Penny72

We (family of 5) are moving to Melbourne in July (from the UK) and I am wondering what happens to my UK Child Benefit? Are we still entitled to it?
I am leaving my UK bank account open so it would still be paid into that......or should I tell the benefits office so they cancel it? Not sure what I am supposed to do! And exactly who you are supposed to tell that you have emigrated?! Many thanks for any advice!

Bermudashorts

You are not entitled to it if you are not resident and should tell benefits office.

It would be an idea to tell tax office that you are emmigrating, you will need to to get a refund as no doubt will have overpaid if leaving in July.

ray2gill

You will need to notify the DSS and return any payment books if you have them other wise you will be obtaining payment under false pretences.

As your title indicates it is UK not Australian child benefit therefore you will not be entitled to it once you leave the country. You will be paid your entitlement up until the date which you leave the country otherwise they will claim it all back.

Don't forget to notify the Tax Office though with your P45 details enabling you to get your tax refund. This applies to anyone who pays Income Tax.

ohippy

I would also tell them as early as possible when you have a definite date for leaving as they take a while to sort out !

ABCDiamond

Some of the rules for notification are that you must advise the department if you or your partner leave the UK permanently or you leave the UK temporarily for more than eight weeks
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/childbenefit/need-to-report.htm

Some people who have been caught still claiming, have had penalties imposed.

moneypenny20

Get cancelling it now. They are incompetent morons and it will take them months to sort it out which will include many letters asking you stupid questions and the standard letters asking about your current circumstances. If you can get it sorted before you leave the country it will save you a great deal of stress once here. Doing without a few months payment is preferable to dealing with their incompetence for years to come.

Not having a go at you in particular but people in general who ask about the benefit - if you wouldn't expect to continue paying tax, or paying the electricity bill on your old house etc when you leave a country, why would you expect to continue receiving benefits?

Kapri

Just what i was thinking

BigH68

why would you be entitled to it if u leave the country

TMRE

I stopped our child benefit after being here for 12 weeks, didn't cancel it just in case we went back in that time. Wasn't asked to pay back anything when I called them and said we had left the UK either.

BigH68

only allowed 8 weeks once u leave the uk

TMRE

Wasn't asked to pay anything back after 12 weeks though, 4 week holiday and 8 weeks out of the UK permanently

BigH68

ssshhhhhhhhhhhh keep quiet...they still can u know

smvh

if you leave your country and you are not entitled to claim anything in oz for 2 years then why would you say anything at all, how would they know where you were if you didnt tell them!

durhamlad

But you can claim Family Tax Benefit in Oz straight away, there is not a two year wait for this benefit.
You also receive a dental treatment voucher for your children towards treatment costs and the $1,000 payment for each child which was paid out just before Christmas to try and kick start the economy.

Sally Simpson

What you can claim depends on the type of visa you are on.
Also, you must have submitted a tax return for 2007/2008 to be eligible for the one-off payment, the amount of which varies depending on your income.