[Solved] Unfair calculation

It is a fair point that it should be a gradual reduction, rather than a cliff edge.

Hello Harry Potter

Child maintenance is calculated based on what the Government would consider to be a reasonable contribution. Under the current child support legislation, 'shared care' refers to where a child (or children) spends time overnight with the parent who does not provide main day-to-day care of them. In these circumstances, whilst the parent without main day-to-day care is generally still expected to pay child maintenance, reductions are applied based on the number of nights.

Equal day-to-day care however, is where the overall care arrangements for the child are shared equally, and is not just based on overnight stays. Generally, under these circumstances child maintenance is not payable.

Although Child Maintenance Options would not be able to comment on the way statutory maintenance is calculated, the Child Maintenance Service have a resource online which goes into detail about what makes up a statutory calculation. If you would like to look at this for further information, you can click here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/672432/how-we-work-out-child-maintenance.pdf.

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 at http://www.cmoptions.org.

The Department for Work and Pensions have a sorting out separation website that you may find useful. It offers help and support to separating and separated families. The link is: https://www.sortingoutseparation.org.uk/.

Regards

William

Good evening William and thank you for the detailed response.

I understand your comment as to a reasonable contribution by the NRP, but in most cases the NRP also has to provide a suitable home, food, pay bills, pay for activities and therefore I still don’t understand the need for a reasonable contribution when the NRP already has similar costs to incur for their children and then has to pay the parent with care a disproportionate amount for 1/14th difference in overnights. This reasonable contribution absolves the parent with care of some responsibility to provide for the children themselves and certainly wouldn’t equate to an equal share of the total costs as the NRP is left paying maintenance on top of providing a suitable home.
In my case the maintenance I pay even though i have 3 in 7 nights is probably 100% of their clothing, food and activity cost for the month.

I don't usually do things like this but I just needed to vent.

I believe it is unfair. Being based on my taxable income I've been screwed over. I did a night shift last year with a pretty hefty premium. I was also told I couldn't have access to my child. My night shift stopped and went back to my old shift without the premium. A year later, because I paid so much tax, my calculation is astronomical. I asked for a review (which they did) and they declined to lower what I'm paying. Now living is very difficult as the payment is so high. There's no regard for the father. As long as the mother is OK (agenda or not)
Anyway rant over. Sorry

Is the 25%more or less threshold not met Dadman?

Have you appealed their decision? You could try and get your MP involved. It’s unfair and I think the more people that go to their MP about this the more chance we have of getting this particular rule changed... I know it doesn’t help you right now.

All the best

dadman, CMS review your income every year, so I'm sure whatever your paying will not remain permanent. sorry if i did not read up on your situation above, but you should consider applying for shared care 50/50 child arrangements order, as then there is no need to pay maintenance.

If you aren't quite above the 25% threshold, you could increase your pension contributions to just edge you over that line.