How Much Maintenance Should A Father Pay Calculator Ireland?

by | Last updated on January 24, 2024

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On the basic rate, if you're paying for: one child, you'll pay

12% of your gross weekly income

. two children, you'll pay 16% of your gross weekly income.

How is child maintenance calculated in Ireland?


There is no scientific formula for calculating maintenance in Ireland

. This means that every situation is different and will be considered on its own facts. You need to consider earnings, as well as expenses such as food, housing, medical, education, transport and clothing.

How do you calculate child maintenance?

In the below example,

each child will be allocated 25% percent of the total expense shared by the three members of the household

. 25% for Child 1 + 25% for Child 2 + 50% for Adult = 100% of household expense.

How much child maintenance should I pay Ireland?

At present, the District Court can award any amount up to €500 per week for a spouse/civil partner, and

€150 per week for each child

. If sums greater than these amounts are being sought, you will need to apply to the Circuit Court. The court order will specify how the maintenance is to be paid.

Do fathers legally have to pay child maintenance?

Arranging child maintenance

When possible, you should make sure your child is looked after by having an effective maintenance arrangement in place.

Both parents are legally responsible for the financial costs of bringing up their children

, even parents who don't live with their children.

Do I have to pay child maintenance if it's 50 50 custody?


If you have shared care for at least 52 nights a year, you don't need to pay any child maintenance

.

Do I have to pay more than child maintenance?


Yes, you are not obliged to pay anything more than your child maintenance sum

. I would however encourage you to consider any requests on a case by case basis. Ultimately the money is to pay for your child and so you may want to pay a little extra on one-off occasions so that your child doesn't go without.

What do child maintenance payments cover?

What Does Child Maintenance Cover? Child maintenance covers

the cost of the everyday care of the child, such as food, clothes, and housing

. Expenses such as school fees do not fall under child maintenance – parents who are getting a divorce can make a “Family Based Arrangement” to deal with costs like this.

Does my ex have to pay half the mortgage and child support?

Married: If you are married to the child's parent then it does not matter who owns the family home.

If the does not cover the mortgage payments and household bills, your ex-spouse could apply for spousal maintenance.

When Should child maintenance stop?


Sixteen is the minimum age when child maintenance stops

. If you have other children who are over 16 years old and are not in approved education (see below), you will still have to pay child maintenance for the child who is under 16.

Can child maintenance be reduced?


If payments are reduced or stopped (unless agreed between you), you will be in breach of the court order

. If you genuinely can't meet payments because your income has fallen, you can ask the court to reduce the amount of child maintenance you need to pay.

How do you win a maintenance case?

  1. Capable of working ( Add the info past and present job details )
  2. Well Qualified ( add the info of her education )
  3. Prima Face Case.
  4. Approach the Court with Unclean Hand.
  5. Deserted to Husband without sufficient cause.

What should I bring to maintenance court?


Proof of physical work and residential address

. list of your expenditure e.g. water and lights bill, till slips for groceries, school expenses; medical and travel receipts, clothing accounts, etc., Provide the copy of the maintenance court order if there is a maintenance court order against you in another court.

What happens if a father Cannot pay maintenance?

[1] If a parent is unemployed and does not receive an income

the Maintenance Court may order that assets be attached and sold to pay for the maintenance of the minor child

. In the worst-case scenario failure to pay maintenance can also be deemed a criminal offence and may be susceptible to criminal prosecution.

What is a maintenance payment?


The court sometimes tells the person with the higher income to make regular maintenance payments to help with the other person's living costs

. This is called a ‘maintenance order'. A maintenance payment can be set for: a limited period of time. until one of you dies, marries or enters into a new civil partnership.

What happens if child maintenance is not paid?


CMS can take you to court over unpaid child maintenance

. They can apply for a court order to take legal action. This is a ‘liability order'. If the court grants the order, CMS can then legal action against you.

Is childcare included in child maintenance?

Usually maintenance is a contribution to costs for the parent with the main care of children, made by the non-resident parent. There are no rules for this;

sometimes two people may agree a weekly or monthly cash payment into a bank account and others might agree regular payment of a particular cost such as childcare

.

Do I still pay child maintenance if my ex remarries?

The answer is no.

When parents divorce, the absent parent (“paying parent”) is obliged by law to pay child maintenance to the parent caring for the child (“receiving parent”)

.

Can you go to jail for not paying maintenance?

If maintenance isn't paid,

the court can take the money from the maintenance payer's salary, their investment account, auction their property or issue a warrant of arrest

.

Who is the paying parent for child maintenance?

Child maintenance is money to help pay for your child's living costs. It's paid by

the parent who doesn't usually live with the child

to the person who has most day-to-day care of the child.

Does child maintenance cover swimming lessons?

As well as the bare necessities,

child maintenance can cover

; childcare. activities like swimming lessons.

Do child maintenance take debts into account?


Any Child maintenance payment you make, weekly or monthly, will have been taken into account on your essential budget

before working out what payments you can afford to your debt solution.

What child maintenance covers Ireland?

Child maintenance is meant to cover

the child's everyday living costs, which can include food, clothes, a place to live and more

. Child maintenance can be paid by either parent or by both parents if another relative or guardian has custody of the child3.

Does child maintenance affect child tax credits?

Receiving parent on benefits

If you are a receiving parent and get any social security benefits, you will be able to keep all child maintenance paid as it does not affect any of the benefits you claim.

It will also not affect any housing benefit or tax credits awards you receive

.

Do I have to pay child maintenance if I'm not on the birth certificate?

If an unwed father is not listed on the birth certificate, he has no legal rights to the child. This includes

no obligation to paying child support

and no rights to visitation to custody or child support. If no father is listed on the birth certificate, the mother has sole legal rights and responsibility of the child.

James Park
Author
James Park
Dr. James Park is a medical doctor and health expert with a focus on disease prevention and wellness. He has written several publications on nutrition and fitness, and has been featured in various health magazines. Dr. Park's evidence-based approach to health will help you make informed decisions about your well-being.