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I am puzzled as to who and when the CSA are told to stop collecting maintenance. I have had no access to my children for years, yet I have paid my dues as a father should. My son will be 19 next birthday (March) and I have no way of knowing if I should still be paying maintenance. Is there a process that the mother has to follow to notify the CSA that she is no longer claiming benefit, would be nice to see the money go directly to my son.
Hi Fresh
It is the mother's responsibility to inform the CSA, but it would be worth giving them a call to check if they are aware, or can check (they have access to Inland Revenue directly now).
Thank you for the reply, I have found out that my son will finish school next August. So will this mean that the maintenance payments stop then once my Ex tells the CSA this?
Hello Fresh1863
Maintenance payments should continue until a child reaches the age of 16 or until 20 if they are in full-time, non-advanced education.
Full-time is classed as a minimum of 12 hours per week and non-advanced is anything up to and including A-level standard.
The Child Support Agency (CSA) should be informed of any changes to circumstances which can affect maintenance payments.
Maintenance payments run in line with Child Benefit payments, so if your child finishes college next August, Child Benefit will end in the first week of next September, child maintenance should do the same.
If you need any information about the different ways that maintenance can be set up in the mean time, you can contact Child Maintenance Options, http://www.cmoptions.org.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) have a web application, ‘Sorting out separation’. It aims to make it much easier for separating and separated parents (and childless couples) to find the support they need, when and where they need it, and encourages them to collaborate on a range of issues. The link is http://www.dad.info/divorce-and-separation/sorting-out-separation.
Regards
William
would like to know how you get on ...as my experience right now is that both sides have informed csa that child benefit has stopped and child gone to uni but csa saying it can take 3 mths for payments to stop ...why would it takw that long ?
How would i get a refund ?
I have no idea why it should take the payments so long to stop except the CSA being bad at their job. If it's not being paid by deduction from earnings, I'd be inclined to stop the payments yourself as long as you are sure that they have been informed that child benefit has ceased.
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