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Expatriates, whose finances are already complicated by living away from their home countries, should consider the wider financial implications carefully before starting a family. Our financial expert in Belgium offers some advice.New baby? Don't forget to include 'financial' in your to-do list.
For expatriates, whose finances are complicated by living away from their home countries, appropriate advice on these matters is even more crucial. 
Here are some pointers for expatriate parents wanting to keep their financial affairs in line with changing family circumstances.
Insure your lives
Not the most cheerful subject, but certainly one of the most important. The arrival of a child brings the responsibility to provide financial security. If you or your partner were to die tomorrow, would there be adequate financial support for your family?
Life assurance policies pay a cash sum to provide financial security if this were to happen.
If you are an employee, check whether life assurance is included in your benefits package. If so, will the amount be sufficient?
Don't be fooled into thinking that employer schemes will automatically provide the amount of protection you need. As a general rule, life cover should be sufficient to preserve your family's standard of living until your youngest child becomes financially independent. In many cases, that will be at least 20 years.
For the self-employed and those who don't benefit from an employer scheme, life assurance is cheap and readily available. Specific international policies cater for the needs of expatriates by offering flexibility and portability.
To give you a cost guide, a 30 year old male can insure his life for EUR 250,000, for 25 years, for around EUR 40 per month. A female of the same age would pay less than EUR 30 per month.
Given how affordable it is, all parents should make it a priority to ensure that they have sufficient life assurance in place.
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