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Hi,
can I just clear up some confusion with this statement.
The CMS do not backdate new claims. If an application is made with the CMS, your responsibility to pay will start from around the time the CMS contact you. If the child's mother had previously opened a case fifteen years ago with the CMS then they may be backdated payments owed.
So this lines up with everything I’ve seen, that child maintenance begins when the NRP is first contacted by the CMS. However, this statement confused me because it seems to imply that if that if a case was opened years prior by the mother then you would have to pay backdated payments. But how could you not be aware of this case if payments only begin once you are contacted?
has anyone seen this question before and know where do direct me maybe?
I'm not sure about how a case can be opened twice without being closed in the meantime. The only way I can see that you wouldn't have been contact is if there had been any uncertainty with your address.
@actd okay thank you. Talking about a situation where there is no contact. Say the parent has limited details and the cms don’t find the NRP but years later the situation changes and they do find them possibly due to parents being in touch again, would there be any backdating to when the initial application was made?
I’m assuming no because they haven’t actually attempted to contact them yet, which is different to if they had reached out and the address was wrong or they were avoiding the cms.
sorry for the weird question I have a close friend who is worrying over a 0.1% chance he might be a father and not know so he thinks he will find out he owes loads of money. Told him it’s not going to happen unless the address was wrong or something but, he won’t buy it so came here to try and get an answer, Thank you.