What to do after your baby is born

Newborn photography

If you have arranged newborn photography, call them to let them know your baby has arrived and book your photography session.

Health insurance

Add your baby to your health insurance. You often have a couple of months to organise this depending on your health insurance company but you may need to do it sooner if your baby is admitted to special care or hospital.

Centrelink

When your baby is born, you will get a Parent Pack from your hospital or midwife that includes the Newborn Child Declaration. The Doctor/Midwife – Proof of Birth Declaration on the last page must be signed by a doctor or midwife.

In order to claim Paid Parental Leave (PPL), Family Tax Benefit (FTB) and Dad and Partner Pay, you will need to upload the Newborn Child Declaration Form to Centrelink. This will also enable you to enrol your child for Medicare and the Medicare Safety Net, and register your child for a digital health record in the My Health Record system which you can access through myGov.

To submit your proof of birth or adoption online:

Log on to your Centrelink online account through myGov or the Express Plus Centrelink mobile app
From the menu, select 'Add Newborn Child' in your online account or 'Add Newborn' in the Express Plus Centrelink mobile app
Answer all the questions and attach a scan or photo of your child’s proof of birth: the signed Doctor/Midwife – Proof of Birth Declaration found on the back of your Newborn Child Declaration.

Birth registration

Register your baby's birth with your State or Territory. NSW, for example, can be completed online within 60 days. Make sure to have your ID (parent's birth certificate, driver’s licence, Medicare card). You may be able to apply for a birth certificate for your baby at the same time.
For more information on registering your baby's birth in your state or territory, visit the links below
- NSW
- ACT
- QLD
- VIC
- SA
- NT
- WA
- TAS

Appointments

A paediatrician will visit your baby in hospital and ask you to make an appointment when your baby is around 6 weeks old
Your obstetrician or midwife will also want to review you around 6 weeks after birth to make sure you are recovering well
You might want to consider seeing a Women's Health Physio a couple of months after giving birth so they can assess your pelvic floor and abdominal separation and let you know if you need to undertake exercises to strengthen them and avoid any possible future issues. You can still have issues with your pelvic floor and abdominal separation even if you have a caesarean section
If you have had a caesarean section you will need to take extra care with your recovery as it can take 6-10 weeks to completely heal. The hospital will give you care instructions on how to care for your wound
It is a good idea to get clearance from your doctor, midwife and/or Women's Health Physio before participating in intensive exercise as returning too soon can make your pelvic floor and abdominal separation worse.

What to do after your baby is born

Centrelink

When your baby is born, you will get a Parent Pack from your hospital or midwife that includes the Newborn Child Declaration. The Doctor/Midwife – Proof of Birth Declaration on the last page must be signed by a doctor or midwife.

​

To submit your proof of birth or adoption online:

Log on to your Centrelink online account through myGov or the Express Plus Centrelink mobile app

From the menu, select 'Add Newborn Child' in your online account or 'Add Newborn' in the Express Plus Centrelink mobile app

Answer all the questions and attach a scan or photo of your child’s proof of birth: the signed Doctor/Midwife – Proof of Birth Declaration found on the back of your Newborn Child Declaration.

Birth registration

Register your baby's birth with your State or Territory. NSW, for example, can be completed online within 60 days. Make sure to have your ID (parent's birth certificate, driver’s licence, Medicare card). You may be able to apply for a birth certificate for your baby at the same time.

For more information on registering your baby's birth in your state or territory, visit the links below

NSW​

ACT

QLD

VIC

SA

NT

WA

TAS

Appointments

A paediatrician will visit your baby in hospital and ask you to make an appointment when your baby is around 6 weeks old

Your obstetrician or midwife will also want to review you around 6 weeks after birth to make sure you are recovering well

If you have had a caesarean section you will need to take extra care with your recovery as it can take 6-10 weeks to completely heal. The hospital will give you care instructions on how to care for your wound

It is a good idea to get clearance from your doctor, midwife and/or Women's Health Physio before participating in intensive exercise as returning too soon can make your pelvic floor and abdominal separation worse.

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NSW