About child maintenance

I've heard that child maintenance is changing. What changes have taken place?

These changes mainly affect parents where the parent with the main day-to-day care of the child is claiming benefit.

The first change took effect on 27 October 2008.

All parents are now able to choose between a child maintenance arrangement using the CSA, making a family-based arrangement with the other parent or using the courts. Previously, parents with the main day-to-day care who were claiming benefit had to arrange child maintenance using the CSA.

The second change took effect on 12 April 2010.

Parents with the main day-to-day care who are on benefit can now keep all the child maintenance they receive, without this affecting their benefits. In the past, if the parent with the main day-to-day care or their partner was getting income-related benefits and was getting child maintenance, the parent with care may not have got their full amount of benefits.

Once we've got a child maintenance arrangement in place, can we change it if it's not working?

Yes. If you have a family-based arrangement about child maintenance, you can always alter it if circumstances change for either you or the other parent. And if you decide a family-based arrangement isn't the right option for you, you can always ask the CSA to put in place a child maintenance arrangement for you. Also, since 27 October 2008, parents who have the main day-to-day care of the child have been allowed to opt out of the CSA and make a family-based arrangement about child maintenance with the other parent.

If I am separating, when should I start arranging child maintenance?

You should do everything you can to make sure your child is covered by an effective child maintenance arrangement - as soon as you can. It is important for the wellbeing of your child that a child maintenance arrangement is in place.

While arranging child maintenance, will I have to share personal information?

Child maintenance is usually paid based on the income of the parent without the main day-to-day care. So if you and the other parent decide to make a family-based arrangement about child maintenance, you may want to have this information ready for starting your discussion. But you don't have to share information with anyone else if you don't want to.

If you choose to arrange child maintenance using the CSA, the CSA will need to know the income of the parent without the main day-to-day care. They will also need information such as both of your addresses and the bank details of the parent with the main day-to-day care. Great care is taken to protect your personal information.

While arranging child maintenance, will I have to deal with lots of paperwork?

Not necessarily. If you choose to make a family-based arrangement about child maintenance, there are certain things you may want to have ready for your discussion with the other parent (see how to make a family-based arrangement). Once you've agreed how to provide child maintenance, it's a good idea to write down the details of your agreement. You can use our family-based arrangement form to help you do this.

If you decide to ask the CSA to put in place a child maintenance arrangement, you can apply over the phone to the CSA.

If the parent without the main day-to-day care is claiming benefits, can child maintenance still be arranged?

Yes. With a family-based arrangement you can arrange child maintenance in any way that you and the other parent both agree to. That might mean paying one amount of child maintenance when the parent without the main day-to-day care is working and another amount when that parent is claiming benefits.

You can still choose to arrange child maintenance using the CSA if one or both parents are claiming benefits. If you ask the CSA to put in place an arrangement for you, they will calculate the level of child maintenance, so they would need to re-calculate child maintenance whenever the income of the parent without the main day-to-day care changes significantly.

Our child maintenance calculator can give you an indication of the amount of child maintenance you might pay or receive if you had an arrangement using the CSA.

If I'm a parent with the main day-to-day care and I'm claiming benefits, can I get child maintenance as well?

Yes. Child maintenance is usually paid based on the income of the parent without the main day-to-day care. Since 12 April 2010, all parents with the main day-to-day care who receive income-related benefits have been allowed to keep all of their child maintenance, without it affecting their entitlement to benefit. Read our page how child maintenance affects benefits and also the section what are my options for arranging child maintenance?

What happens if the parent without the main day-to-care of the child refuses to pay child maintenance?

You can ask the CSA to put a child maintenance arrangement in place. The CSA can contact the parent without the main day-to-day care and set up an arrangement to collect child maintenance. The CSA can then enforce payments if that parent refuses to pay child maintenance or stops paying.

Can I arrange child maintenance without having contact with the other parent?

Yes. You can ask the CSA to put a child maintenance arrangement in place, without you having to contact the other parent. The CSA can arrange everything with you and the other parent separately.

How can I arrange child maintenance if I don't know where the other parent lives?

The CSA can try to trace where the other parent lives and put in place an arrangement to collect child maintenance for you.

What happens if the parent without the main day-to-day care of the child lives abroad?

You can make a family-based arrangement with a parent living abroad, as long as you can both agree how it will work. If you don't feel you could do this, the CSA can normally arrange child maintenance when the parent without the main day-to-day care works abroad for a UK based employer. Alternatively, if that parent lives abroad and works for an employer based outside the UK, you may be able to arrange child maintenance through the UK courts. A UK court order can be enforced in many countries abroad. Read more about parents living abroad on the CSA website.

If I pay child maintenance, will this guarantee me access to my child?

No. Access to (or contact with) the child is a separate issue from child maintenance. It is widely recognised that when both parents take an active role in the child's life (as long as it is safe to do so) it can have a positive impact on the wellbeing of the child. But it is important not to use access to the child as a bargaining tool for negotiating child maintenance. If you're the parent without the main day-to-day care and you can't see your child, you can still contribute to their upbringing by paying child maintenance. If you'd like help with arranging access, you could speak to NACCC, Cafcass, Resolution, National Family Mediation or Relate. Centre for Separated Families also offers information about access.

Our children spend time living with each of us. What does this mean for child maintenance?

This means you're both contributing to the child's living costs and your child maintenance arrangement can reflect this. With our child maintenance calculator you can put in how many nights per week your child stays with the other parent. This changes the figure the calculator produces.

Remember that the figure our calculator produces is only an indication of the amount of child maintenance you might pay or receive if you had an arrangement using the CSA.

Does child maintenance simply mean money paid to the parent with the main day-to-day care?

It is not necessarily just that. Most parents pay child maintenance as a regular sum of money based on the income of the parent without the main day-to-day care. You and the other parent could also choose to include payments 'in kind', if you want to, but these are normally paid in addition to standard maintenance. With a payment in kind, the parent without the main day-to-day care can pay for things directly, such as clothing, bills or school costs.

Just bear in mind that the CSA don't take payments in kind into account when they work out a figure for child maintenance.

Until what age of my child is child maintenance payable?

If you choose to make a family-based arrangement about child maintenance, you and the other parent can arrange it in whichever way is best for your circumstances.

With an arrangement using the CSA, child maintenance is paid until the child reaches 16 years old, or until they reach 19 years old if they are in full-time education (not higher than A-level equivalent).

Do I have to report child maintenance as taxable income?

If you're thinking about Income Tax or your Annual Return, you should check with Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC). If you're wondering about tax credits, child maintenance payments will not affect your tax credit award. If you're thinking about Income Support, income-based Jobseeker's Allowance or income-related Employment and Support Allowance, bear in mind that the law requires you to tell Jobcentre Plus about any child maintenance you receive. Read more about how child maintenance affects benefits.