Having a Baby After Relocating Overseas
If you and your family move abroad, there are many things to take care of. It could take a lot of time in order for you to get everything taken care of, and for you to get settled down in your new home. But it will happen eventually, and when it does, life goes on as usual. For many families, that includes deciding to have a baby. If you are planning on having a baby once you have relocated internationally, here are some things that you should look into.
As we all know, having a baby includes a number of different visits to the doctor. In order for this to happen, you need to make sure that your insurance covers all of the visits. If you bought your insurance in your homeland and carried it over to your new location, make sure that they know of the pregnancy, and find out exactly what is and is not covered when it comes to international visits. If you buy your insurance in your new home, make sure that you have the kind that covers all of the necessary visits, including pre-natal and post-natal care. The last thing you want is to be surprised by bills that your insurance does not cover, so make sure you ask the questions that you need answered beforehand, and switch to a coverage that works, if you do not have it already.
The next thing you will need to look at is citizenship for your new child. A lot of people believe that if you are from one country, and give birth in a different country, that child will have dual citizenship. This is not always the case however. In fact, there are a lot of countries that do not offer dual citizenship whatsoever. You should check with your local consulate to find out what laws govern the citizenship of your new child. If they are considered to be citizens of your new land, it could both be a benefit and a detriment. A lot of education scholarships and many job opportunities are only available to citizens. At the same time, some countries have mandatory military requirements for all citizens, not to mention tax laws that could be problematic down the road.
More Policies to be Aware of
You should also check with your new employer on what their policies are regarding maternity and paternity leave. Every company in every country could be different on the amount of maternity leave that they offer their employees. When it comes to paternity leave, some may not recognize it at all. You should check with the Human Resources department of your company and find out exactly what you can and cannot do with regards to your pregnancy and leave time.
If you are a new parent, you may not realize the amount of paperwork that is involved with having a new child. This is even truer when you are overseas. There will be paperwork that needs to be filled out for the hospital, for the government, and possibly for the embassy of the country that you are from. Contact them ahead of time, and find out everything that you will need to fill out, so you can have it ready once your baby is born. After that, you will want to obtain a passport for your new child. No one can travel outside of the country without a passport, including newborns. This process could take months so make sure that you plan accordingly for any trips that you have in mind.
