[Solved] Child maintenance and F.E - when payment stops

As far as the CSA are concerned, if the mother is still receiving child benefits, then maintenance is still payable - as long as the mother is being truthful about the circumstances. Since you are not paying via CSA (now CMS), you could ask your ex for proof that the apprenticeship does qualify under CMS rules - if you aren't happy with the answer, you have the option of stopping payments and telling your ex to open a case with the CMS.

Sorry if this is not quite the right thread for discussion but I am new to using forums. My question is I have recently separated and am still paying the mortgage and other bills at our what was our marital home and is still jointly owned. Its a big mortgage costs and now my ex wants me to pay child maintenance as well and I cant afford both. I don't want to sell the house but is there a way my child maintenance can be reduced to reflect the payments to the house and bills?

hi rs

If you can come to an arrangement with your ex, then you can do so, but since your ex is after everything she can get, then I doubt this is an option. Likewise, a court can order whatever levels of maintenance it feels suitable, though after a year, you can then ask CMS to take the case and they will override the court order with regards to child maintenance.

So realistically, your best option is to use the child maintenance calculator to work out child maintenance, and then negotiation on any additional payments (if any) that you are prepared to make, or let the court decide - but at all times, I'd stick to the child maintenance calculator figures.

Hi im new to the site but wondered if anyone could help on the following issue ......
My son is 18 and was at college he left last year has been working for an agency ,my ex wife was claiming child benefit which stopped back in June, after much chasing and letter writing they informed me child benefit was stopping and i received a letter telling me i was not longer liable so i gave this to my employer,however in October i received a letter saying the case was reopened and i am now liable, i contacted the CSA and they told me child benefit was now being paid to my ex wife again , i explained he is now working and the circumstances have not changed and he is not in further education.
Upon further research i read somewhere that because he is not working on average more than 24 Hours a week and is living with my ex wife still , she is still entitled to child benefit and as we all know if she gets child benefit then the CSA will insist on payments for maintenence,
Can anyone clarify if this is true? and if not how can i get the child benefit office to chase this up and get it stopped as in the past i have reported to the child benefit office that he is no longer in further education but nothing further has ever happened.
Because he works for an agency its hard to say how many hours a week he works so its based on average , ive even got an email from the agency which ive sent to the CSA but while child benefit is being paid they wont action anything.
Also she says hes been attending college 2 days a week but i dont believe that is the case , how do i prove otherwise ? i believe its just a cover,

If anyone can point me in the right direction here id would be extremely grateful.

This summarises it quite nicely http://www.findlaw.co.uk/law/tax/benefits/child_benefit/9364.html

That's a great summary actd very clear. 🙂

Hi I am just after some help regarding when my CSA payments will stop.

I have been paying for around 7 years and have never missed a payment, I have no problem with paying the CSA and she is 9 years old

The reason I ask this question is because my daughter is extreme special needs, and will never have a job or a standard education, she is in a wheel chair and will never talk or read or write so the education part is difficult for me to understand.

Cheers

Andy

I'm surprised that this is being dealt with by the CSA as I thought a court order would be more appropriate. - take a look at point 6 on this http://www.edwardsduthie.com/finance-for-children-and-the-child-support-agency.html

I would say that when the CSA stops, that your ex would be able to go to court and get maintenance extended indefinitely - it may be worth trying to work out an agreement with her.

Thank you for that also i am worried that because it is an arrangement that we made between us to i have a feeling that when he turns 18 and i no longer have to pay she will say that i have never paid anything and try and take me to the CSA can she do that ?

How do you pay the child maintanance? Cash, direct to bank, cheque etc?

I suggest that you set up a direct debit or whcih clearly states that the payment is for Child Maintenance this way you can prove via bank statements.

If there is no proof of payment or that the payments are for child maintenance then she could do as you describe so you need to ensure that you have proof of payment and that it is for child maintenance.

Regards,

Dave

My daughter turns 18 next month, I'm paying my ex wife child maintenance which I have had no issues doing over the last 2 years. However I'm now asking the question do I stop paying it when's she is 18. She goes to college 2 days a week doing a BTEC Level 2 course. She also works part time and earns over £100 a week. Currently she spends 90% off her time living with her boyfriend s family and not with the ex wife. Where do I stand......Please help.

If she's in full time education (more than 16 hours per week, including any work experience that's part of the course, if I recall) then you are still liable for maintenance, up until she finishes (or Mar/Jun/Sep/Dec after) or age 20.