The Child Support (Variations) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2001

Income not taken into account and diversion of income

19.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), a case shall constitute a case for the purposes of paragraph 4(1) of Schedule 4B to the Order where—

(a) the non-resident parent’s liability to pay child support maintenance under the maintenance calculation which is in force or has been applied for or treated as applied for, is, or would be, as the case may be—

(i) the nil rate owing to the application of paragraph 5(a) of Schedule 1 to the Order, or

(ii) a flat rate, owing to the application of paragraph 4(1)(b) of Schedule 1 to the Order, or would be a flat rate but is less than that amount, or nil, owing to the application of paragraph 8 of Schedule 1 to the Order, and

(b) the Department is satisfied that the non-resident parent is in receipt of income which would fall to be taken into account under the Maintenance Calculations and Special Cases Regulations but for the application to the non-resident parent of paragraph 4(1)(b) or 5(a) of Schedule 1 to the Order.

(2) Paragraph (1) shall apply where the income referred to in sub-paragraph (b) of that paragraph is a net weekly income of over £100.

(3) Net weekly income for the purposes of paragraph (2), in relation to earned income of a non-resident parent who is a student, shall be calculated by aggregating the income for the year ending with the relevant week (which for this purpose shall have the meaning given in the Maintenance Calculations and Special Cases Regulations) and dividing by 52, or, where the Department does not consider the result to be representative of the student’s earned income, over such other period as it shall consider representative and dividing by the number of weeks in that period.

(4) A case shall constitute a case for the purposes of paragraph 4(1) of Schedule 4B to the Order where—

(a) the non-resident parent has the ability to control the amount of income he receives, including earnings from employment or self-employment, whether or not the whole of that income is derived from the company or business from which his earnings are derived; and

(b) the Department is satisfied that the non-resident parent has unreasonably reduced the amount of his income which would otherwise fall to be taken into account under the Maintenance Calculations and Special Cases Regulations by diverting it to other persons or for purposes other than the provision of such income for himself in order to reduce his liability to pay child support maintenance.

(5) Where a variation on this ground is agreed to—

(a) in a case to which paragraph (1) applies, the additional income taken into account under regulation 25 shall be the whole of the income referred to in paragraph (1)(b), aggregated with any benefit, pension or allowance which the non-resident parent receives other than any benefits referred to in regulation 26(3); and

(b) in a case to which paragraph (4) applies, the additional income taken into account under regulation 25 shall be the whole of the amount by which the Department is satisfied the non-resident parent has unreasonably reduced his income.