All parents have the responsibility to financially support their children, and to provide a safe environment for them to grow up in. Due to separation or divorce however, circumstances sometimes unexpectedly change, and the child, or children, may have to divide their time between their parents.
Child support payments provide a form of security for the child and parent with care, but require a commitment from the parent who leaves the family home.
Why Child Support Exists
The Child Support Agency (CSA) was launched in the UK in 1993, and was created to financially help and support all separated families - where one parent lives with the child/children and the other parent lives elsewhere. The non resident parent is expected to contribute to the welfare of their child, and it is the CSA’s job to enforce these maintenance payments if the absent parent refuses to pay this regular contribution.
Answer a few questions about your situation and get a clear summary of your child maintenance rights and options.
Try our Child Support Rights Checker free, here on this site →Are You Liable To Pay?
The father of the child – regardless whether or not the parents were married – is responsible for financially supporting the child. Many unmarried fathers sign a declaration, acknowledging paternity, when the child is born and others are genetically tested in order to prove paternity. Parents of stepchildren however, are not obligated to pay maintenance support unless the child is legally adopted.
In cases where communication has broken down between the parents a father is still expected to contribute financially even though he may have limited visitation rights. However, if the parent with care disappears and makes visitation impossible for the non resident parent, child support payments can be suspended.
Shared care reduces the cost of maintenance a non resident parent is expected to contribute. By sharing parental duties and spending an equal amount of time with the child, including overnight stays, a non resident parent acknowledges responsibility and reduces maintenance costs accordingly. This is calculated as a reduction of one-seventh for each day.
Your situation may be slightly different. ask a question below ↓ and our editorial team will reply with our advice.
Do Men And Women Have The Same Rights?
Child Support does not discriminate between genders and the Child Support Agency is only concerned with ensuring parents acknowledge responsibility and financially support their child or children. If the father has custody of the child he is therefore the parent with care. This gives him the right to claim maintenance support from the child’s mother.
Maintenance payments are expected to be paid until the child reaches the age of majority, which can range from 16 to 19, depending on the child’s schooling and educational needs. The parent’s responsibility to financially support though, is terminated if a child is legally adopted at any age. If the non resident parent is paying backdated maintenance this is expected to be continue until the debt is covered.
Failure To Pay
The CSA works alongside the Child Maintenance Enforcement Commission (CMEC) and has the power to enforce maintenance payments directly through the parent’s employer, by freezing assets and forcing the sale of property. The non resident parent can also be imprisoned for failure to pay maintenance.
Can someone help. Also can I claim any form of children income support from government.
He has a new partner and I doubt his debts are a problem now, I mean I have debts to pay and the child to pay for too.
She's 9 years old
I make universal credit can I claim for child support and also did ti's don't affect my universal credit
My son has just finished his A Levels and finished at school. I understand under normal circumstances I am liable to continue payments (direct pay) until end of the school year. (Sep 21). However, he started full time work 40-50 hours per week on the 10 Jun 21. Does this stop the legality of having to continue payments given he is self sufficient. I do not have contact with his mum, she communicates through my son which is difficult and is telling him the money is for her bills!. I have lodged this with the CSA but it has been 4 weeks and no response at all. I have called 4-5 times and when they put me through to a case worker I get cut off which is utterly frustrating. Please help - I want to continue supporting my son but directly.
My son lives with me and stays with his dad 1-2 nights a week ( from 6pm-7am)
My daughter “lives” with him 3 -4 nights a week “technically “ but spends all her time either with me or in school and just goes there to sleep.
He doesn’t contribute to our son and only contributes to our daughter with the benefits he claims for her.
It’s not fair I have to provide for 2 children while supporting them in every way with very little while he’s getting paid for it, is there anything I can do?
At present I have no time with my other daughter.
Where do I stand in regards to maintenance
Many thanks
2 of my children wish to live with him and the other 2 wish to stay with me, am I still entitled to some sort of child support or as we both have 2 of our children each am I no longer entitled to anything?
Any information regarding this I would be grateful to know. TIA
Do I need to pay her maintenance now?
I have had my son living with me since 20/12/2014 when i left the army.
I have constantly asked his mother to help with supporting him however she has never helped out.
I did manage to get her to pay 75.00 a month during 2019 for about 5 months after along battle.however since feb 2020 and the start of the virus it has stopped .
She and her new husband are still working during this time.
Can i ask where do i stand in this situation
My son is still at school in year ten and is due to turn 15 in june.
Many thanks mark gammon.
her partner took over ..now they broke up. she gone to csa who told me I have to pay... I have been paying coming up to 4 years now.. my son don't accept me being his father.. as he has a dad already from day one... his mum refused to put me on the birth certificate but she still gett ing my money for a child who don't want anything to do with me.. this is unfair.. help!
If the mother of my children is working then do I pay full child support?
Because I'm pretty sure you have just made that bit up.
Do I have to pay for child support for the baby?
Dave.
Do I have to pay maintenance?
Thanks
The children's dad has them every other weekend and pays 200 pounds a month for both children.. I pay a considerably higher amount to house, feed, clothe and entertain them.. Should the dad that left them 7 years ago pay more? He earns more than I do monthly. It seems ridiculous.
Thanks
I know somone who lives in Uk with her husband and has 2 children which are going to be 16.
If the father declines to help financially his children anymore what can the mother do if she doesn’t work.
Another question would be if the parents have divorced and the father has a higher income of £26,000 per annum what are his obligations to the children financially(as he does not want to help)
My question is are both parents responsible to pay child maintenance if the kids dont live with either of them? it seems a bit unfair for my partner to support his kids on his own when they have 2 parents.....We also have one child together and i have 2 children from my previous relationship and i dont think its fair that my children should suffer because of this.Yes he should pay for his kids but so should their mother...Is there anything that we can do?
I cannot find information on this at all and everything is a grey area, what are the rules? Can this be done without him being forced into this?
When I met my husband I had 2 children. Their dad died 3 years after I met my husband. My husband has brought my 2 children up for 12 years. In the last 6 years we have had a further 2 children and married 2 years ago. My husband also has both my older 2’s children’s names as well as one of our new children’s names tattooed on his forearm and we legally changed the old 2 children surnames to my husbands.
We have recently seperated and I put a claim into CMS. Now child maintenance car option told me I could t claim for the older 2 children butwhen out through to CMS they advised that because we married they could add them on.
Everything have been really rocky, and he told me he wasn’t paying for the older 2 children.
Their biological father died before we married.
Where do I stand?
I have a question here that I am not finding an answer for online as it is difficult to find the key words that would match an answer. In short I am a single dad who is raising my son with no financial help from my ex partner. My ex-partner is remarried and although she doesn't work (as she looks after her new husband's children) her husband does and he makes a salary good enough to live comfortably. The question is am I entitled to claim child maintenance or not.
Thanks
Thanks
Any info is appreciated thanks
Thanks in advance.
In 2017 the CSA case ended and a case with the CMS was set. I immediately challenged paternity and they told me they couldn't presume parentage but asked me to arrange a DNA test with the Mother. I told them I didn't have any details for her and they said they may be able to arrange it. A week later they called me back and said they were going to presume parentage as I hadn't arranged the DNA test. I told them again I had no details for her. They managed to get in touch with her and I'm still waiting for her to do a DNA test.
My question is: If she does do a DNA test and I am the father what rights do I have. I have been denied access for years. The CMS calculate similar to the CSA where you pay a higher amount if the mother restricts access, can this be challenged?
I am separating from my partner and we have three children. I have been a stay at home mum for the last 10 years as his work takes him away and is unpredictable so working wasn't viable with three young children.
He owns three houses including the one we live in but they're all in his name. I haven't contributed financially but have obviously looked after the kids and home.
As we're not married, what will he have to contribute? Also, at least for the next few years, even though I'm going back to work, I won't make enough money to provide housing and living income for us all. Thanks
If that is indeed the case, it is very unfair
Is a child or parent of a child entitled to back payments when the child reaches the age of maturaty if it hadn't been applied for previously.
Please note this child was raised by father alone. However, only parent listed on birth certificate is mother.
- she has never mentioned that he has a child from a previous relation and hence is asking for the maximum payment.
- will the maintenance he is paying me be affected (reduced) by those two other kids?
Please advise thank you x
I seperated from my wife eight years ago. She moved out with our two children, I have been paying an agreed amount of maintenance since then based on me having the children two nights per week.
In November my son decided to move back in with me and I continued paying my ex wife maintenance as originally agreed.
I have yet to pay any maintenance this year a I am under the impression that as we are both accommodating one child each that no maintenance is due to either party?
If I continue paying half the amount of maintenance for my remaining child surely my ex wife will need to pay me maintenance for my son?
Where do I stand?
Many thanks
My ex wife is damaging my life i want to see my daughter and also she does to, i will take it back to court because shes not even attempted to make contact which we had this in place 3 years ago i send two texts a week and no reply but yet my ex is on the phone all the time to child maintenance i should not have to pay nothing might sound harsh but my ex wife should be the one to be punished by law
Please help
I work part time but no one and no one is listening am at breaking point
My partner and his ex used to share custody of children, since September mother put child in school in her area making it impossible for partner to have kids with his work patterns, she’s refusing to let him have the kids when he can (one 3 days 2 nights, other one whole day, one to one time bcos he’s at school) please no abuse in me asking this question! But.. can mother expect partner to pay child support even though she’s the one who’s refusing access?
There dad has halved the maintenance as he said he carnt afford it some times I get nothing. He says he lives in Italy and does not pay uk tax, does he still have top pay.
I'm a single parent on low wage
He has always paid her maintenance money via a personal agreement with her.
Should he still be paying her now the children live with him more than her?
Until two months ago I paid £200 per month into her bank account towards the costs of the girls' school clubs, extras, etc. This was a figure we agreed upon when we first split, almost 4 years ago. We both feed and clothe them separately. We also shared ad-hoc payments such as school uniforms, trips, birthday party costs etc as and when required.
We recently agreed to both pay £200 per month into a separate account so we could keep everything transparent, and both see what costs were being paid out.
My ex-wife is now claiming that I should still be paying her £200 per month into her account as I was before, which I disagree with. We both work and have similar (fairly low) incomes. If anything she has a more stable income and a better capacity for work as I am self-employed, whereas she works as a solicitor.
We share everything related to the children, be it care, clothing, food, time, school runs, everything!
I have tried to be as detailed and as succint as I can so I appreciate that you might not be able to give the fullest of answers, but does it sound like I should stick to my guns and refuse to pay the extra £200 per month as I don't believe she is entitled to it?
He started off by halving the maintenance he was giving but is now suggesting he may stop altogether as they now have one dependant each - is he legally allowed to do this ?
We have 7-year old and 2-year old boys. We both work and earn a similar income, my wife actually has the potential to earn slightly more than me but took the decision to work reduced hours during the week so that she can drop the children off at school / nursery and pick them up again. I was happy with them going into childcare, which we could easily afford but my wife made the decision to reduce her hours to which I agreed.
My question is whether I would be required to pay her maintenance on top of childcare if she were to decide to quit work once we separated. She has already indicated that she wants to stay in our house and for me to move out, with me continuing to contribute to the mortgage. She has also indicated that she wants to carry on going on the same holidays and maintain her lifestyle.
At this rate I will be living in a modest house, with little disposable income paying for my wife's comfortable lifestyle.
Is it really as unbalanced against the father as all the reports in the press and online make out? Do I really have equal rights or is it all stacked against me? Would I not be better off quitting my job, going on benefits and just accepting that my life is over?
I have very little to do with her and do not consider her part of the family.
We have a child together and another on the way.
My son is 12 and therfore he has no childcare costs, however csa go on net pay . Can he do this, can a court overule and do they take outgoings in to consideration. If I go to court it will cost me thousands where he will get legal aid he is also saying he gonna go for full custody of the girls as he worked out he will finically be better off, I know the court won't award that due the domestic violence and his criminal record. But it will potenteialy cost alot of money for them to rule me full custody. I've tried to be civil and said that I'm happy for him not pay for the girls and he just take care of my son but he his more intent on ruin me than being civil. Please help need advice if I have pay him csa I will not be able to finically take care of my kids.
Kind regards
Georgina
26th Dec 2016 Ex kick out 16yr old (then 15) came to live with us. During this time Ex agreed that as both under 16's lived in each parents home, no maintenance was needed. She continued to claim the child benefit for 15yr old during this time;
May 2017, 15yr (now 16) old goes back to mother; leaving school end of June, has a work based apprenticeship to start July (1 day college in Sept)
Ex is now making demands for back payment of CM during the nearly 5 months 15yr old was living away from her and still wants the full mortgage paid, but refusing an offered an previously agreed amount prior to December.
If CSA become involved it is likely partner will lose his accommodation as he will not be able to pay two mortgages and 3rd of his monthly salary. Does he still have to pay the Full mortgage on the marital home and CM for both under 18s?
The mother is now engaged to be married. If her husband to be adopts the child will my partner still have to pay maintenance? If he doesn't and she doesn't tell us how do we find out about the adoption?
Thanks
A man has one biological child and has cared for one non-biological child (stepchild) with a woman whom he is married to.
They then divorce and the Court imposes an Order that the man must pay maintenance for both children. The man then unilaterally varied the amount paid and effectively ceased paying for the non-biological child. The woman is trying to enforce the payments for the non-biological child and backdate them from when the man ceased paying.
The man has not seen this non-biological child since the man and woman separated, and the child has a living biological father who I do not believe is paying maintenance.
Does the woman have any right to seek enforcement of the payment from the man who is not the biological father of the child?
My expartner lives abroad. We were not married and had no properties or anything in both names. We moved abroad because of his job and I was depending on him. One day he asked me to leave with our son 4 years old then. More bad things happened but to long to write. I cane back to Uk I asked for help as I had nothing and he refused he said it would take our boy away If i can't afford to look after him. My brother helped and now I provide roof have a job etc for the boy. My ex comes or demand to see him and I allowed to see him when he wants and our kid is free on Easter he did not confirm days it looks like he was not comming so I had to book boy in holiday club my ex 1 week before said is comming I said is already book he can't this time and then he says I'm not allowing contact and stop the little help he was giving.
Is that wright. He does nothing, he lives abroad the little money he sent stop by him now and it looks like he stills has a write to see our boy and all the wrights in the world.
I know is the kids right to see his father but is not the kids wright as well that his pathet respects him helps with his financial expenses or takes him to a Doctor etc
At the moment is like I do everything he does nothing just living abroad pays nothing but then when he wants to because is the "kids wright" he comes to visti a well clean and raise child claiming he has all the rights is that the way it is?
I even sent him a family base arrangement that he completely ignored saying they cant do anything as there is no wages to deduct from
I still help my son out with a little money, and groceries when i can afford it. but this £90 a week is crippling me. I know she is also claiming that our son still lives with her, and any monies she can claim for, as he is still a full time student.
Please can you advise me on who to contact to make sure she doesn't keep claiming illegally, and that i can make sure my son has what is due to him, to help towards his bills.
Many thanks.
I have just found out I have a 17 year old son who I knew nothing about. I had just turned 15 at the time I met his mother who was 23 back then.
What are my rights in relation to paying csa when I was only 15 at the time?
His mother has always used him as a weapon against me and now he has turned round and said he doesn't want anything to do with us anymore? We're not entirely sure why but will definitely have something to do with her manipulation of him!
If he has made this decision is this the case I can refuse to pay child maintenance??
Surely if his mum and my son don't want anything to do with me or my family then they shouldn't expect support??
Is it still possible to pursue this.
I long to hear from you .
Many thanks
Leonie
Thankyou in advance
Nat.
How do we decide who pays maintenance to whom? If we use the .gov calculator, why does it not take into account her income, or my contribution to the mortgage, as well as pay for all my accommodation costs, and looking after the children for 6-7 day less than her each year?
I understand other daughter still needs support but it's putting me in mental distress.
Advise please
Thoughts
My question is - my ex has come into some money in the uk as his parent has died - is my son entitled to apply for back pay of maintanence for him not paid since 2004 ( i do not want anything for me) and how do we do this. How would i prove he didnt pay ( or would he have to prove he did) We all live abroad now but my sons childhood years were all in the uk as well as the current solicitors etc dealing with my fatherinlaws estate at present ( and if i need a solicitor who can i contact in the uk). This would make a huge difference to my son as if this has been recieved all along i would have saved for his university years, as well as not struggled to pay for uniforms school trips etc) making life much less stressful ( financially) for him now too.
He has said he may be home most weekends where he could stay at either of our homes.
Is she correct?
He has remarried, as have I, and gone on to have 2 other children with his new wife and they all live together in forces married quarters.
About 3yrs ago, I requested the CSA to perform a pay review on him, which they did but I was shocked to learn from them that he was then having to pay child maintenance through the CSA for his other 2 children as well as my son. The letter stated that my ex would from then on be reducing the amount he paid to me as he now had to support his other kids and that he would be paying x amount to his wife.
Don't get me wrong, if he should of been paying for those children I would not have any issue with that but what I do have an issue with is the fact that he has blatantly lied to the CSA an made it seem like he is not living with those children when in fact he is and always has so that he doesn't have to pay as much for my son.
When I rang the CSA to query this matter, I was told there was nothing they could do, they can't discuss what my ex has said due to data protection laws (fair enough) and that was the end of the matter as far as they are concerned.
I know I'm one of the lucky ones who actually receives maintenance and don't want to sound like I'm wanting to bleed him dry but to me it's the fact that he would stoop so low as to cheat his son out of the financial support he deserves.
I would greatly appreciate any help and advice on what, if anything I can do about this as surely this classes as fraud of some kind?
Many thanks.
If a paternity test is done and he is the father but yet still doesn't want contact ect, will he still need to pay CSA even though he told her he wanted nothing to do with her at 12 weeks pregnant?
my son split with his x partner when his son was only 6 months old, he is now 8 years old.
My Son has been paying CSA since they split at over £300 per month.
not long after they split up ,my son found that his ex partner had been having an affair,and went
on to marry this person.
My Son is so unsure that he is the childs biological father, as there is no resemblance at all.
the childs Mother and step father have now split up, and the step father now has legal parental
rights for the child. Is my Son still responsible formaking csa payment for this child, and also
if he was to do a dna, and finds that he is not the childs biological father, what would ,about
the £30,000 he hasalready paid ?
My son is married and has 3 other children, yet his csa payments have never been changed.
I would be most gratefull for your advice. Thank you
My parents are separated. My brother (who is 13) lives with our mother and I live with our Father.
However, our Father has to pay child support for my brother but for some reason our mother does not have to pay child support for me.
This is ridiculous! I do not see why women get the special treatment. Anyone know why she would not have to support me?
My solicitor told me that we have equal parental responsibility. I want to see and look after my son for 50% of the time. As I understand, I shouldn't have to pay CSA if we share the responsibility and time?
Although asking her before we had sex, if she was taking contraceptive, to which she said yes... It turns out she was at best very lazy in her routine...and did not take the necessary care, which granted I didn't based on her initial answer either.
I do not earn a lot and just want to know if I would be expected to pay maintenance under this situation.
Now one child wants to live with his dad and the other with us,
Now as me and my partner are very successful in our careers we have manage to create a very good life for ourself a and the children, now our only worry is if the child goes to live with his dad like he wants to what can maintaince take off us as he doesn't work and I really don't want to work all week to pay him for one child when we will be looking after the other child?
I understand and agree it shouldn't be a money thing and only what's right for the child
But this man has sponged off everyone since the day he was born and I will not give him a penny,
So if he was to have the child say 4 days a week and us have him sleep over 3 days what would that situation be?
Understandably our relationship has always been strained.
However I have always paid maintenance and more and had access every week.
Having just move local to me after a divorce I have asked for joint custody.
Would this be possible after 9 years?
After repeatedly trying to ask for this it is clear that maintenance and weekend babysitting is more important than what our child actually needs, and now feel my daughter is being turned against me.
Any advice welcome
While I do have a steady job, it is by no means a highly paid one, she has ruined me financially and upon declaring herself bankrupt, I am no longer able to ever claim any of this money back through courts, despite having won my case, which in itself incurred roughly £1000 in expenses.
I personally think it is unfair that my ex-girlfriend is able to swindle such a large amount of money from me and on top, will also come to me for child maintenance, would these factors be considered when she comes to me for child maintenance ?
Are you able to provide more detailed information on this, relevant law, cases etc, so it can be used as supporting evidence?
Thank you
Because he does not have to pay maintenance she is under the impression she is not entitled to any payment? I cant see how that is right?
For the last 6 months they have both lived with me, at my address I assume that status would not affect any payment she is due?
If she is entitled to anything can she get it back paid? She is being hounded for a 6k tax credit overpayment and is very untrusting of the system and worried about having to pay back anything that she receives.
Thanks for your help
My son stays with my between 14-20 nights per month (rough average)
I also contribute towards other outside costs.
My ex wife is in full time employment and recieves family allowance.
Should I still be paying CSA payments?
So I am on my daughters birth certificate however after splitting from her mother she has refused to let me see her. It has been nearly a year now and every day I attempt to make contact but get no response. What can I do?
Also can I pay child maintainece without the mother to my child claiming?
my wife now says that i should also pay maintenance for her two other children that are step children and im not the father off
she has never tried to get there real fathers to pay a penny
where do i stand with this ? the step children have been been brought up as my own since we met as they was very young and always was told i was there dad,but my wife has now told them that im not and they no longer wish to have anything to do with me
I took legal advice and was told because they are 14/12 now it's up to them to make contact with me.
So for 6 year's now I've not seen my children and the csa are now demanding money from me
Because she's opened a claim up
What rights do I have because it's all wrong personally
Both children reside with their mother, & @ the moment I pay for both of them .
How will this change based on the above scenario?
One son is finishing education this summer and he is 18 so I will stop paying
The other son I have 2 further years to maintain , how do you calculate the reduction ?
the father of my 2yr old daughter doesn't pay regularly and claims to earn not enough, even though he lives with his wife and their child in a big house, having an expensive lifestyle, though his wife earns the most of their money at the moment.
I there any way I can still get the maintenance for my daughter somehow, even if he really does not earn enough?
Many thanks.
I take my kids to and fro there dads and he never pays anything towards costs, I've asked him before but he thinks am out ov order for asking he never comes to collect them or doesn't even pay bus fare for them
Am I wrong for asking him to contribute or wat? Be never helps to pay towards anything the kids need
Two ov my kids live with him and his gf and her 2 kids but I still hav to pay for everything for my to ie hair cuts clothes etc coz they spend on there selves and her two
I only work part time
Do I see someone about this?
My daughter is 17 and in full time education (college), i currently receive maintanence from my ex husband.
My daugher is going to continue in college next year, in which she will be 18 years old, I just want to check if my ex is still liable to pay maintanence?
Many thanks
However, if the parent with care disappears and makes visitation impossible for the non resident parent, child support payments can be suspended.
My ex (not married) took away my daughter when she was 6 months, refused contact and for a long time I did not know where they were.
I have since obtained address and sent letter requesting access.
I have recieved a reply saying I cannot have access.
How do I enforce above suspension of CSA payments and go about getting access or cutting my payments. I want access to my daughter but that is being denied to me. She even states in the letter that her new husband is her dad!!!
I agree totally with payments but where is the justice in having to pay out for a child whom I am denied the chance to get to know. Because the mum wants no contact. This seems all so unfair and biased.
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