The Child Support and Claims and Payments (Miscellaneous Amendments and Change to the Minimum Amount of Liability) Regulations 2013

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations make a consequential amendment to Schedule 1 to the Child Support Act 1991 (c. 48) (“the 1991 Act”) arising from the increase to the flat rate of child support maintenance from £5 to £7 for cases in which liability for child support maintenance is calculated under Part 1 of Schedule 1 to the 1991 Act as amended by paragraph 2 of Schedule 4 to the Child Maintenance and Other Payments Act 2008 (c. 6) (the “2012 scheme rules”). The flat rate of child support maintenance was increased from £5 to £7 by paragraph 4 of Schedule 4 and paragraph 1(28) of Schedule 7 to the Child Maintenance and Other Payments Act 2008for cases subject to the 2012 scheme rules. These Regulations also make other consequential amendments to certain secondary legislation as a result of the increase to the flat rate for those cases and make miscellaneous amendments to the Child Support Maintenance Calculation Regulations (S.I. 2012/2677) (“the 2012 Regulations”) in relation to the reduced rate of child support maintenance and in relation to variations. The reduced rate of child support maintenance is payable if neither the flat or nil rate applies and the non-resident parent has income of less than £200 but more than £100. Variations allow for deviations from the usual rules for calculating maintenance in certain limited circumstances.

Regulation 5 amends provisions of the 2012 Regulations as they relate to the reduced rate provisions and variations. Paragraph (2) substitutes the table contained in regulation 43 concerning the calculation of the reduced rate of child support maintenance as a consequence of the increase to the flat rate from £5 to £7. Paragraph (3)(a) amends regulation 69 so that, in cases where the Secretary of State is unable to request or obtain information from HMRC, the Secretary of State can determine the amount of the non-resident parent’s unearned income by reference to the most recent tax year, based, as far as possible, on information that would be required to be provided in a self-assessment tax return. Paragraph (3)(b) amends regulation 69 so that relievable pension contributions can be taken account of for the purposes of calculating unearned income. Paragraph (4) amends regulation 70 so that a case can be subject to a variation in circumstances where the nil rate or the flat rate apply and the non-resident parent has a gross weekly income of more than £100 per week. Paragraph (5) amends regulation 74 so that, where the application of a variation would otherwise decrease the amount payable to less than the flat rate, the non-resident parent will be liable to pay child support maintenance at a rate equal to the flat rate.

A full impact assessment has not been published for this instrument as it has no impact on the private sector or civil society organisations.