New Zealanders having a baby in Australia

Do New Zealanders get free maternity care in Australia? Do we get free midwife services and child delivery services in Australia?

Find the answers to the above questions and all the resources you need when having a baby in Australia as a kiwi.

There is no yes or no answer as it depends on your circumstances and what options you choose to go for. In Australia you receive antenatal care from your GP, midwife or obstetrician.

Medicare does cover all or some of your costs

In Australia, Medicare can cover some or all of your expenses during your pregnancy and the birth of your baby. Medicare covers:

• free treatment and accommodation for public patients in a public hospital
• free or subsidised treatment from health care professionals, including obstetricians, doctors and eligible midwives
• 75% of the Medicare schedule fee if you are a private patient in a public or private hospital – this does not include hospital accommodation, theatre fees or medicines

Medicare and other benefits

Australian families are able to access health care and financial benefits including Medicare, newborn payments, child care payments and parental leave pay. Read here all the info you need to know about these foreign Government payments: http://www.pregnancybirthbaby.org.au/medicare-and-other-benefits.

Being a New Zealand citizen residing in Australia qualifies you for enrollment in the Medicare program, so you will want to make sure you do this soon after arriving in Australia: https://www.movingtoaustralia.co.nz/medicare-australia/.

Newborn Upfront Payment and Newborn Supplement

The Baby Bonus is no longer available. It has been replaced by Newborn Upfront Payment and Newborn Supplement, which is a lump sum and an increase to your Family Tax Benefit Part A payment when you start caring for a baby or child that’s recently come into your care. Kiwi’s on a SCV are eligible for this.

Newborn Upfront Payment

A lump sum payment of $550 per child, which is not taxable.

Newborn Supplement

An ongoing payment for up to 13 weeks, which is not taxable.

The amount you receive depends on how many children you have and your family’s income. The maximum amount you can receive for your first child is $1,649.83. For subsequent children the maximum amount is $550.55.

If you’re eligible for the base rate or more of FTB Part A, you’ll receive the maximum rate of Newborn Supplement. If you’re eligible for less than the base rate of FTB Part A, you’ll receive a reduced rate of Newborn Supplement.

Multiple children

If you have a twins or more you may receive the following for each child:

• Newborn Upfront Payment, as a lump sum of $550, and
• Newborn Supplement, at a maximum rate of $1,649.83 even if you already have other children

This also applies if you:

• adopt more than 1 child as part of the same adoption process, or
• have more than 1 child younger than 1 come into your or your partner’s care as part of the same process

If you’re also eligible for Parental Leave Pay, you can receive Parental Leave Pay for 1 child and Newborn Upfront Payment and Newborn Supplement for other children.

Being Pregnant in Australia as a New Zealander

This is where you will get all the information on being pregnant in Australia: http://www.pregnancybirthbaby.org.au/being-pregnant. There is great general information on having a healthy pregnancy, keeping fit, you and your baby’s wellbeing, etc. It also contains all the info on checkups, screenings and scans, if you have complications during pregnancy and if things go wrong.

Child birth in Australia as a New Zealander

This is where you will get all the information on having a baby in Australia: http://www.pregnancybirthbaby.org.au/child-birth. There are lots of things to consider when planning the birth of your baby. Here you will find information on the options for pregnancy and birth care, what happens during labour and what to expect immediately after.

Bringing up a child in Australia as a New Zealander

Here you can find info on bringing up a baby and child in Australia:

• Baby – http://www.pregnancybirthbaby.org.au/baby
• Child – http://www.pregnancybirthbaby.org.au/your-child
• Parents – http://www.pregnancybirthbaby.org.au/parents
• A-Z topics – http://www.pregnancybirthbaby.org.au/pregnancy-and-baby-topics
• Tools and resources – http://www.pregnancybirthbaby.org.au/parenting-tools-and-resources

Pregnancy Birth and Baby – No Plunket!

Pregnancy, Birth and Baby is funded by the Australian Government and operated by Healthdirect Australia. This is a fantastic resoruce for New Zealanders living in Australia with a family: http://www.pregnancybirthbaby.org.au/.

Who can I talk to?

They offer a fantastic help line and will be able to answer all your questions after you arrive in Australia. I called them but they unfortunately can’t talk to people outside Australia.

From pregnancy to preschool, guidance and reassurance, every step of the way. Free call 7 days a week – 1800 882 436.

Other Resources

Here is some useful info you will want to read about having a baby in Australia: https://www.humanservices.gov.au/individuals/subjects/having-baby. It covers before your baby is born, when your baby is born, after your baby is born and tools and information.

Still got questions?

If there is anything else you would like to know about, please ask me a question using the below comment system and I will do my best to find the information you need.