USbaby

Hi,I have a child born in the USA and holds an American passport.He lives in Spain.

He does not come under Bristish systems does the US have any simalar system as child benifit?

At the moment my child falls between the stools as Spain have no assistance,even if I had no job and was about to be put in the street, there is no social system. They have poor houses where people queue for food,each day. Offices for collection of clothes,and personal needs, shelters, that they take children into if you do not have a home and job or your family do not take you in and help. :scared: ( What century is this, how much money have Spain had from the E.U.funding). My child is not British so misses the normal child benifit allowance.US I have no clue???????



I keep body and soul together but as the childs father pays zero (British) he will not pay, and it would be too much pain to drag myself thr all the rubbish. If men who own diamond mines can plead poverty hide their money, my ex- not living in the UK, working for himself would make his pennies disappear quicker than teenage boys with a full table of food.

I always worry near Christmas, as we all do and it pushes me to find out, what is the law??? Washington D.C. is where my little darling child was born.

Innocent's pay the price of bad people every where.

FlyergirlUK

Apparently there is nothing similar to Child benefit here in the US - Hubby's certainly never heard of it before - I had to explain the system in the UK to him.

NC Penguin

You should go to the website for US Social Security and search there to see if your child is entitled to any benefits.

There may be criteria to be fulfilled before he/she is eligible such as residency issues both for the claimant and his/her US parents.

If I were in your situation, that's where I'd look first.

AmerLisa

Actually Social Security is not for children, unless they are disabled. You would have to live here in the States and apply for welfare, if you qualified, for any kind of "benefits". The US does not have child benefits that are similar to the UK.

USbaby

The Uk as you know has a child allowance not depending on parents income, its right for the individual child as a national.

USbaby

I will ask at the consulate and follow up what you say.I do not hold out much hope that there is a system that give a child an allowance in their own right.

USbaby

I think there are not many government that have the same child rights and benifits that the English government patout, Think about generation of tax payers and its better to have nothing and no work then I could recieve a home and life long payments for producing babies, instead of working to show a child we should all earn are daily bread...

robskatie

This is all a matter of self respect and pride, child benifit is a payment for a childs welfare no matter on the income of the parent, being able to stay home and produce babies and expecting the U.K to support you is a totally different matter.
If you say the childs father is English, he is also allowed to claim (I understand) child benifit if you were together as a married couple but the child had to reside in the U.K.
It is hard for many people with children near christmas when income is low and I hope things work out for you.

Shish kebab

Hi you can only claim for child benefit if you and your child are both living in the UK and your husband but you do not both have to be living together. I claimed for it but as soon as I said I was leaving to go to the US it was stopped. You can also talk to the social services in the uk about helping you get money from your husband to pay for your child. He does not have to live in the UK for them to start looking for him and get money for his child. Sometimes dragging yourself though all the paperwork is worth it in the end. why should you do it along. I don't know of any child benifit you can claim for in the US as I have not heard of one yet. I hope this has helped you a bit.
PS. The child benefit is 14.00pounds (sorry no pound sign) a week regardless how much any of the parents are earning.

AmerLisa

Yes I do know, that's why I said the US doesn't have something similar to the UK.

Muswell Hill

I believe that you can only apply for child benefit if you are resident in the UK. Also in Spain, there are "benefits" aka state assistance, but again i believe one must be an EU citizen to qualify. Why not go and ask at the local town hall? If your childs father is a Brit you could contact the CSA and ask if they could help you receive a child support payment from him....although i will admit to not being an expert on the CSA!

Muswell Hill

I forgot to ask...are you a UK citizen? If so you could register him as a British citizen. Or maybe as a spanish citizen if you are Spanish? I think Spain permits dual nationality now.....

scrubbedexpat099

CSA only seems to be able to hassle those who are trying to do the right thing, they seem pretty useles otherwise. There have been some more stories of late about their incompotence.

I just find it a bit odd that there is some expectation that the UK Social Security system should be seen a source.

Perhaps it just says something about the worldwide reputation it has obtained.

AmerLisa

I can't see it being much of a source to anyone. Besides, I'm pretty positive that UK child benefits can only be paid to children living in the UK. Its a right to the child yes, but not if the child doesn't reside in the UK.

USbaby

Many people are citizens of U.K. and only go to the U.K. because of the social benifits.
I spoke to a young women who told me that many young Spanish girls go to London when pregnant to get benifits and the government provide housing and the right to buy that housing three years later.The parents help them buy when two further years past they sell and come back to Spain.Its been going on for years....

I on the other hand am asking about a benifit that is handed out to every person that gets off the boat.If they same system was in the U.S.???

Even if my grandparents and great-grandparents fought for England, so what! paid taxes,so what! If my family still does,so what!

To deserve is not to recieve.

U.K. "The honey pot",where benifits are hand-over to everyone.Only with children is the best for someone seeking help,soon eastern European women will turn up in droves sending money home and hubby sneaking in for awhile then, who cares??? money for old rope!

I will never get assistence from anyone, fathers who do not wish to pay can avoid the system.Tax payers, well its what the reality is of cases today, forget about history.

Sorry I just see that the U.K. tends to open their doors to all, in Spain, not a brass farthing would someone from outside Spain get,they do not give anything to their own citizens. Poor, get on with it go to your own family not the government.

Back to work! I need to go shopping for presents while my son is at school.
His christmas list is long and he will lucky boy get his hearts desires.

Merry Christmas all!