Please don’t judge

Honestly yes . Depending on what help it’s getting you !

As a rule I try to avoid dishonesty for personal gain. I used to lie a lot in my youth, and longterm I regretted it. Now I am honest to a fault, lol.

My best friend did this and has suggested I do the same. I hate lying but I'm so with you, I want to be at home with my baby and not have to return to work so soon!

I mean do what you gotta do but at the same time is the risk of getting caught worth it? Have you weighed out the pros and cons of lying on financial documents?

Absolutely. Do what you need to take care of your baby, as long as it doesn’t hurt anyone.

Sounds illegal?

I think if you did not have a mortgage together and live together it would be a lot easier? But I’m not sure the ins and outs of the benefit system

But yes it’s crazy how low maternity leave pay is!

Absolutely not. I’m only saying because we have been there and tried applying for child care vouchers and she said I would have to write a letter saying we are basically broken up and I thought it was a trap for fraud so I said no thank you. Because with my income at the time there was no way I could “afford rent on my own” the government would for sure look into me if I said yes

Are you in the UK? If so, I’d be super cautious about doing this. They do checks and claim reviews periodically, requesting all your bank and saving accounts statements.

I worked with a lady who had a criminal conviction and that was just for claiming child benefit when her child was no longer living with her. Pretty heavy handed approach, but it happened. And most of my other clients have had their kids removed, and still claim benefits related to their children, but they always get caught once there’s a claim review.

There’s also new legislation Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Act 2025, where banks are obligated to inspect bank accounts and report suspected fraud to the DWP now. They do it by scanning dataset a large, not just focussing on individuals suspected of fraud, it’s creepy and intrusive, but it’s the law now.