The CSA & child maintenance calculations: don’t pay twice!
Reader JamesB had some interesting questions for Stowe Family Law solicitor Rachel Baul about the CSA and changing the amount of child maintenance that he pays every month by an attachment to earnings order. (This is when child maintenance is deducted directly from the parent’s wages.) Every month many hundreds of visitors with questions about the CSA, CMEC and child maintenance find their way to this blog and for this reason, I am printing both the questions and Rachel’s answers in full.
JamesB: “I pay maintenance by an attachment to earnings order, by county court enforcement of an ancillary relief child maintenance order. The problem is that this is now over the rate of that which my ex-wife should receive. This is because I have since had another child and I am not earning more money now then I was when we divorced. Thus, I would like to go to the CSA and have the form completed and ready to go.”
Rachel Baul: So, you currently have an order providing for child maintenance as a result of your ancillary relief proceedings. You also have an attachment of earnings order against you for payments to be made through your employers. You have since had another child and you believe that under the current regime, you may pay less if you paid through the CSA. Therefore you wish to make an application to the CSA for an assessment.
The first thing you should note is that in order for you to apply to the CSA, at least 12 months and one day must have passed since the date of the court order. The CSA will not have jurisdiction to take on your case unless this time period has elapsed. If this time has not elapsed and you still wish for your child maintenance to be varied, you will need to make a variation application to the court that made the final ancillary relief order.
“Thing is, once I send [the form to the CSA], until they presumably dispose of the court order for me to pay through the CSA, I will be effectively paying twice won’t I? How can I stop this from happening please? What is the process? I have read that CSA maintenance is due from the date of the application and don’t want to pay child maintenance twice for the same period.”
There is a way around this. If your court order has been in place for at least 12 months and one day and the CSA has jurisdiction, then the attachment of earnings order will need to be discharged before the CSA can open the case.
You can still make your application to the CSA but, to ensure that you do not get charged twice, you will not start payments with the CSA until your other court order is discharged. Of course, when make your application to the CSA, you need to inform them of the whole situation so that they do not accidentally charge you.
To discharge the attachment of earnings order, you will need to make an application to the court informing them that you have made an application to the CSA. It will then be for the court to discharge your obligation under the child maintenance provision of your ancillary relief order, and to then discharge your attachment of earnings order. These orders will remain in force until they are discharged by the court. Therefore you will have to continue the payments until this time. Once the orders are discharged, the CSA can take over.
“On the form they ask for full details of my employer. Will they write straight away to my employer? I was under the impression that they wanted salary slips from me, but they have not asked for them. Should I miss off my employer’s name to get them to write to me and ask me for payslips (as I’d rather not involve my employer for obvious reasons – I don’t want to be seen as a troublemaker)? Or will they write to me first and not the employer? If that is the case, why do they ask for the details?”
The CSA is requesting information about your employer, because they need to know this in order to make their assessment of your child maintenance liability. They need to know whether you are in employment and how much you are paid. They will also use this information for enforcement purposes if you default in making the payments. The CSA can make a deduction of earnings order against you if you do not pay. This would work in the same way as your current attachment of earnings order. Their other enforcement powers include deducting money from your bank accounts, being disqualified from driving and committal to prison.
I hope that these answers satisfy your questions. Readers are welcome to leave additional questions below.
Solicitor Rachel Baul joined Stowe Family Law in 2004, and is a member of the Law Society’s Family Law Panel. She specialises in all areas of family law and ancillary relief, and has been commended by a number of the firm’s high profile clients.
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10 Comments
JamesB on April 6, 2011 at 11:44 pm
Thank you. I am in court on the 21st April. My ex wife has asked the court to increase the attachment to earnings order in line with rpi as it says in line with the AR order – along with much else which she ignores – the problem was she stopped me seeing the children against a contact order and wants more money (or less reduction for) , long story.
Still, can I use the opportunity to ask the court to discharge the attachment of earnings order as I will by then have made my application to the CSA? Or should I make another application now? If so, on which form and for how much please? Should the application be automatically successful given that the AR order is July 2006, although there was an AoE order under different case number in October 2007 and June 2010?
Should I get a Solicitor to do all this? Thing is I have already spent many thousands on this as has other parties and they never settle and court seems reluctant to do anything, especially for me as I am seen as a troublemaker because I am a LIP where she always has a barrister.
I really do appreciate the time and hope others may also be helped by this. Thank you again.
JamesB on April 6, 2011 at 11:53 pm
Also, do the CSA write to my employer 1st, or do they give me a chance 1st to provide the information and pay? I thought they wanted 2 payslips / 6 weeks records yet the form doesn’t ask for them. Or even any details of my earnings, which I find very strange.
R. Neil on September 7, 2011 at 1:50 pm
Can I claim transferred capital from exwife prior to 1993. to pay for CSA costs as i would not have agreed to the transfare of property prior to the exisitence of the CSA. ?
Tulsa Divorce Attorneys on September 10, 2011 at 6:53 pm
If I’m understanding this post correctly, CSA is legally authorized to double dip??? That can’t be right…what am I missing here???
Sally Hampson on January 13, 2012 at 3:20 pm
I have been paying maintenance through CSA by Attachment of earnings. These stopped in November 2011 when I cleared the arrears. My employers deducted 399.43 from my October salary, the CSA say they have never received this. I am now in dispute with the CSA and my employers as both are refusing to reimburse me. How can I go about getting this money back.
Reano on January 13, 2012 at 10:00 pm
Hi, I’ve just found out my ex wife and her boyfriend both work full time now and earn treble what I earn, can I get a reduction in my csa payments as I’m struggling to live on my wage. I’m sure if I was earning treble what they earn my payments would go up??
Martin on July 14, 2012 at 11:11 pm
I sent csa 5 wage slips 3years ago and the only would take the three high ones into consideration as they say that was what i was earing but would not take the two low one into consideration as they were a lot low. but I have explained and explained that when you are doing agency work it was like that. how do you get them to take the right amount.
RogerF on October 2, 2012 at 9:04 pm
Hi. Need advice!! I currently pay my ex wife maintenance payments via an attachment of earnings order, which I requested. I pay for my youngest son. My eldest son came to live with me 1 year ago and is still in full time education. I have requested and requested a new assessment as I believe she should also be paying me maintenance for our eldest son. Nothing has happened, and I’m still paying too much. My pay was recently reduced to half as I’ve been on long term sick awaiting an operation. I contacted csa and no payment was made in august, but to my horror they took almost 3 times the amount in sept! Can they do this? Also I live with my partner and her 2 school age children, which I have told them about but they just dont seem to listen. My ex wife states she can’t pay anything as she only earns £75 after deductions. I know this to be incorrect as she works full time Monday to Friday, and this would make her hourly rate only £1.84 per hour! Again csa say they won’t or can’t look into that because she is in receipt of working tax credits!!
Please please, give some much needed advice!!
kevin on January 16, 2013 at 5:33 pm
ive made the mistake of handin money over to my sons mother on a 4 weekly basis for a wile now, now shes dicided to involve csa, 344 pound a month they expect of me each month which leaves me with 660 pound before ive even payed my rent and council tax after this im left with about 40 quid, is there a certain amount of money somebody can be left with out there wages
Lisa goodwin on April 17, 2013 at 9:41 pm
Hi,
For the past two years I have been taking home £700 per month deo deducted 566 per month. Then for some strange reason My Employer did not de-duct any Csa this month as My Protected Earnings are approx 1318.00 .So now I am Approx£500 in arrears and Looking that Csa will ow take£1000 this month? Who is to blame My Employer for not Protecting my Salary for the past x 2 Years -Or the CSA allowing my ex an open cheque book of £550 per month tax free and not allowing me any access to my own children!…..When they are not even attending full time education on Holiday to Spain as I write this yet MyChildren are now back at School . Appreciate any Advice or jus give up work and not pay the B a penny and claim Disability Benefits like everyone else in this country.