Hi everyone, first time poster and hoping I could get some advice.
My ex wife earns £28.5k working part time and receives the child benefit money on top. She has my daughters 4 days a week. But collects them from school because she finishes at 3pm
I earn £34k and have them 3 days. The government site says I should be paying £256 a month if I remember rightly, but I've been paying £300 a month for near 2 years now.
Shes now asking for more money, but as it is once our bills come out she's left with more money than me.
She now possibly going full time soon which would mean she would be earning more than me and I would have to pay someone to collect my oldest from school on my collection nights.
Because of this would my payment be lowered or would I still have to pay the same amount as this seems quite unfair?
I can't seem to find any answer specific to my situation online.
Thanks in advance
Michael
Hi,
So you you have a private arrangement for paying maintenance. I take it she is the primary carer of child? You could stick with the amount the calculator works out, it should factor in the average number of nights the kids stay with you per week.
If she were to go through child maintenance service, they will consider her to be primary carer as she is getting child benefit. In this situation they do not care what her income is. they are only interested in the non resident parents income, so they can work out how much maintenance you have to pay her. Her income has no effect on how much maintenance you pay.
Their rules are that if there is equal day to day care (not just equal overnights stays) of kids, then you don't pay any maintenance.
There is info here: