Child Maintenance Advice For Fathers:- if you’re searching for Child Maintenance advice as a father, it can be a stressful, confusing, and emotional time.
Knowing where to start can be confusing, but with the right advice, you can ensure that you’re on the right track when it comes to child maintenance.
Here is Solicitors Near Me‘s take on child maintenance advice.
What Is Child Maintenance?
Child maintenance, also called child support, is money that’s used to help pay for your child’s living costs.
It’s paid by the parent who doesn’t ordinarily live with the child to the person who has the most day-to-day care of the child.
Essentially, you’ll be eligible to receive child maintenance payments if:
- You’re the main carer for the child
- The other parent doesn’t live with you as part of your family
Crucially, there are definitions of a child which are relevant here – either someone under 16 or someone under 20 as long as they’re in approved education or training.
How Do I Know If I Need To Pay Child Maintenance?
Each case is different, but there are some key factors you’ll need to be aware of…
You will need to pay child maintenance if you meet the following criteria:
- You are the child’s biological or adoptive parent
- You don’t live with the child as part of their family
- You are the child’s legal parent
How Do I Know How Much Child Maintenance I Need To Pay?
There are plenty of accurate child maintenance calculators available online, but the most accurate is available on GOV.UK HERE.
There isn’t just one thing that contributes to how much you’ll need to pay – it encompasses a variety of factors, including:
- how much the paying parent earns
- how many children the paying parent is or will be paying maintenance for
- how many nights a week the child spends with the paying parent
- if any other children live with the paying parent
It’s worth noting that if you’re in the process of a divorce or the end of a civil partnership, then a child arrangement, including child maintenance, might be a part of this agreement.
You should also be aware that if you’re on certain benefits, then the other parent will receive a maximum of £7 per week.
Eligible benefits include:
- Carer’s Allowance
- Employment and Support Allowance
- Income Support
- Jobseeker’s Allowance
- Pension Credit
- State Pension
- Universal Credit calculated on the basis that they have no income
What Else Do I Need To Know About Calculating Child Maintenance?
There are two options when paying/receiving child maintenance:
- Direct pay – payments go directly from the paying parent to the parent caring for the child
- Via the CMS – this is known as collect and pay, and means money is transferred via the CMS
You might be required to go to court to arrange child maintenance – this will be necessary if the parent paying maintenance either:
- Lives outside the UK
- Earns more than £3,000 per week and you want to top up the maintenance you receive
You’ll also need to go to court to ask for more maintenance if you need to pay for extra costs such as your child’s education or costs associated with a disability.
Legal Advice – Child Maintenance Advice For Fathers?
If you believe you require legal advice to proceed with your child maintenance case, it’s worth looking for solicitors in your area that assist with children’s matters.
Get Connected With A Specialist Family Solicitor Near Me Now!
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To be connected to a specialist child maintenance advice solicitor near to where you live, please either call us now on 0845 1391399 or complete a Free Online Enquiry ».
