confused about child support

ive newly become single and am currently getting PPS, FTB A and B. XP doesnt pay child support (neither thru private agreement of thru CSA). someone i spoke to said i shud set up an agreement with CSA to get child support, and that i would be entitled to MORE FTB if i receive child support too? i assumes that child support would be deemed income and therefore REDUCE the amount of FTB i get?

also whats the rough percentage of XPs income that he would have to pay in child support? someone told me its 10%, someone else said 20%. also i doubt he will agree to pay anything, can they MAKE him pay child support legally?

thanks guys:D

It does depend on how much you get. If you get too much it would affect your payments, but if not, you should get more.
Is he just choosing to not pay? Or is it your choice not to recieve payments. A friend of mine chose not to chase CS & spoke to a centrelink councellor to say why, & they fixed her payments so it doesn't reduce her FTB.

If you don't have a Child Support application and agreement, then your FTB is reduced to minimum amount. Once you have applied it is put to the full amount, then once the application is processed, depending on how much CS you get it is adjusted.

Before I applied for CS my FTB for Ash was something like $40. Once I applied it went to maximum amount, and now that there is a CS agreement it has changed to reflect that but its still more than the minimum.

Also they CAN make him, they take it straight out of his wages. This is how I get both the kids fathers payments, straight from their wages and they have no say in it. If for whatever reason he is behind they will also take it straight from his taxes. The same if he underestimates how much he is going to get, CS and ATO will compare and garnish their tax return to fix any owing $.

if he ISNT on the birth certificate, and refuses to sign you will have to get a lawyer and get DNA tests. This is what I did with Ashtons dad. Then he had to pay the lawyer fees and the DNA test fees and the court order fees, put him out of pocket $2500. Sucker!

XP is on the birth certificate, but he has been harassing me on the phone and stuff so i dont want to talk to him about CS caus itll never end...he was putting $30 a week into an account i have put aside for her but lately he hasnt put any in caus he has been 'broke' (i.e. spending it on going out).

im pretty sure i get the full FTB A and B already...i get 290 a fortnite in family tax benefits, i think thats the max amounts? plus my PPS of course

Just hand it over the to CSA, they handle it all for you.
xoxoxoxo

the c'link side of it - family tax benefit part a has two components - base rate (approx $52 per fortnight) and the amount above the base rate (the rest of it - approx $100 a fortnight). for a single parent (or a person who has seperated from the parent of their child and repartnered) you are assessed for ftba dependent on your child support status

if you choose not to apply for child support, or don't have a REASONABLE child support agreement with your ex, you will get nothing more than base rate, no matter what your income is. this can be a private or CSA agreement, but if you go private, and your ex is earning mega bucks but you agree to a pittance to keep him happy, it's deemed an unreasonable agreement. also if you have a private arrangement to collect your money and you don't collect, or don't collect your FULL entitlement, you will be dropped to base rate. for example - CSA says your ex has to be pay $200 a month but you decide to only collect $100 for whatever reason (keep him happy, you're being intimidated etc) - if that becomes known to FAO you will be dropped to basic rate of payment. i ALWAYS suggest CSA collect your money -yes, its a PITA that it's only dispersed once a month so you have to wait til then, but if he doesn't pay for whatever reason, there is a record

with FAO/C'link - you have an amount of child support you are able to receive that doesn't impact your payment - for one child i BELIEVE it's around the $1800 mark but i can't be sure. brain is fried at the moment! anyway - for that first $1800 (as an example) nothing happens to your FTB at all. when your annual entitlement goes over $1800, your FTB/rent assistance combined payment is reduced by 50c in the dollar. neither of these payments is taxable so the reduction is only ever that 50c. now that 50c in the dollar occurs over the full 12 months/26 fortnights - so if you are entitled to $100 over that threshold for the year, your fortnightly entitlement is reduced by less than $2 ($50 reduction over 26 fortnights).

this can become a bit more complex if you get a lump sum in the middle of the year (garnished tax cheque paying arrears etc) or if he changes his job mid year and your entitlement changes. this is why it's always best to have CSA collect for you - there is a record of every dollar that you receive and it's monitored so that, if he doesn't pay up, they will chase it later. employer garsnishing isn't automatic - and can be painful to set up if the employer doesn't want to help - but CSA have recently gained more powers to follow up

another reason it's good to get CSA to collect - monies received for child support ONLY impact FTBA in the financial year in which they are received - so, if you're ENTITLED to $2500 - that's $700 over the threshold, so over the course of the year, you would have an ftb reduction of $350. if he decided not to pay that, and over the course of the year you only received $2000 in child support, when reconcilliation occurs, CSA will notify FAO of exactly what you got, FAO acknowledge you were underpaid FTB as you didn't receive your child support, and will give you the additional FTB you didn't receive (so you get an extra $300 at tax time). if this occured on a private collection (where he gives you the money direct) you'd be $300 out of pocket as there is no proof of what has happened

i hope that makes sense - if it doesnt PLEASE let me know which bit confuses you and i'll elaborate - it's hard to answer as thoroughly online as you do on the phone/in person cos you can't read someone's cues as to whether it's making sense!

FWIW - you have up to 13 weeks to apply for CSA before your FTB is impacted - so yeah, you're probably getting the full amount at the moment - if you don't apply within that time frame, payments will drop and for the time from when they drop until you apply you lose that money

also - i can't remember the exact circs around you seperating, but if there was DV of any sort you can speak to a c'link social worker about your options to not chase him for child support (it usually only applies if it will put you or your child in danger)

thanks BG, lol my head is exploding now! yes there is DV involved, and i wish the c'link lady had told me my FTB would go down in a few weeks, i wouldve organised CS back then!

do you have any idea how much CS he has to pay? he is casual and only nets about 500 a week. and do i just make an appt with FAO to organise collection etc?

im sure if i say to him i want to organise CS he will say no no ill pay you (i.e. without a legal agreement) and then it wont happen). im just worried cause my stuff is still at his house for another 3 weeks, maybe i should leave it til then?

also i left him, does that make a difference? he thinks he shouldnt pay caus i chose to leave him

He has to pay no matter what. I'd ring CSA asap. When DH & I were seperated I wasn't getting anything, so I rang them & told them I wanted them to collect. They started chasing it up, but by the time we worked it out & were back together 2 months later, they hadn't started collecting yet.
They were going to take it straight from his employer from his wages. So it won't happen instantly. Hopefully you'll have enough time to get your stuff first.

If you ring CSA and tell them you want to make an application, they will go over it with you on the phone, send you some stuff to fill out and ask for a copy of the birth certificate.

You personally DONT have to deal with the ex, they do that for you.

You can print a form off the CSA website and lodge it if you choose to have a private agreement (where the CSA doesn't chase the money for you). Not sure if this option will work for you.

don't do a private agreeement with DV involved hun - it's just not worth it! he might say he's going to pay x amount but then decide it's too much effort and use intimidation against you. you only have to apply within 13 weeks of seperation, so given the age of your bubba you still have a window of time - given your stuff is still at his place and there is a chance of retribution wait til after that three weeks and apply then - he doesn't have to be PAYING within 13 weeks, you simply have to have APPLIED within that time.

you don't need to speak to FAO at all - just ring CSA (sorry, no idea of the number) and tell them you want to apply. they'll go through some details of your current financial situation, any shared care arrangements etc. then ask them to contact FAO (they'll transfer you) to provide them with your case number - that gets uploaded on the system and then the FAO and CSA systems link up and you dont' have to do anything more. CSA will contact your ex and follow up from there. they will be the only ones to have contact with him. if he says anything to you, simply say you need CSA to do all the chasing up and collecting so that you get paid FTB properly - unless he's really going to go looking, he won't know about private arrangements and collections

given his income, you'll probably find that his assessment will be less than the threshold to impact your FTB - so whatever he gives you will be above what you're getting now (please note i said probably - it goes on pre-tax income and things - and it's hard to know exactly what it would be)

hope that helps

BG

I 2nd that - don't do a private agreement. My DH works at CSA, so if you have any questions, PM me and i'll get him to respond. Otherwise look up the website, there is a lot of info on there.

I would call them, and speak to the new clients section. Get them to explain everything, how CS works, how the calculate it, how it affects you (and yes, DH did say that the amount of CS you receive does affect your FTB, but there is a maintence threshold that applies before you start getting deductions). Also, ask them about cases of DV. It means that you will still get full FTB, but then you won't get any child support at all.

And yes, every parent in this country has a legal obligation to support their children.

Even if you just call up and get some info on the phone, and sent out to you, you can start the process slowly.

Tell the operator at CSA that domestic violence was involved & they will agree to chase it up for you. I remember being asked something about did I feel safe asking him for money or something along those lines.

The amount you will get depends on what you earn, what he earns & if he has other children. I only receive $20 a week (well I would if he paid) for my son because my ex already had a daughter from a previous relationship & I also have my own income. Completely unfair in my view, but that's how it works.

Hi all,

My lovely twins will be due in about 7 weeks. I previously have a job, becasue the tummy was getting bigger and bigger and no longer safe to drive a long way from home to work, i decideded to quit my job and stay at home few weeks ago. At that time, i thought centrelink could help me and pay the new start allowance, but they said i got some funds available in my accounts, so they wont pay me until 14 weeks later(which the payment will be few weeks after the baby due). And i also have been told even the babies come before the payment due date, i still need to serve the waiting period.

I was struggle at the moment, as i am single, i got bf previously, but we speparated, and right after separated i found myself pregnancy. Now, i have no income and have to use my saving for living. I began to think about whether i wil be entitled to have the maximum rate of the FTB A&B and parenting payment when the babies born. The centrelink people told me i have to apply Child support before apply the FTB, now i got some questions, hope someone can help me.

1. my ex bf, he is a part time student, and have no job/income for months, in this circumstance, i dont want to force him to pay me child support given centrelink can allow myself to have maximum rate of FTB. But i am not sure if i ring CS, whether they will enforce him to pay, or can he not pay?

2.I want to apply the PPS, but not sure whether i can do that? As the application of new start allowance has been asked for served such a long time waiting period, i feel distress to apply anthing with clink.And i can imagine how tough of the financail will be when my two babies born. Could someone give me advise what i should do?

Thank you.

your waiting period doesn't apply to your ftb eligibility. it will however impact the PPS - you can apply for it, and may be granted but you won't get any actual payment until the waiting period is served

as to child support - essentially you have no choice - he has an obligation to his children. but if he is on minimum income, he'll be on minimum CS payments. if you don't apply and collect the CS payments you won't be entitled to max rate FTBA - you'll drop from around 150 per baby per fn to 50 - so it's something you best do. they will assess him fairly on his income - they're not going to tell him he has to pay X amount each month if he doesn't earn that amount!

Hun, that's what savings are for..... you can't expect to recieve $$ from the govt (for Job Searching) when you have enough money to support yourself.

You can apply for everything at the same time once the babies are born - FTB, Baby Bonus etc.
Just make a call to CSA after bubs are here and they will do it for you, and they will also let Clink know you have applied for child support so all you will have to do it wait for Child Support to assess how much he is to pay you (which as BG says, will be done fairly in light of his circs).

Good luck with everything!

If XP is a student and on minimum income below the self support amount i think it's around $15,000 per year, or on a centrelink allowance then he will only have to pay the min amount it's about $6.50 per week, it's not much.