going up to $4000 as of July this year. I had heard nothing of this rise till then, still expecting to receive the $3000.

I've spent some time this morning trawling around (love school holidays!!) and eventually decided to ring Centrelink - the customer rep there told me that it would rise slightly due to CPI indexing, but by an unknown amount and that it would only rise to $4000 in July 2006.

Bummer!!

[Gnostic]

Just thought I would let you all know.
My wife and I had Jasmine (4.195 kg) Friday 01 July 2005.
We handed in the materinty payment claim form at 13:30 on Monday 04 July 2005.
We recieved or payment on Friday 08 July 2005 (it was in bank Thursday night).

The payment was $3079

I am sorry to bring the news to those who are expecting $4000 I had heard the same and found this site in my search for the correct payment amount.
You would be surprised how far the misunderstanding goes, alot of the news group sites, accounting sites etc did report the payment to be $4000 from July 2005 and an equal number including the centrelink and family assistance site reported it correctly as quoted in the post above.

I would really love to know how this misunderstanding started as it must be the most well known rumour in Australia. If you had the ability to create rumours that were as equally wide spread imagine the influence you could have on governments etc. lol

[brooke]

hi guys
i just checked the centrelink web site and its true its only $3000 this year and goes up to $4000 from 01.07.06 :(

i have copied and pasted this from the web site:

Status Lump Sum Payment Amount
Per child $3079.00

Note:For multiple births, maternity payment is paid for each child. For example, twins attract two payments of Maternity Payment ($6158).

As announced in the May 2004 Budget Maternity Payment will increase:

from 1 July 2006 the Maternity Payment will be increased to $4000
from 1 July 2008 the Maternity Payment will be increased to $5000.
sorry guys, i was loooking forward to $4000 as well.... would have really come in handy.

brooke

[middlecm]

Hi

I too have rung Centrelink (family Assistance) and have been advised that the baby payment will be $4000 in July 2006.

Im expecting No 2 in January 05 and thought that it would be $4000 by then, but my payment will be $3072! Oh well.

Good luck with bub
Christine

[Shebb]

Hi there

I know it is 6 months or so since this thread ended, but just in case someone has a read, the amount of money is indexed every March and September. This means it goes up by CPI...

So, when my little girl was born 20 April 2005, I received $3079. However, my best friend is currently labouring in hospital as I type, and when her baby decides to pop his or her head out to visit (literally!), and forms are put in, they will get $3119.

Oh, and to add to the above, I had my money by the end of April 2005, and put the forms in almost a week after my daughter's birth!

Looking forward to #2 - I WILL get the $4000 since there is NO POSSIBLE WAY I can have a baby before July 2006! :)

[Lil X-men]

Hey! my boy was born 10th April 2005 and we received payment in less than a week too ($3079), was most surprised.
We are TTC for no.2 soon so will look forward to receiving $4000 next time around!
Best wishes to your friend in her labouring and birthing!;)
BTW you should come and post in the April - June babies thread, there a heap of April bubs.

[jaydensmum]

Jayden was born on the 7th April 2005 and we received $3079 too. I was wondering why we received that extra bit. Just a question for anyone, my next bub is due on the 15th July 2006 does that mean ill get the $4000? When does it go over to $4000?

jaydensmum

[Mummaof2]

Jaydensmum - Maternity Payment will increase to $4000 as of the 1 July 2006.

My DS was born 28/12/05 and i put my forms in on 03/01/06 and am still waiting for the payment to come through.:(

[Lil X-men]

Just going by some of the other girls research in this thread it's look like it goes up to $4000 on 1st July this year and then up to $5000 in July 2008.
So you should be getting the $4000, unless bubs comes a few weeks early!:eek:

[jaydensmum]

Cool thanks for that. Im pretty sure this bub will be like Jayden and refuse to come out! :p

jaydensmum

[Lil X-men]

Well here's hoping for a punctual baby, maybe on time rather than early or late LOL!! :)

[jaydensmum]

Yeah lets hope it does come on time or late!! :p

jaydensmum

[kgmjs]

How much Maternity Payment do I get?
Maternity Payment is indexed in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) in March and September each year.

This payment rate is effective from 1 January 2006 and is only paid for babies born or adopted on or after July 1 2004. Maternity Payment is paid as a non-taxable lump sum payment. Payment is made into a bank or credit union account and not through the tax system.

This payment is not subject to an income test.
This payment is not subject to an assets test.
Status Lump Sum Payment Amount
Per child $3119.00

Note:For multiple births, maternity payment is paid for each child. For example, twins attract two payments of Maternity Payment ($6238).

As announced in the May 2004 Budget Maternity Payment will increase:

from 1 July 2006 the Maternity Payment will be increased to $4000
from 1 July 2008 the Maternity Payment will be increased to $5000.

This is from the government website....here is the link in case anyone wants further information direct from the source.

http://www.centrelink.gov.au/internet/internet.nsf/payments/pay_how_maty.htm

[ThaiGirl]

Hi, I am new Australian Resident, and having a baby, due Oct 06. If its hard for all you regarding Baby Bonus, Tax A or Tax B .. me from Thailand .. all confusing .. What to do ? My husband not understand like me .. its difficult.

Do we get the $4000 before baby born .. after ? When and where do we put in the form ? 26 week before baby born or after baby born ? The money would be good to buy all baby stuff I must admit.

Can anyone advise me .. all this very hard to understand >. thank You Kindly.

Thai Girl

[melfunction]

Hi ThaiGirl...Welcome to bubhub :)


It can be very confusing, but if you start by looking at the website

http://www.centrelink.gov.au

It should give you all the info you need to know..The baby bonus is paid after the baby is born. I was given all the forms while in hospital and just had to fill them out and send them in...If you go to centrelink, there is an area for Family Assistance, and they will be able to answer any questions.

[brizbabe]

Hi Thaigirl, you will receive a claim form in hospital (after bubby born) and the good news is that it will be only 4-5 pages(previously around 30 odd!!!)

This claim form will allow you to claim for the Maternity payment which will increase to $4000 @ 01/07/2006 and increase with CPI (it is currently $3119 from memory) So if bubby born after 01/07/2006 you will at least get $4000.

The claim form will also be an application for a medicare card #, allow you to register for the Australian Immunisation and Organ Donation registers also so everything will be in the same place.

You will need to lodge this claim WITHIN 26 weeks of bubby being born

[jessgray]

hi there does anyone know for sure tis increasing to $4000 lol i read thsi whole thread an have only got confused i am expecting in november. when my son was born in april 2005 we got $3000 we put the forms in on a monday and the money was there wednesday.

[sshellzp]

Yes it is...july 1st this year it is going up to $4000. You will get $4000.

[jessgray]

thanks for clearing that up. so confusing reading this thread everyone seems to be getting told different things by centerlink :laughing:

[jessgray]

lol :laughing: i'd like to see someone try to stop a bub from coming hehehe so did anyone find out about how much the final increase is? someone said it was $5000 and thats the last increase as of next year but someone else said it ws $8000:detective:

[jessgray]

so the person who thought it will eventually go up to $8000 was misinformed?:laughing:

[M O P]

its 3000 till july this year
4000 till july 2008
then it goes up to 5000 (im pretty certain of that!)

This is the info I have from Australian Govt. Family Assistance Office pamphlet.

An Aboriginal lady told me when I said I was preg that the Govenment would give me $5000 and would be going up to $8000 later.
I was really confused by this and am guessing she was misinformed. I've never heard the amounts are different for Aboriginal/Torres Strait Islander parents and everyone else.
I AM NOT trying to turn this is in to a race issue by the way, it's just an experience I'm adding to this thread.

[Odessa]

This is the info I have from Australian Govt. Family Assistance Office pamphlet.

An Aboriginal lady told me when I said I was preg that the Govenment would give me $5000 and would be going up to $8000 later.
I was really confused by this and am guessing she was misinformed. I've never heard the amounts are different for Aboriginal/Torres Strait Islander parents and everyone else.
I AM NOT trying to turn this is in to a race issue by the way, it's just an experience I'm adding to this thread.

The Maternity Payment is the same for all Australians, the lady you spoke with may have been confused. Here is the link for the Family Assistance Office's Indigenous Families page

http://www.familyassist.gov.au/internet/fao/fao1.nsf/content/indigenous

There are other schemes in place to assist Indigenous people with things like buying a home, through Indigenous Business Australia:

http://www.iba.gov.au/

If you want any more info, just holler, I have Aboriginal heritage and I know a fair bit about Indigenous matters and Government assistance :)

[Odessa]

No AdelaideMandy, you won't have to do anything differently.

[mim1]

Found the maternity payment info:

http://www.centrelink.gov.au/internet/internet.nsf/ea3b9a1335df87bcca2569890008040e/3c442f699541fc00ca257117008038d2!OpenDocument

So, it is $3000 now (well, $3150ish) and goes up on July 1st this year, then goes up to $5000 in July 2008. BUT to add to our confusion it's also indexed to the CPI every March and September.

[becca74]

hadnt even been thinking about the maternity allowance, but wow, for the first time I am wishing for one of my babies to go a few days overdue! my edd is 28/06/06, but I have just had a little word with the kicking wriggling one in my belly, and said if he wants to stay in his comfy lil waterworld for a few days extra then he is most welcome ;)

[wcheng]

A late reply, I guess you probably have a few kids already. Here is the details if you still requried.

The Maternity Payment will be:

* $3 000 per child - increasing to $4 000 in July 2006 and to $5,000 in July 2008. (For multiple births Maternity Payment of $3 000 is paid for each child.)
* available to eligible families for children born or adopted on or after 1 July 2004 (subject to certain conditions such as residency requirements).
* not taxable income or considered income for Social Security or Family Assistance purposes.

[maybe1more]

so the person who thought it will eventually go up to $8000 was misinformed?:laughing:
I was the one who said this, and like i said i was just relaying what i had read in the paper Sunday Times, It was the information i had read at the time, but the sounds of the lasted thread this was totally wrong:yes: so it looks like it increases to $4000 as of this july.