hlad00

Can anyone tell me what the standard package is for maternity leave in Aus? Would I get anything?

Also would you only be able to claim this if you had lived there for 4 years and became a Citizen? Or can you still claim this on a permanent visa?

thanks you for your help in advance!

dpande

I believe that the USA and Australia are the only 2 OECD countries which don't have any such thing as state-funded maternity pay.

The philosophy is 'if you want kids, pay for it yourself!'

I am not making any comment on the rights and wrongs of this argument.

PR visa holders still get the means-tested baby bond which is (?) about $5000, and a lot of employers offer 12 weeks paid leave at their discretion.

MartinLuther

The standard maternity package in Aus is called the Baby Bonus. It is currently $5000 tax free usually paid as a lump sum on the birth of the baby and is currently paid to everyone (who meets the residency requirements) not just working mothers who exceed a certain salary level and work hours.

However there are changes coming this January. You won't get it if you (as a family) earn more than $150k per year. Also the payment is being changed to a spread of fortnightly payments rather than a lump sum.

Some employers may supply a maternity package but this is discretionary (similar to the way that a lot of employers exceed the SMP in the UK). You probably won't get anything working for a supermarket but you will probably get something if you work for the government or have a high profile job (e.g. lawyer).

PS: This is another recent thread on the subject http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=536444

Wendy

Funnily enough I read this the other week http://smallbusiness.theage.com.au/g...913157337.html

MartinLuther

That's good news for the employees. Let's hope it makes them work harder.

Disclosure: The author currently holds WOW shares.

Wendy