The Child Support (Deduction from Earnings Orders Amendment and Modification and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2016

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend and modify the Child Support (Collection and Enforcement) Regulations 1992 (S.I. 1992/1989) (“the 1992 Regulations”). They amend the Child Support (Meaning of Child and New Calculation Rules) (Consequential and Miscellaneous Amendment) Regulations 2012 (S.I. 2012/2785) (“the 2012 Regulations”) and the Child Support (Ending Liability in Existing Cases and Transition to New Calculation Rules) Regulations 2014 (S.I. 2014/614) (“the Ending Liability Regulations”). These Regulations also dis-apply the provisions in section 29(4) to (7) of the Child Support Act 1991 (c.48) in relation to a segment 5 case where liability is ended whilst these Regulations are in force. A segment 5 case is one within the meaning given in the scheme prepared by the Secretary of State under the Ending Liability Regulations (“the Ending Liability Scheme”).

Regulation 2 amends the 1992 Regulations. Regulation 2 adds a new circumstance in which a Deduction from Earnings Order (“DEO”) can be discharged, namely where this appears to the Secretary of State to be appropriate as liability has ceased to accrue because the case has been closed under the Ending Liability Scheme. This modification applies to all cases, regardless of whether a subsequent application is made to the 2012 child maintenance scheme.

Regulation 3 applies modifications to cases where an application has been made to the 2012 child maintenance scheme (“the new scheme”). Paragraph (2) amends regulation 7 of the 1992 Regulations so that a notice to the person liable for payment of child support maintenance must include any outstanding old scheme arrears which have been transferred to the computer system upon which maintenance is calculated for the new scheme. An old scheme case is a case falling under the 1993 or 2003 child maintenance schemes.

Paragraph (3) inserts a new regulation 36 into the 1992 Regulations which applies the following modifications for segment 5 cases:

• where the Secretary of State specifies a DEO as the appropriate method of payment, there is no requirement upon the Secretary of State in these cases to consider whether there is good reason not to do so in accordance with the prescribed matters to be taken into account, or not taken into account;

• payments under a DEO do not need to be made in equal instalments;

• where the Secretary of State has specified a method of payment for a portion of the maintenance calculation, the remainder of the amount due under the calculation being paid under a DEO, the Secretary of State may discharge the DEO where the liable person has made payments by the other specified method for an appropriate period of time, and the Secretary of State considers it reasonable to do so;

• the right of appeal against a decision by the Secretary of State that there is good reason to specify a DEO as a method of payment is removed because the Secretary of State no longer has to consider this before specifying a DEO as a method of payment.

Regulation 6 is related. This provides that the requirements in section 29(4) to (7) of the Child Support Act 1991 do not apply in relation to segment 5 cases. These are requirements to make provision in regulations in relation to DEOs specified as an appropriate method of payment relating to the consideration of whether there is good reason not to use a DEO, matters to be taken into account, or not taken into account, and appeals.

Regulation 4 amends the 2012 Regulations to insert a transitional provision, the effect of which is that where a DEO is in force in an old scheme case and there are maintenance arrears outstanding at the time of an application to the new scheme, that DEO will continue to be administered under the old scheme until any outstanding old scheme arrears are transitioned over to the computer system administering the new scheme.

Regulation 5 amends the Ending Liability Regulations, changing the liability end date in cases where liability is ended by the Secretary of State under the Ending Liability Scheme so that it can be no later than 200 days after notice has been given by the Secretary of State requiring an interested party to make a choice as to whether to remain in the statutory child maintenance scheme.

An assessment of the impact of these Regulations on the costs of business and the voluntary sector is available from the Department for Work and Pensions, Child Support, Caxton House, Tothill Street, London. SW1H 9NA and is annexed to the Explanatory Memorandum to these Regulations which is available alongside the instrument onwww.legislation.gov.uk