In the UK, there is actually no legal requirement to pay child support (although of course, there is a moral arguement) and many parents come up with their own agreement. This could take the form of parents absorbing their own costs when the child is in their care, or one party paying for things, whilst another person contributes another way. The vast majority of seperated families, do not use the Child Maintenance Service.
However in cases where thats not possible there are three ways to obtain child support payments. All three methods impose legal commitments on one parent to provide child support to the other parent.
Options for child support are:
1. Apply to court if paying parent earns over £156,000 per year.
2. Agree via a divorce consent order.
3. Apply to the Child Maintenance Service.
In order to try to keep child maintenance out of the courts, courts do not deal with child maintenance below earnings of £3000 per week, equivalent to £156,000 per year. So most families cant go to court, and are directed to the Child Maintenance Service instead. If you are divorcing, or seeking court maintenance payments, you should probably seek advice from a divorce law firm. CMS costs £20 to set up. A fraction of what the best divorce lawyers would charge.
Many years ago the government introduced the Child Support Agency to administer child support. The Child Support Agency does not exist any more, so its not possible to apply for CSA maintenance, only CMS maintenance. (The schemes are different).
The current government department that deals with child maintenance is the Child Maintenance Service. Shortened to CMS, the CMS can only deal with child maintenance. It cannot produce a spousal support calculation, that would have to go to court.
If parents cannot agreee on child support, they can go to the Child maintenance Service. Who are able to make financial arrangements for child support. Often called the CMS, it is part of the Department for Work and Pensions in Great Britain, and the Department for Communities in Northern Ireland.
Parents do not have to use the Child Maintenance Service, and could probably make life a lot easier if they didnt. Parents can make their own arrangements, and do not have to tell or get the Child Maintenance Service involved. The CMS do however have a calculator on their website that can be used to work out a child maintenance figure when parents dont use the service. The CMS is responsible for implementing various laws concerning child support, and can pursue parents that don't pay child support. Child support is payable until the child is 16, or until they are 20, if they are in school or at college full time. A child over 16 that is, or has ever been married or in a civil partnership is no longer a qualifying child for child maintenance purposes. People often refer to The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) as the CSA or Child Support Agency. The CSA was the name given to a former agency, and that name is no longer used. In some cases where there are outstanding CSA arrears, the CMS may be able to collect. When the CMS service is used, payments can be made using either the collect and pay service or the direct pay service.
Direct Pay
The CMS work out an annual payment plan that is reviewed each year which is primarily based on the gross earnings of the parent without care, with allowances made for pension contributions and regular care. The paying parent then pays that money to the receiving parent as per the schedule worked out by the CMS. Around 350,000 children have their maintenance paid using a direct pay arrangement. Direct pay is free for both parents to use as the parents pay direct to each other. The best way to do this is by a bank standing order. The paying parent must keep to the payment schedule or they may be placed on a Deduction from Earnings Order.
Collect and Pay
The CMS collect the payment from the paying parent and pay it to the receiving parent. Collect and Pay is not a free service, both parents pay. They charge the paying parent 20 per cent, and charge the receiving parent 4 per cent. Either parent can open a case with the CMS, although it is normally the receiving parent that starts the process. The CMS will open a case and write to the other party advising them that they are the subject of a child maintenance claim. Within three weeks they produce and assessment and the Non Resident Parent (NRP) is expected to begin payments. Where possible, it is strongly recommended that parents save money and use a direct pay arrangement. It is better for the child if that the money goes to the receiving parent rather then being used to pay the CMS charges. Between June 2014 and March 2016 the Government received £11,298,200 in charges from parents on the Collect and pay Scheme.
Opening a Case
To open a CMS case, you need to contact Child maintenance Options, who will assess you, via chat to see if you should use the CMS. Contact details for Child Maintenance Options and the CMS are here.
Contacting the Child Maintenance Service