Not sure where to start..

Hey All,

I am just trying to get my head around if infact I will be eligable for any payments form CentreLink?
I will stopping work for at least 6 months - and I have saved up all my A/L so I can have it payed 1/2 per week so we have some money coming in weekly (so 7 weeks a/l @ part pay for 14 weeks) My husband will still be working full time.
So my question being after I have had the baby will there be any payments that I might be eligable to recieve? If so what are they called and is there info on the c/link web site?I know I have 3 months to go but I like to have things sorted out in advance!

Cheers
Kate

Go into Centrelink and ask, that's the best way to figure out if your legible to get anything.

I honestly cant remember if I got any money while I was on M/L (I quit my job after a yr of being on M/L and haven't worked since 2005).

Cheers,

Beck

You might still be elegable for Family Tax Benefit.
Give them a ring on 136150
or go to centrelink.gov.au
You should be able to find out the cut off amounts for all the different payments & also if you are able to get Rent Assistance, Telecommunications Allowance, Pharmaceuticals Allowance or any Parenting Payment at all.
You might even be able to have a Health Care Card & use the PBS.

Thanks Ladies! I will get on the web and see what I can figer out!

For the love of god, dont go into an office unless you have to! The website has a terrific estimator and the phone chicks are good too. ;)

Thanks LuLu! Yeah Ill try not to go to a office - ill check out the website and might call the help line number!

:

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For the love of god, dont go into an office unless you have to! The website has a terrific estimator and the phone chicks are good too. ;)

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ditto! offices are understaffed severely so steer clear unless it's urgent! you'll be sent to the free phone in the waiting room and told to call fao!

basic payments:
baby bonus: $5000 lump sum before jan 1 - not income/assets tested
ftb a - payable on combined income estimate of self and partner for full financial year
ftb b - paid based on income of lower income earner (primary income earner must be under $150k). part payment up until lower income earner has income of around $20k (sliding scale)


rent assistance - based on income and rent paid

telephone and pharmaceutical allowances - not paid with ftb - only with certain income support payments

income support (newstart/parenting payment) - only available to very low income families - we're talking less than $1400 pre-tax income per fortnight cutting out as a max threshold (each payment is different)

hth

bg

Thanks BG!!

I can tell you it doesn't pay to save up your leave and use it while on mat leave. I had 7 weeks annual leave, 8 weeks long service leave and 6 weeks mat leave therefore I get around $20-$30 a fortnight. If I hadn't used all this leave we would've got about $250 or so a fortnight.

Thanks Satya
I have been doing some reserch (while in bed with migrain!) and I am seeing that we are not going to get much - it appears even without my a/l in the mix that my DH makes to much (not enuff for new bub and morgage and bills!!) so we will be getting about $50 a f/n. We will do the income test and see what they say I guess.