Divorce Guide

Changes in child support scheme in Australia

Child support scheme in Australia is managed by the Child support Agency in Australia. It is a government enterprise and it plays very important role in child support in Australia. All the children involved that get child support are covered by the child support scheme in Australia.

Child support scheme in Australia:

The child support scheme takes care of all the aspects related to child care in Australia. It covers things like:

1. The amount of child care in each case of child support
2. Agreement among parents regarding child support
3. Collection of child support money
4. Enforcement of child support in case parents are at fault

There are some major changes made to the child support scheme in Australia. These changes are added as per the need arose. The changes in the child support scheme came into force since 1st July, 1999. These changes are applicable to all the child support payments made or received in Australia. It includes the child support payments ordered by the court and the ones worked out by parents mutually.

Changes in the child support scheme are as follows:

1. The formula by which the child support amount is calculated has been changed. Different points are considered while you calculate the child support for different age groups of the children involved in child support.
2. It also considers the type and level of child care each of the parent involved can provide. Ideally at least 40% of the child care is to be shared in case of shared care. In case this is not being followed, the parent that takes more than 40% care of the child can opt for exemption from the amount for child support.
3. In the new formula, the income of the parent that receives the child support amount is also considered. The original child support amount was calculated on the basis of taxable income of the parent paying the support. It was made for a financial year that was 2 years prior to the actual payment. The new changes incorporate the most recent income and thus include the exact financial position of the parent making child support payments.
4. The parent’s income that pays the child support is now calculated based on the average weekly earnings. Earlier it was calculated on the basis of adult weekly earnings which were much higher.
5. The new changes take care of the step children of the parent paying the child support. The child is considered a legal duty and there is no need to take a court order in this regard.
6. A minimum support liability of $260 is introduced due to the changes in the child support scheme. Earlier if the child support amount was $260, the liability was nil. The new changes are based on the principle, that both the parents should take the responsibility of child support.
7. The residential parent who receives more amount than the base rate of family allowance can request for end to assessment. This can be done when the secretary of the department of family and community services approves of the arrangement.

A number of changes are incorporated in the Child support scheme in Australia. These changes are welcome and they have made the payment of child support easier. The changes have also made the amount of child support just and it is only fair that both the parents are liable towards the payment of the child support.

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