What is child maintenance? When a couple chooses to part ways, an arrangement regarding financing the child should be taken into consideration (i.e. costs of care and living expenses). The responsibility falls on both parents to be financially able to provide for the child. Two routes can be:
- Agreement (in private)
- Child Maintenance Service
Option 1 – Agreement (in private)
This route does not require any involvement by a third party and is completely flexible. However, if preferred, a third-party mediator can intervene for a smoother process. Depending on the requirements surrounding costs of care and living, in addition to individual circumstances, the two parties can opt to use the child maintenance calculator to agree on a specified amount per month/week.
Option 2 – Child Maintenance Service
This is where the two parties are unable to negotiate in private, the Child Maintenance Service serves as a catalyst. There is a small fee, however, where the applicant has experienced domestic abuse, is under the age of 18 and/or lives in Northern Ireland, they are not required to pay the fee.
Issues the Child Maintenance Services deal with include:
- Calculate a reasonable payment amount
- Take action where a parent has not paid the agreed-upon child maintenance
- Aid the parties to resolve disagreements Before applying, you are required to discuss the details of your situation. Once the situation is explained, further steps will be advised whereby a detailed explanation of the application process will be communicated.
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