The Child Support (Deduction Orders and Fees) (Amendment and Modification) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016

Amendment of the Child Support Fees Regulations

3.—(1) The Child Support Fees Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2014(1) are amended as follows.

(2) In regulation 6 (enforcement fee)—

(a) the existing provision becomes paragraph (1);

(b) after paragraph (1) insert—

“(2) An enforcement fee of £50 is payable to the Department by a non-resident parent in a case where—

(a) regulation 8B(2) (waiver of a collection fee and an enforcement fee in certain segment 5 cases) is satisfied;

(b) the Department makes a determination that the payment arrangement referred to in regulation 8B(2)(c) is to end;

(c) the deduction from earnings order referred to in regulation 8B(2)(c)(ii) is varied on or after the date on which that determination is made; and

(d) that deduction from earnings order has not been varied previously on or after the date on which that determination is made.”.

(3) In regulation 8 (waiver of an enforcement fee)—

(a) in paragraph (1) after “6” insert “(1)”;

(b) after paragraph (1) insert—

“(1A) An enforcement fee payable under regulation 6(2) may be waived in the circumstances specified in paragraphs (4)(c) and (6).”;

(c) in paragraph (6) after “made” insert “, or a deduction from earnings request made against the non-resident parent is varied,”.

(4) After Part 3 (enforcement fee) insert—

“PART 3A Segment 5 cases

Interpretation of this Part

8A.   For the purposes of this Part—

“the Ending Liability Regulations” means the Child Support (Ending Liability in Existing Cases and Transition to New Calculation Rules) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2014(2);

“absent parent” has the meaning given in Article 4(2) (meaning of certain terms) of the Child Support Order(3);

“child support maintenance” means child support maintenance calculated under Part 1 of Schedule 1 to the Child Support Order as amended by Schedule 1 to the 2008 Act;

“existing case” has the meaning given in paragraph 1(2) of Schedule 2 (maintenance calculations: transfer of cases to new rules) to the 2008 Act;

“liability end date” has the meaning given in regulation 6 (liability end date) of the Ending Liability Regulations;

“relevant period” in relation to a case means a period—

(a)

beginning on the date on which paragraph 2 of Schedule 1 to the 2008 Act comes into force in relation to that case; and

(b)

ending on the day which the Department makes a determination that the payment arrangement is to end.

Wavier of a collection fee and an enforcement fee in certain segment 5 cases

8B.— (1) A collection or an enforcement fee that becomes payable during the relevant period may be waived in a case that satisfies paragraph (2).

(2) A case satisfies this paragraph where—

(a) the person with care, non-resident parent and qualifying child were the person with care, non-resident parent (or absent parent) and qualifying child in relation to an existing case (“the previous case”) where—

(i) notice was given under regulation 5(2) (exercise of the choice as to whether or not to stay in the statutory scheme) of the Ending Liability Regulations specifying a liability end date determined in accordance with regulation 6(1)(b) of those Regulations;

(ii) on the date on which the notice was printed by the Department, the case was a segment 5 case (which has the meaning given in the scheme prepared by the Department under regulation 3(1) (scheme in relation to ending liability in existing cases) of the Ending Liability Regulations (as revised from time to time)(4));

(iii) the notice was sent on or after 23rd May 2016;

(b) an application for a maintenance calculation was made before the liability end date in relation to the previous case;

(c) the Department has specified that payments of child support maintenance are to be made by—

(i) a method of payment listed in regulation 3(1)(a) to (g) (method of payment) of the Child Support (Collection and Enforcement) Regulations 1992(5); or

(ii) a method of payment listed in regulation 3(1)(a) to (g) in respect of a portion of the child support maintenance payable and by deduction from earnings order (which has the meaning given in regulation 5 (interpretation of this Part)) in respect of a portion of the child support maintenance payable,

for the purpose of enabling the non-resident parent to demonstrate that without arrangements for collection or arrangements for enforcement of child support maintenance under the Child Support Order payments will be made in accordance with the calculation (“the payment arrangement”); and

(d) the first payment to be made in accordance with the payment arrangement is the first payment of child support maintenance due in the case.”.

(1)

S.R. 2014 No. 182

(2)

S.R. 2014 No. 191

(3)

Article 4(2) is amended by Schedule 3 to the Child Support, Pensions and Social Security Act (Northern Ireland) 2000

(4)

The scheme is available to download from the Departments website at www.dsdni.gov.uk/publications/child-support-scheme-timing-and-related-matters-relation-ending-liability-existing

(5)

Regulation 3(1) was amended by regulation 3(4)(a) of S.R. 2001 No. 15, regulation 3(2) of S.R. 2006 No. 273 and regulation 3(2)(a) of S.R. 2008 No. 409