What a wild week. As if prepping for my upcoming birth and making sure I have all of my ducks in a row to prepare for keeping a human alive wasn’t challenging enough, but this week at 36 weeks pregnant, I decided it was time to tackle the procrastination list. The tough tasks.

2. Centrelink Paid Parental Leave. Yeah yeah, I can hear you from here “WHY MUST YOU TORTURE YOURSELF E?!” Well because I want to tick off that very long pre-baby check list and I want it done, yesterday.

Let’s talk about Centrelink.

When I first expressed my woes on my instagram stories, so many of you mamas flooded to my DM’s to share your own personal horror stories with Centrelink. In my opinion (and many of yours) the MyGov system is flawed at best and often sends people in a loop. Centrelink staff keep directing you to the online platform to complete applications, however often you just need a kind ear to stay on the line or be with you in person to see the process through from start to finish.

I wont go into major detail about my concerns with Centrelink … other than to say that MyGov doesn’t cope well with name changes when you get married and so there were major conflicts there, I was thrown from staff member to staff member and often redirected to different people, just to get me off the line … I felt completely hopeless … until I found this number and I want to share it with you to save you some trouble!

If you are a mum to be, trying to apply for paid parental leave, Here are my recommendations:

OPTION ONE: Call these guys!!

CENTRELINK FAMILY SERVICES LINE:

CALL: 13 61 50

open 8am – 8pm currently

HOT TIP: If you call after 6pm Perth time, you will find it faster and easier, as they take mostly WA calls during this time.

I was able to find a very helpful gentleman that not only helped to troubleshoot the conflicts of my married name on my MyGov account (by deleting My entire MyGov account so that I could restart it and relink, that was the only solution in my case) But he was also able to STAY ON THE LINE with me and complete my paid parental leave application while the account reset. This is a different contact number to the regular number you find on the centrelink website, so make sure you store this number for when you need it! They were fantastic! Save yourself the hassle and the lines and try calling these guys first.

OPTION TWO: Go direct to a Centrelink service centre with ALL of your documentation: ie. marriage cert, passport, licence, bills, medicare card ect. and tell them you want to sit with them and see the whole process through from start to finish.

HOT TIP: Book an appointment with them! This way you skip the queues!

This link is actually a very helpful link with information on how to apply: https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/individuals/services/centrelink/parental-leave-pay/how-claim … However I recommend asking to STAY ON THE LINE or STAY WITH THEM while they complete the process with you, rather than letting them convince you to head to MyGov with a linking code to complete the process…. and hopefully this will be as lifesaving and stress saving for you as it was for me.

I was so frustrated for myself over the last couple days, but to know that SO many of you have had the same troubles and frustrations in the lead up to having a baby gave me rage. This isn’t ok… You do not need this level of anxiety and frustration in the lead up to welcoming your babe into this world.

Remember however, this was just my experience, yours may be completely different, but hopefully these tips fast track you to a simple and easy parental leave application and make your life that little bit easier before welcoming your new additions!

Good luck mamas, you got this!

CALL: 13 61 50 Centrelink Family Services

or book an appointment to visit your local Centrelink Centre

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