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New baby admin checklist

Nothing here is about the baby, which is the point: it is the paperwork that has to happen anyway, in the weeks when nobody has slept. Deadlines first.

30 items

Makes your own editable copy. No account needed.

The items

  1. The deadlines
  2. Register the birth within the legal window
  3. Check whether both parents must attendIf the parents are not married this is often required, and it is easier to know before the day.
  4. Order extra copies of the birth certificate×3
  5. Notify your employer and confirm leave dates in writing
  6. Claim any benefit with a backdating limit
  7. Health
  8. Register the baby with a doctor
  9. Confirm the vaccination schedule and book the first appointments
  10. Add the baby to any private health cover
  11. Postnatal check for the birthing parent, booked
  12. Health visitor or equivalent contact saved
  13. Money
  14. Child benefit or equivalent claimed
  15. Tax credits or allowances updated
  16. Childcare support registered for, even if you do not need it yet
  17. Update your tax code or declaration
  18. Redo the household budget with real numbers
  19. Open a savings account in the child's name, if you plan to
  20. Protecting them
  21. Update or write a will
  22. Name guardians, and ask the guardians first
  23. Review life insurance for both parents
  24. Add the baby to home insurance if a pram lives in the hall
  25. Update pension and policy beneficiaries
  26. Can wait a while
  27. Passport, unless you are travelling
  28. Nursery waiting lists, though earlier is cheaper
  29. Adding the baby to the family record or equivalent
  30. Handprints, keepsakes, and the box of things you will keep

Makes your own editable copy. No account needed.

Questions people ask

What has an actual deadline after a birth?
Registering the birth, and in many places notifying your employer for leave and pay. Everything else is flexible, though benefits are often only backdated a few weeks.
What needs both parents present?
Registering the birth, if the parents are not married. Check the local rule before one of you goes back to work and cannot get the morning off.