The CSA is now administered by the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission (CMEC). CMEC has set up the Child Maintenance Options service to help parents understand the full range of options and choose the child maintenance arrangement which best suits their particular circumstances. This service is available by phone ( 0800 988 0988) online (www.cmoptions.org) or face to face appointments can be arranged in certain circumstances.
The Options
Option 1: A private agreement
You can make a private agreement if you and the other parent can agree on how to provide child maintenance. This will include how much is paid, how often and how the payment is made. A sample form can be downloaded from the Child Maintenance Options website. The agreement is not legally binding and therefore if the agreement
breaks down you would have to consider options 2 and 3 below.
Option 2: A consent order (only an option for a couple who are divorcing or going through a dissolution)
The agreement can be incorporated in to the court order (called a consent order) as part of the overall settlement. Parents are bound by the agreement in their court order for a period of 12 months. Thereafter on giving the other parent notice they can either continue with the agreement as per the court order, agree to enter into a private arrangement or apply for a formal assessment by the CSA.
Option 3: Using the CSA
A qualifying child is one who is under the age of 16, or between 16 and 19 and in full time, non-advanced education. This means not undertaking a course that is higher than A-level standard.
Maintenance is worked out as a percentage of the non-resident parent’s net weekly income. No account is taken of the income of the person with care or their partner’s income. Net income is calculated by deducting tax, national insurance and pension contributions from gross income. Any bonus, commission or overtime payments are included, as are receipts from any pension scheme, tax credits, employment credits and disabled person’s tax credits. Income from savings, investments, benefits, student grants
and loans are excluded. However there is an additional asset rule. Income will have been deemed to have been earned by assets that exceed £65,000 at the rate of 8%. See example attached.
Where a parent has a net income of less than £100 per week, or for parents in receipt of certain types of benefit a flat liability of £5 per week is paid.
A nil liability will arise if the
non-resident parent is of a prescribed description (e.g. students, children, prisoners, persons in nursing homes in receipt of benefits) or has a net weekly income of less than £5.00.
A reduced rate will apply if the non-resident parent’s net weekly income is more than £100 but less than £200 per week. The nonresident parent pays a standard amount of £5.00 plus a percentage of their net weekly income over £100. This will be 25% for one
child, 35% for two children and 45% for three or more children.
A non-resident parent earning over £200 per week will pay 15% of their net income (up to a maximum income of £2,000 per week) for one qualifying child, 20% for two and 25% for three or more.
A reduction will be made if the non-resident parent has a relevant other child living in their household. To qualify for a reduction, either the non-resident parent or their partner must receive child benefit for the child. The non-resident parent’s net weekly income is reduced by 15% for one relevant other child, 20% for two other relevant children and 25% for three or more other relevant children.
A reduction will also be made for the amount of overnight stays a qualifying child spends with the non-resident parent.
Nights spent per annum Fraction to subtract
with non-resident parent
<52 Nil
52-103 1/7th (14.29%)
104-155 2/7th (28.57%)
156-174 3/7th (42.86%)
175+ _ (50%) and deduct further
£7 per week per child
Examples
Mr X earns £280 per week. He has one child (Y) with his ex wife and two children with his current partner. He has Y to stay overnight every Friday night.
• Mr X’s net weekly income of £280.00 is reduced by 20% because he has two relevant other children living in his household. £280.00 x 20% = £56.00
• Deducting £56.00 from his net income of £280.00 = £224.00
• Mr X’s child maintenance is 15% (because he has to pay for one child) £224.00 x 15% = £33.60
• A1/7th deduction of £4.80 is applied for staying contact of between 52 – 103 nights a year. £33.60 – £4.80 = £28.80
• Mr X’s maintenance payment is rounded up to the nearest whole pound and so his payment is £29.00 per week
Additional Asset Rule
Mr X has a low income but a fair amount of capital, including a second home worth £150,000. He has two children. Although he would be required to pay the flat rate on his earnings alone due to the additional assets rule he is assessed at paying £199.98. £150,000 x 8% divided by 52= £230.76 additional weekly income. £230.76 x 20% (2 children) = £46.15 additional weekly child support. £46.15 x 52 divided by 12 = £199.98.
Further details including an online calculator can be accessed on the Child Support Agency website at www.csa.gov.uk or by calling the national helpline on 08457 133 133.
Variations
Either parent can make an application for a variation of the assessment. There are three main categories:-
(1) Special Expenses e.g. contact costs, boarding school fees, prior debts incurred whilst the parties were together as a couple.
(2) Property or capital transfers pre-April 1993 which provided for an element of capitalised maintenance.
(3) Additional Cases e.g. where the Non Resident parent has assets or where their lifestyle is inconsistent with their stated income. The assets must have a net worth of over £65,000 but does not include the home that the non-resident parent is living in.
Other financial commitments
Your liability for child maintenance may be reviewed if you are:
• Paying back a debt that you took on before you separated from the parent with care, and the debt was for the benefit of the family.
Termination
An assessment will be terminated if one parent dies or if the parties cohabit for more than six months or alternatively there is no longer a qualifying child.
There will be a review every two years.
Enforcement
The CSA has wide powers of enforcement from deduction from earnings orders, to removal of a driving licence or committal to prison.
Exclusions to using the CSA
Parents with an order prior to 3 March 2003 will be prohibited from applying for a CSA assessment. Therefore if parents cannot agree a variation by consent then they will have to refer the matter back to the court.
The CSA cannot be used where there is a foreign element, where the children are between 16 and 19 and have completed secondary education or where there has been no separation from the nonresident parent.