How to Arrange Child Maintenance Payments

Raising children can be expensive, especially for single parents. Both parents of a child are expected to fund the cost of raising them until they are at least sixteen years old. When parents are separated, this is achieved through what is known as child maintenance payments.

There are currently four options for setting up child maintenance payments. These are:

• Family-based arrangement
• Direct Pay via the Child Maintenance Service
• Collect and Pay via the Child Maintenance Service
• Court-ordered arrangement

In Scotland, children are entitled to apply for child maintenance once they are 12 years old.

Family-Based Arrangement

With a family-based arrangement, the parents of the child will decide how much child maintenance should be paid, and they will make arrangements for the payments without the intervention of others. There is no need for a solicitor to be involved in these arrangements but if communication is difficult, a mediator may be helpful for a fair and acceptable agreement to be reached.

In many family-based arrangements, the parent who is paying the child maintenance will set up a standing order as this will mean that the money is paid directly to the other parent at the agreed times each month or week.

A family-based arrangement is the quickest way to arrange payments and is most suited to parents who are able to reach agreements between themselves. The parents can decide how much money should be paid and what expenses are covered in the payments. The agreement will be flexible, and so the arrangement can be changed to suit changes in circumstances.

What is more, there are no setup fees when child maintenance is arranged in this way. By having this type of agreement, the communication lines between the parents should remain civil and open.

The one major downside to this type of arrangement is that it is not legally binding. So if payments are missed, there is no authoritative body to collect sums owed. In order for a family-based arrangement to be legally binding, the parents can ask a solicitor to draft a written contract or have a court order arranged to enforce the agreement.

The Child Maintenance Service

If it is not possible for parents to reach an agreement on child maintenance payments between themselves, the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) can be contacted to determine how much should be paid and when. The CMS replaced the Child Support Agency (CSA) in 2013, and they are the body that is responsible for all new child maintenance cases.

The CMS will calculate how much child maintenance should be paid and they are also able to manage payments if required. The CMS normally charge a fee for their services.

The CMS can be used in two different ways for payments - Direct Pay and Collect and Pay.

Direct Pay

Direct Pay is used when the CMS has calculated how much the paying parent should pay, and then the parents make arrangements to directly pay their ex-partner. This means that parents do not have to negotiate maintenance payment sums between them and if the paying parent misses payments, the CMS can take action to recover the amount of money outstanding. The downside to Direct Pay is that there are fees to pay including an application fee (currently £20) and fees for CMS enforcements if needed.

Collect and Pay

If the parent who is supposed to pay maintenance won't make payment arrangements, the CMS can be requested to collect money and direct it to the receiving parent. The CMS can take legal action against the paying parent if arrangements are not made and kept or if sums owed are not paid.

Court Applications for Child Maintenance

There are some circumstances in which a court application can be made by either parent in order for child maintenance to be arranged. These include:

• When the parent who will be paying maintenance lives abroad
• To calculate the amount of maintenance that should be paid for disabled children or stepchildren
• To arrange the payment of fees for private education
• When the parent who will be paying the maintenance has a high income level (exceeding £156,000).