Merlot

Hello

I am returning to the UK in early 2004 and was wondering if I would be entitiled to any benefits from the government until I am able to find work? Please note this would be short term until I found a job, I have never used the system for the dole even when living there.

Has anyone has any similar experiences they can share?

I am a British Citizen, been in Australia working full time since 1997. Returning to look after Mum.

Cheers
Merlot

fried_emu

I am a british citizen who moved back from Canada - Was not allow to draw any goverment funds until I have worked for 1 full year and the child benifits did not kick in for the same amount of time.

Fried

MrsLondon

You can't get job seekers allowance unless you have been working (it used to be for 2 years but maybe that's changed). You may be able to get income support though, which is means tested, so if you have savings over I think £3000 the amount you get may be affected (used to be £3K may have changed). Also used to be over £8K savings and you can't get anything. Try searching google.co.uk under income support.

dotty

Great pity they dont introduce similar rules in OZ, from what I see here, most immos go straight from the airport to centerlink.

Merlot

I totally agree, I have heard it is the same in the UK, immigrants getting prefered treatment with benefits and this information came from a friend who works for the benefits people.

My plan is to definately get a job the minute the jetlag goes but it is always nice to know I would have something to fall back on for a week or two.

Luckily being a PA/Secretary there is always work as a temp.

Thanks for all your replies so far.

Merlot

bromleygirl

I am probably going to get divorced and will move back with my 2 young children who by summer 2004 will be 3 and 5.

I've heard single parents are entitled to help with daycare costs - does anyone think that this will be a problem as I would have been out of the country by this time 8 years? I've also heard that if you are a single parent and work part-time you will be given benefits to make up the difference as if you were workign full-time.

I intend to start looking for a job before I leave the States and will have enough money from the divorce to put down as a deposit on a house. Do you think that they would take this money into account when I go to ask for help?

What benefits could a single parent returning from overseas obtain? I've heard of people who have returned home and have been given all kinds of help i.e. housing, dental, income support etc - do you think that they have just not told anyone that they have been out of the country when they have applied?

heading downunder 2002

The Goverment have introduced child tax credit, whereas you used to get an extra allowance on your tax code you now get paid weekly an amount for any children. Depending on what you earn determines how much you get. There is an upper salary limit which if you are earning this or above would not qualify. Also there is working family tax credit for people who work at least 16 hours per week and earn £15,000 and below, this is paid by your employer through your wages.

As far as benefits are concerned, there is contribution based job seekers allowance and income based job seekers allowance. When we arrived back my husband received contribution based (which is higher than the other) but we had only been out of the country for 6 months, our friends who returned who had been away 10 months could only get the income based (about £50 per week), I am not sure though if you have been away a while what you would qualify for.

Child benefit again if you have been away 6 months or less you can start receiving it again longer, and you have to wait until you are back in work.

This is my understanding of how it works, and on our experiences but please correct me if I am wrong.

Susan

fried_emu

Make sure you have the kids UK passports before you start the divorce proceedings. I required my ex's authorisation to get UK passports despite I had full custody. This was the UK governments rules. But in the end them having UK passports made setting up everything once over here 10x's easier. It cuts a lot of the red tape once your here.

Good Luck

bromleygirl

Thanks for the advice - I will be going back to the UK for a visit in January and will get my children their passports then. The way how things have been going I'm sure I'll have to start the divorce when I get back giving me time to get our house sold and making arrangements to move.

Why does having the passports make it easier to do things for my children back in the UK? I'm assuming that it is easier to gain entry into the country - are there other reasons? I did register them at the embassy when they were born and have copies of their British birth certificates.

By the time I move back I would have been out of the country for 8 years! While I'm looking for a job what kind of benefits do you think I can claim?

This is a very daunting time for me right now but I know my situation right now needs to change and I do want my children to grow up in the UK. Any more advice would be greatly appreciated.

fried_emu

Sorry I didn't realize that your kids had British Birth Certs. Mine had Canadian so I had to have British passports to register them in school, with the NHS, and for any goverment child benifits.

With them having British Certs it may not be as difficult.

Fried

bromleygirl

Thanks Fried. I think that I will still go ahead with getting their British passports just so that it will ensure leaving the country and gaining entry to the UK easier with them.

tiredwithtwins

for the working tax credit thingy look at the inland revenues webpage - it gives you all the info you need. however, just a word of caution - if you come back and start working before april they actually work out your entitlement april-april, it isnt like the old system of your claim being started from when you apply! I have just fallen into that trap - I am a nurse and have had a couple of years off work with the kids and started back on september 1st. I had all 3 kids in fulltime childcare at a cost of £280+ a week, and working 18 hours a week. they average out your hours over the 12 month period april 2003-april 2004, which meant I averaged out at something like 10 hours a week and therefore wasnt entitled to a bean!!!! beware!!

good luck - try the benefits agency (thats what the dhss calls itself these days!) if they have a website.
let us know how you get on

sue

bondipom

Supposedly there is a 2 year waiting period for Centrelink benefits for new immigrants. That is what the booklets say. How that works in practise is another issue.

Luke I Amyofath

To get any income support or other government monies you have to do a residency test, now called "habitual resident test"
Basically you have to prove that you live in the uk and have lived there primarily for some time.

Seems a little discriminatory when you are a brit citizen and see foreigners get cash and housing the day they enter the uk as immigrants.

bondipom

Are you on about the Assylum Seekers who are not allowed to work? What do you suggest they do for food and accomodation? I believe the UK is legally required to provide basic accomodation and food to assylum applicants.

The problem is the time it takes to process the applications and the continual mistakes in foreign policy that has screwed up the countries these people are leaving. The quicker the process the quicker the applicants can get on the job market or go back to their country of origin.

Personally I think the UK, Australia and the US have a moral obligation to look after the Iraqis who seek assylum. The above governments have blown up the countries infrastructure and must fix it.