Is it true?? $1000 per child??

[*Efjay*]

Ok Ok, so another blonde question that may or may not be answerable (lol is that a word?) but I am also pregnant so I think i have a good excuss.
Ok, I will give birth in November. I will get teh 5k baby bonus. Then come dec another 1 k per child. Now question is, given bubba will only be a matter of weeks old, will I still get the full 1k for this child or only part of?

Tell you want, 9k in total is like a massive chunk into a savings account for a house!

[Liz]

FJ - I would think so.. get your paperwork up to date as soon as he's born so they know he exists and is included in your FTB payments Either way you're in for some awesome payments! LOL.

I'm tossing up whether to give an estimate of our income for this current year so they know we're eligible.. otherwise they won't know until we do our 2008/09 tax returns!

[*Efjay*]

fark me! I tell you what. It couldn't come at a better time for us. Im a little bit in shock over it all I think.

[MrsFabuloso]

Woohoo for you FJ!!!!

$2000 will mean at least another 2 months of mat leave for me, so yayyyy!!!

[mountain mummy]

Just found this too ...

Pension changes

The Federal Government said the pension bonus announced today will be a lump sum of $1400 to single pensioners and $2100 to pensioner couples. It applies to:
- Age Pensioners;
- Disability Support Pensioners;
- Carer Payment recipients;
- Wife and Widow B Pensioners; Partner, Widow and Bereavement Allowees;
- Veterans Affairs Service Pensioners;
- Veterans Income Support Supplement recipients;
- Veterans Affairs Gold Card holders eligible for Seniors Concession Allowance;
- Those of age pension age who receive Parenting Payment, Special Benefit, or Austudy; and
- Eligible Self Funded Retirees holding a Commonwealth Senior Health Card (CSHC)
- People who are receiving Carer Allowance will also receive $1,000 for each eligible person in their care.

The Government said it includes help for self-funded retirees who are eligible for a Commonwealth Senior Health Care Card.

Those who hold a Commonwealth Seniors Health Card or are Veterans Gold Card holders eligible for Seniors Concession Allowance will receive a payment of $1,400 if they are single or $2,100 to couples.

"These pension payments will be made from 8 December 2008 and are intended to provide additional support in the nin months between now and when long-term reforms are introduced from the beginning of the next financial year,'' Mr Rudd said.

So, I don't think it does include PPS, Leash, sorry hun

ETA:
And this (those of you who said we were meant to spend it were right!!)

The Government is also leaning towards spending measures that would ensure that budget money is injected quickly into the economy, by making welfare recipients and those on low incomes priorities because they tend to spend extra cash on necessities rather than save it.

"The purpose of the surplus is to deal with tough times ahead, and my message to the nation today is those tough times have arrived," said the Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd. "We will deploy the surplus in the interests of underpinning long-term positive growth in the Australian economy and in the interests of supporting the household economy as well."

[mbear]

**** - does he reaslise how many people are going to blow this on none neccesary shiat for christmas instead of paying of debt or banking it (yes people still save $$$)

.....totally agree.

From what ive read its a once off payment. So whether baby is 1 day old, 10 months old. You should get the payment.

Its exciting in a way, that money will be great, but i think a lot of people will be supporting fisher price and electronic game consoles.....i know you cant control HOW people spend, but its pretty obvious the money is going to be spent at target and kmart LOL (esp 17 days b4 xmas).....................

[Marlene]

If this payment comes through, our payment (with a trade in on our current car) will be going towards purchasing a second hand Tarago so we can actually fit our whole family in the car at once, LOL.

[Indadhanu]

mm, $1000 is fine by me lol! It's $1000 I wouldn't have otherwise!

[mountain mummy]

Did anybody know about this??

ABOUT 16,000 high-income families are set to lose the baby bonus, with the federal government means testing the scheme from the beginning of 2009.

The baby bonus will rise to $5,000 a year from July 1, but from next January 1 it will only be available to families with a combined annual income of less than $150,000.

Sorry to put even more of a dampener on things

[Liz]

hehe - too bad if everyone decides to spend their money buying stuff online from overseas! All that money will just be given away to other countries then!

[*Efjay*]

Mummy Mountain, I think that means its means tested from 150k. thats pertty old news. The baby bonus went up to 5k this july just gone, not next year. From jan it will also be split up payments not a lump sum.

[Antheia]

Wow, this is exciting. Now i dont have to worry aboutcoming up with the money for my homebirth!

So is it per family or per child?

[mountain mummy]

mm, $1000 is fine by me lol! It's $1000 I wouldn't have otherwise!

True that! I love how the govt thinks they can "buy" us!!

[Bathsheba]

What a relief to hear this (if it turns out to be true). DH and I were getting concerned about how we would be able to meet DD's school fees for next year. With 3 children $3000 will almost pay for another term. Is that stimulating the economy??? Or does only buying "stuff" do that?

Sushee: I completely understand and empathsise darl. I can't afford to go out to work. Recently I was considering getting night work (we can't afford childcare) but DH works long hours and even that would be hard to squeeze in. As a family we have missed out on quite a few of these kinds of bonuses. I'll never be eligible for a first home buyers grant because DH bought a house (that he lived in for 1 week... this was before the grant system began) with his first wife As a SAHM I can't buy a house in my name so i am penalised by my DH's previous life. That seems quite unfair to me. Anyhow as desperately as I would love to have the validation and adult contact that comes with having my own job this news certainly seals the deal... no job for me... until I can earn a professional wage at least (and thus afford childcare).

[mountain mummy]

Mummy Mountain, I think that means its means tested from 150k. thats pertty old news. The baby bonus went up to 5k this july just gone, not next year. From jan it will also be split up payments not a lump sum.

FJ, I understand the baby bonus going up is old news (#4 was born july this year ) but the way this article read was that families earning over 150K were ineligible ... maybe Ruddy changed his mind about that too??

[Antheia]

With the baby bonus it'll be that next year families income over $150k will not get it. that is how i read it.

[Ozstar]

I claim my FTB at the end of each financial year as a lump sum, will I receive the payment in Dec?

I cant believe how much they have put the first home owners grant up by. I built about 2 years ago and would have loved 21K. My BIL wants to get into his first home soon, I will have to let him know.

[Madham]

Wow i am happy about the $1,000 a child but so excited about the first home buyers, dp and i will definetly be seriously looking into that.