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Original poster

To wonde why overseas CHB payements are *SO* skewed towards Poland?

55 replies

Buxhoeveden · 01/05/2015 14:41

I realise the DM have their own 'unique' agenda in requesting the figures, publishing them etc.

But I'm having a brain fail on exactly why Poland are so far out ahead. More of the Poles who live in the UK have DC?

What's the rational (non-DM) explanation?

To wonde why overseas CHB payements are *SO* skewed towards Poland?
OP posts:
Miltonmaid · 01/05/2015 16:41

Found some info about German child benefit and who is eligible. www.howtogermany.com/pages/kindergeld.html

Miltonmaid · 01/05/2015 16:46

It is much more generous. You get €184 per month for each of the first 2 children. €190 for the third and £240 for the fourth. That's significant money.

Original poster
Buxhoeveden · 01/05/2015 16:47

Gosh. £42 per WEEK in Germany for the first two children and then it goes UP for subsequent DC.

OP posts:
Original poster
Buxhoeveden · 01/05/2015 16:48

Grin X post Grin

OP posts:
OrlandoWoolf · 01/05/2015 16:50

Isn't Germany having a recession or low growth?
Aren't they affected by the Eurozone crisis?

How can they afford it?

Original poster
Buxhoeveden · 01/05/2015 16:50

But it does seem to be saying that the DC have to be resident in Germany.... Hmm

OP posts:
Original poster
Buxhoeveden · 01/05/2015 16:51

"Once your employment ends or you or your children leave Germany, you must notify the agency that pays you Kindergeld to stop the payments. Failure to make such notification will give rise to claims for repayment of any amounts improperly received."

OP posts:
Original poster
Buxhoeveden · 01/05/2015 16:52

Now I'm confused again.

OP posts:
hedgehogsdontbite · 01/05/2015 16:52

If I remember correctly from when I emigrated, you can continue to claim from you home country if they pay it at a higher rate than your new country. So that may be a factor. EG a Swedish immigrant won't claim UK child benefit because the Swedish one is more.

Miltonmaid · 01/05/2015 16:56

Read the first paragraph here www.bamf.de/EN/Willkommen/KinderFamilie/Kindergeld/kindergeld-node.html
Live in Germany OR member state of EU. This is from official government website.

Miltonmaid · 01/05/2015 16:58

If my maths is correct a family with 4 children would receive £590 a month in child benefit. They do have a low birth rate, I wonder if this is to try and encourage people to have more children. It's also interesting to read that parents can continue to claim it until their son or daughter turns 25 if they are in training or education.

Original poster
Buxhoeveden · 01/05/2015 16:59

Ah that's better Smile

OP posts:
doradoo · 01/05/2015 18:33

The UK wouldn't allow me to claim once DH had left - even though I am a British citizen, I was living in the UK, my DC were living in the UK and the Cb claim was made under my NI number.

German CB is much more generous - there's no cut off point AFAIK so it's universal - I know for the forces it was used as a top up to the UK one, we certainly has ours backdated once we finally joined my DH about 6 months after he moved.

The DM reporting doesn't mention the fact at all that it works both ways - so yes we are paying for some polish et al children, but there are other countries which are paying for UK children - it's all to do with where the taxpaying/working parent is rather than the children.

It seems that here in Germany it's a contentious issue too - there is a graph on this link Handelsblatt which shows similar to the DM graph - only the numbers are way higher.

nettlewine · 01/05/2015 18:42

There was massive immigration from Poland as when they joined the EU they were not allowed the go to France or Germany but Tony Blaire decided we should not use the 5 years delayment. Therefore 600k moved over in a few years when 15k were estimated to and polish is the 2nd language of the uk.

WhirlpoolGalaxyM51 · 01/05/2015 18:47

Not read all posts but Germany is trying to increase birth rate so has v generous things to incentivise, saw a documentary on it. I think their mat provision and childcare assist was generous as well from what I remember.

NorahDentressangle · 01/05/2015 18:52

I asked a Croatian lad (road worker) when he'd be going home, he said after a year! Sad

OrlandoWoolf · 01/05/2015 18:57

Therefore 600k moved over in a few years when 15k were estimated to and polish is the 2nd language of the uk

I'd love to seem some data and evidence for that.

likalixer · 01/05/2015 19:00

I have nothing against anybody coming here and earning a decent wage, even if they do end up sending most of their wages 'back home' although how that's helping to improve the economy beats me. But to also pay those people benefits on top of that, so that they can send them OUT of the country as well? - To support children that that live in another country? Shock It's taking the piss.

They must be laughing their heads off us! They probably think we're the most gullible people ever, the laughing stock of the EU Blush and I don't blame them.
In the meantime, children in THIS country are having to rely on food provided by foodbanks.
So wrong.

Charity begins at home.

nettlewine · 01/05/2015 19:00

Lol it was mostly from the 2011 census. Your welcome.

Redlocks28 · 01/05/2015 19:04

Are other countries in the EU talking about scrapping child benefit? Is child benefit universal or means tested in other EU countries?

TalkinPeace · 01/05/2015 19:05

The Poles started arriving here ten years ago.
The young men and women arrived and worked bloody hard.
Some of the men left partners behind and went back to visit them - it being a Catholic Country plenty of kids were produced.

The point is that those Poles pay a damn sight more in tax than they claim in Child Benefit.

The German set is hysterically funny to me : try British Army Grin

likalixer · 01/05/2015 19:06

And this was how it was in 2013, so God only knows how much worse it's got since:

(the telegraph for a change)

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/immigration/9846029/1m-a-week-in-child-benefit-paid-to-children-living-overseas.html

TalkinPeace · 01/05/2015 19:06

PS
I live in a city that is more than 10% Polish
Our Local paper is printed in Polish
Teachers teach in Polish
and our local economy is BOOMING because of them

worksallhours · 01/05/2015 19:19

I have some vague ideas why this could be so.

  1. We have a lot of Poles in Britain.
  2. Poles tend to marry and have families earlier than many of the other countries on that list, so a twenty-something Polish migrant is possibly more likely to have a child than a French twenty-something migrant.
  3. Poland still has a fairly traditional "male-provider" culture, so fathers may be more likely to migrate for work than men from other countries.
  4. Poles are very good at navigating obscure bureaucratic systems, so are possibly more likely to apply for child benefit when in another country where another language is spoken.