Haven't read replys but, Once you have your baby you will be transferred onto parenting payment partnered, the reason your payments aren't affected by your partners income is because you are still technically a "dependent" to your parents so your payments are reliant on their income (if they earnt heaps you would get nothing). But once you have a baby you will be classed as independent and receive ftb a&b and parenting payment partnered (as long as your partner doesn't earn to much). You will no longer get youth allowance. I have been classed as independent since the day I turned 16 (I was not at home before then but they won't pay you before your 16th birthday) I just told them to look up my child protective services case and then get back to me on how living at home was my best option, not that it was an option anyway. They put me on independent pay a week later.

I was on youth allowance but I was deemed independent once I moved in with my partner. You would be getting more money if they classed you as de facto.

Anyway, I was on youth allowance and did the pre claim for family tax online and did the claim for partnered payments 3 days after I had my baby on a Friday and went in Monday to hand in forms ect I was paid that week but I think it's because they had all my details plus my partners already in the system so you might be lucky like me and get it straight away.

Claim FTB and parenting payments partnered online prior to having baby. You will be deemed independent once on a parenting payment. Depending on circumstances and if your youth allowance student or job seeker will depend on a lot when you are receiving that payment. 22 is generally the age where independence can be determined. If under this age you need to be assed by wither a social worker or a team to see why it is unreasonable to love at home and they will decide if this is 'reasonable' under the legislation. Always keep in mind that it's not personal decisions of the worker of its reasonable so your reasonable may not fall into the category, if that makes sense. Centrelink also can classify you as partnered as soon as u claim a benefit and are living with your partner. It just depends also on the individual situation. Hope that helps.

Hopefully you will receive some paperwork in the mail to confirm what you'll be receiving. Good luck.

I claimed online and took some documents in to them as well.

They will tell you when you go in to see them what your fortnightly payments will beans your first lump sum payment. Have you been in to see them or done it online? If you've done it online you should receive either a letter online or via post. I fought cats and dogs with them to get my payments

That's fine, I just wasn't sure if they told you before the baby is born that you will receive x amount or not.

Thanks again :)

With my first it took them 6 weeks to get my first payment. And that payment included the back pay they owed me. My maternity leave payments didn't start until 4 weeks post baby because the amount of time it took them to process it as well. Even though they had the paper work months before had. They were just waiting on the confirmation of birth. The only good thing that turned out was the back pay I got so I'm the end I ended up with a couple thousand for my first payment.

So you will start getting paid from the day baby is born it just depends on how long it takes for them to get the payment to you. If they makes sense? Lol.

Maybe it was 24.. Either way, it's stupid! Haha

Last time I was in there the Centrelink lady herself couldn't even tell me what the age was. She couldn't remember if it were 22 or 24.. lol ?

My last comment wasn't at you pp, sorry!

Of course there's circumstances where you can be deemed independent earlier.. They just like screwing some people around. It's also easier doing it when you're under 18 apparently.

Hm well I don't know what I'm talking about then haha

Independent age is apparently 25 now. It was 22, but I have a friend who was recently told by Centrelink it is now 25. How ridiculous.

Sorry, totally irrelevant to your post, just a response to pp's comment.

Ah, that makes sense. Thank you!! :)

I was deemed independent at age 16 although it was unfit and dangerous for me to live with my mother

You wont hear anything about family tax until you have lodged the forms after baby is born. After it has been processed and approved and payments start.

You should also start recieving parenting payments partnered instead of youth allowance. They will require your partners income to see how much you are eligible for.

i have been through the whole being dependant when i was 20 and i went through a process to be made independent as i wasnt able to live at my mums. yes once you have been in a relationship for 12 months or worked full time for a certain amount of time you are classed as independant. Or until you reach the independant age which was 21 a few years ago not sure if its changed though. But once you have a baby you are also deemed independant straight away anyways.

Ah! Yes, I'm in the same situation. On their records, we haven't been living together for 12 months yet.. But I'm still classed as a dependent as well. Once you have a dependent of your own, you then become independent by their standards.

Their whole dependent standards are kind of ridiculous. But yeah, once your baby's born and they have all the information and whatnot, you'll be classed as dependent. Not sure about whether your partners income comes into play or not though.

Both our names are on our lease.

They've known since day 1 when we moved in together because I claimed youth allowance when I started studying full time.. Which was when we moved in together.

Ah, :/ I don't know, they confused me, lol.

Centrelink is so confusing ?

This is what they've told me.. Basically, we're de facto on their records, but unless I get an assessor to prove its unfit for me to live at my mums, I won't be classed as independent. So when we've been living together for a year, then I will be classed as independent and we will go off of his income, until then I'm a dependant.. (even though I don't live at home or get assessed off his income.. I don't know how they figure this one out ?) we even have a lease together.

But because baby is due before the 12 month mark, I just wonder how it'll work with family assistance, my youth allowance, etc..

No I know.. I thought the same thing, then when we went in and told them, they said we should have informed them we were living together as soon as it happened. Luckily, we had a really nice guy who helped.. Otherwise it can turn into you owing them money. So just be careful.

What changes when you've been living together for 12 months is that you can be deemed independent (not sure whether you are or not though, I've had a lot of trouble claiming that, lol).

Also, my understanding is that it can take 6 weeks. But everyone seems to have different experiences.

As far as I remember, I did all the claiming a couple of weeks pre-baby then only heard back from them when I submitted everything else after she was born.

Um Centrelink made my partner and I de facto 3 weeks after we started dating and we only slept in the same house 2 times a week. So I don't understand how they could do that to me but not to you? :/

Yeah, sorry I meant it's been 12 months we've been living together in July, we've been together longer lol :)

I have no idea, as I'm still awaiting arrival of my first too..

But Centrelink told me you're considered de facto from the date you and your partner start living together, not from the 12 month mark. I know others who have been told it starts from the 12 months though, but I just wanted to let you know to be careful with that.