These Regulations provide for a range of matters in relation to the calculation of child support maintenance under the Child Support (Northern Ireland) Order 1991 (“the Order”) and set out the rules and procedures for a new child support scheme.

Part 1 provides for general matters, including commencement, interpretation and the rules for rounding of calculations and service of documents.

Part 2 provides for applications for child support maintenance, including the priority rules where more than one application is made in relation to the same child.

Part 3 deals with decision making. Chapter 1 sets out the general rules for setting the effective date for a maintenance calculation. Chapter 2 sets out the general rules relating to revision of decisions in accordance with Article 18 of the Order. Chapter 3 sets out the circumstances in which a maintenance calculation may be adjusted by a supersession decision and the dates from which such decisions have effect. Chapter 4 provides for the updating of the gross weekly income figure on which a calculation has been based. Chapter 5 sets out the requirement to notify decisions. Chapter 6 sets out some miscellaneous matters in relation to appeals.

Part 4 contains provisions relating to the rules for calculation of child support maintenance, supplementing Part 1 of Schedule 1 to the Order. In particular Chapter 1 contains the rules for calculating the non-resident parent’s gross weekly income by reference to information provided by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs for the latest available tax year. Part 4 also provides for special cases, including provision for determining which parent is the non-resident parent where the care of a child is shared.

Part 5 provides for the variation of the rules for calculating child support maintenance. These include provision for reducing the amount payable where the non-resident parent has special expenses or increasing the amount payable if the non-resident parent has sources of income not otherwise taken into account or diverts income to another person or for another purpose.

Part 6 provides for the interpretation of various terms in the Order.

Article 3 and paragraphs 5A, 8(2), 9 and 10(2) to Schedule 1 of the Order, some of the enabling provisions under which these Regulations are made, are inserted respectively by section 26 of, and paragraphs 5(2) and 7 to 9 of Schedule 1 to, the Child Maintenance Act (Northern Ireland) 2008. Those provisions were brought into operation, for the purposes only of making regulations, on 3rd December 2012 by virtue of the Child Maintenance (2008 Act) (Commencement No. 9) Order (Northern Ireland) 2012 (S.R. 2012 No. 423 (C. 43))