3.—(1) Where the Secretary of State receives more than one effective application for a maintenance assessment with respect to the same person with care and absent parent, he shall[F1, if no maintenance assessment has been made in relation to any of the applications,] determine which application he shall proceed with in accordance with sub-paragraphs (2) to (11).
(2) Where there is an application by a person with care under section 4 F2... of the Act and an application by an absent parent under section 4 of the Act, [F3the Secretary of State] shall proceed with the application of the person with care.
(3) Where there is an application for a maintenance assessment by a qualifying child under section 7 of the Act and a subsequent application is made with respect to that child by a person who is, with respect to that child, a person with care or an absent parent, [F4the Secretary of State] shall proceed with the application of that person with care or absent parent, as the case may be.
(4) Where, in a case falling within sub-paragraph (3), there is more than one subsequent application, [F5the Secretary of State] shall apply the provisions of sub-paragraph (2), (8), (9) or (11), as is appropriate in the circumstances of the case, to determine which application he shall proceed with.
(5) Where there is an application for a maintenance assessment by more than one qualifying child under section 7 of the Act in relation to the same person with care and absent parent, [F6the Secretary of State] shall proceed with the application of the elder or, as the case may be, eldest of the qualifying children.
(6) Where a case is to be treated as a special case for the purposes of the Act under regulation 19 of the Maintenance Assessments and Special Cases Regulations (both parents are absent) and an effective application is received from each absent parent, [F7the Secretary of State] shall proceed with both applications, treating them as a single application for a maintenance assessment.
(7) Where, under the provisions of regulation 20 of the Maintenance Assessments and Special Cases Regulations (persons treated as absent parents), two persons are to be treated as absent parents and an effective application is received from each such person, [F8the Secretary of State] shall proceed with both applications, treating them as a single application for a maintenance assessment.
F9(8) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(9) Where—
(a)more than one person with care makes an application for a maintenance assessment under section 4 of the Act in respect of the same qualifying child or qualifying children (whether or not any of those applications is also in respect of other qualifying children);
(b)each such person has parental responsibility for (or, in Scotland, parental rights over) that child or children; and
(c)under the provisions of regulation 20 of the Maintenance Assessments and Special Cases Regulations one of those persons is to be treated as an absent parent,
[F10the Secretary of State] shall proceed with the application of the person who does not fall to be treated as an absent parent under the provisions of regulation 20 of those Regulations.
(10) Where, in a case falling within sub-paragraph (9), there is more than one person who does not fall to be treated as an absent parent under the provisions of regulation 20 of those Regulations, [F11the Secretary of State] shall apply the provisions of paragraph (11) to determine which application he shall proceed with.
(11) Where—
(a)more than one person with care makes an application for a maintenance assessment under section 4 of the Act in respect of the same qualifying child or qualifying children (whether or not any of those applications is also in respect of other qualifying children); and
(b)either—
(i)none of those persons has parental responsibility for (or, in Scotland, parental rights over) that child or children; or
(ii)the case falls within sub-paragraph (9)(b)
but the [F12the Secretary of State] has not been able to determine which application he is to proceed with under the provisions of sub-paragraph (9),
[F12the Secretary of State] shall proceed with the application of the principal provider of day to day care, as determined in accordance with sub-paragraph (12).
(12) Where—
(a)the applications are in respect of one qualifying child, the application of that person with care with whom the child spends the greater or, as the case may be, the greatest proportion of his time;
(b)the applications are in respect of more than one qualifying child, the application of that person with care with whom the children spend the greater or, as the case may be, the greatest proportion of their time, taking account of the time each qualifying child spends with each of the persons with care in question;
(c)[F13the Secretary of State] cannot determine which application he is to proceed with under paragraph (a) or (b), and child benefit is paid in respect of the qualifying child or qualifying children to one but not any other of the applicants, the application of the applicant to whom child benefit is paid;
(d)[F13the Secretary of State] cannot determine which application he is to proceed with under paragraph (a), (b) or (c), the application of that applicant who in the opinion of [F13the Secretary of State] is the principal provider of day to day care for the child or children in question.
(13) Subject to sub-paragraph (14), where, in any case falling within sub-paragraphs (2) to (11), the applications are not in respect of identical qualifying children, the application that [F14the Secretary of State] is to proceed with as determined by those paragraphs shall be treated as an application with respect to all of the qualifying children with respect to whom the applications were made.
(14) Where [F15the Secretary of State] is satisfied that the same person with care does not provide the principal day to day care for all of the qualifying children with respect to whom an assessment would but for the provisions of this paragraph be made under sub-paragraph (13), he shall make separate assessments in relation to each person with care providing such principal day to day care.
[F16(15) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (12)(c), where a person has made an election under section 13A(1) of the Social Security Administration Act 1992 (election not to receive child benefit) for payments of child benefit not to be made in respect of a child, that person is to be treated as the person to whom child benefit is being paid in respect of that child.]
Textual Amendments
F1Words in Sch. 2 para. 3(1) substituted (1.6.1999) by The Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/1047), regs. 1(1), 33
F2Words in Sch. 2 para. 3(2) omitted (27.10.2008) by virtue of The Child Support (Consequential Provisions) Regulations 2008 (S.I. 2008/2543), regs. 1, 2(11)(a)
F3Words in Sch. 2 para. 3(2) substituted (1.6.1999) by The Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/1047), regs. 1(1), 33
F4Words in Sch. 2 para. 3(3) substituted (1.6.1999) by The Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/1047), regs. 1(1), 33
F5Words in Sch. 2 para. 3(4) substituted (1.6.1999) by The Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/1047), regs. 1(1), 33
F6Words in Sch. 2 para. 3(5) substituted (1.6.1999) by The Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/1047), regs. 1(1), 33
F7Words in Sch. 2 para. 3(6) substituted (1.6.1999) by The Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/1047), regs. 1(1), 33
F8Words in Sch. 2 para. 3(7) substituted (1.6.1999) by The Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/1047), regs. 1(1), 33
F9Sch. 2 para. 3(8) omitted (27.10.2008) by virtue of The Child Support (Consequential Provisions) Regulations 2008 (S.I. 2008/2543), regs. 1, 2(11)(b)
F10Words in Sch. 2 para. 3(9) substituted (1.6.1999) by The Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/1047), regs. 1(1), 33
F11Words in Sch. 2 para. 3(10) substituted (1.6.1999) by The Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/1047), regs. 1(1), 33
F12Words in Sch. 2 para. 3(11) substituted (1.6.1999) by The Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/1047), regs. 1(1), 33
F13Words in Sch. 2 para. 3(12) substituted (1.6.1999) by The Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/1047), regs. 1(1), 33
F14Words in Sch. 2 para. 3(13) substituted (1.6.1999) by The Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/1047), regs. 1(1), 33
F15Words in Sch. 2 para. 3(14) substituted (1.6.1999) by The Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/1047), regs. 1(1), 33
F16Sch. 2 para. 3(15) inserted (30.9.2013) by The Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2013 (S.I. 2013/1517), regs. 1(2), 2(3)