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Hi guys.
I am looking for some good advice as unsure whst yo fo
Myself and new partner are moving to Spain to set up a biz or find work as we are both at our end with this country. The reason for moving there is its mine anyway that I had with my ex wife
The issue is I have a consent order that has been running about 15 months now for maintenance of my daughter who I not seen for 4 yrs to. How do I get this stopped cancelled reduced or even suspended? As I know she will kick off as much as you won't believe. I have no contact with her either as she left me in alot of debt to
All advice most welcome please
Rich
Hi I'm afraid I'm not an expert on maintenance, we have other members who know more. However, it's my understanding that maintenance is still payable if you live abroad, here's a link that might give you further information. It appears Spain is included in this list of countries that the UK has Reciprocal Enforcement of Maintenance Orders with.
Maintenance and contact are two separate issues and both parents have a responsibility to provide for their children.
https://www.gov.uk/child-maintenance-if-one-parent-lives-abroad/paying-parent-lives-abroad
As Yoda says, it is both parents responsibility to provide financially for their children, whether they have contact with them or not.
If your income has changed you could apply to the court to vary the order, but it will be dependent on your income and moving to Spain will not stop the requirement for you to continue with payments.
Hello lagunagolf
To reiterate what Yoda and Mojo have written, you will still have a responsibility to financially support your daughter when you move to Spain and I would like to try and help you with arranging this.
It is possible to change the terms of your Consent Order and doing so usually results in going back to court to set out the application on a standard form. The court will then consider any changes. For advice on changing a Consent Order you could contact Civil Legal Advice, the Government funded confidential legal service. You can find their contact details on their website at https://www.gov.uk/civil-legal-advice
If you decide to remain in the United Kingdom (UK), as your Consent Order has now been in place for over 12 months and it was endorsed after March 2003, either you or your daughter’s mother would be able to apply to the Child Maintenance Service and the Consent Order would no longer be valid. There are fees involved with this and if you decide to make an application in the future, your responsibility to pay will start from around the point you contact them or they contact you.
Yoda mentioned Reciprocal Enforcement of Maintenance Orders (REMO). This is the process that enables maintenance orders made by UK courts, on behalf of UK residents, to be registered and enforced by courts in other countries. I can see Yoda has provided you with a link to where you can find more information about arranging child maintenance internationally. The specific page which contains a full list of participating REMO countries on Gov.uk is: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/countries-where-you-can-enforce-child-maintenance-decisions
It will be unnecessary to involve REMO if you and your daughter’s mother can come to a family-based arrangement. Because this type of agreement is not legally binding and there are no set rules that must be followed, you and your daughter’s mother have the freedom and flexibility to decide together how your daughter will be supported financially. As you have no contact with one another, you could consider negotiating through a third party, such as a mutual friend, a family member or a professional mediator. You can find more information about family-based arrangements, as well as a range of tools and guides which can help with reaching and maintaining one, on the Child Maintenance Options website at http://www.cmoptions.org
You mentioned that you have been left in a lot of debt. National Debtline could offer support with this. They are specialist advisers, offering free, confidential advice and support on dealing with personal debt. You can find out more about them, including their contact details, on their website at http://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk
The Department for Work and Pensions’ (DWP) sorting out separation web-app also offers information around finances, among other topics, which you may find useful. The link is: www.dad.info/divorce-and-separation/sorting-out-separation
For more information on all the different ways to set up child maintenance and for a more personalised service, you can visit the Child Maintenance Options website
Regards
William
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