CMEC - Child Support 2011

Mips

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?p=18430717&posted=1#post18430717


Just a link to a thread in DT.

To discuss the proposed plans for CMEC in 2011.

mitchaa

http://www.fnf.org.uk/law-and-policy/csa-and-cmec-maintenance

In 2008 the Government passed legislation setting out a new method for calculating child support, to be used from 2011.

The formula is complicated, but generally the Commission first works out the 'Maintenance Requirement' - the amount required to support the Parent with Care (PWC) and your joint child/ren at Income Support rates.

Your 'net income' is then calculated by deducting Income Tax and National Insurance contributions (and 50% of any pension contributions) from your gross income. From the resulting figure, an amount equal to Income Support Personal Allowance is then deducted, along with corresponding allowances for any biological or adopted children living in your household.

Further amounts are deducted for shared care/staying contact (if over 104 nights), housing costs (rent, mortgage interest and capital repayments, but not insurance premiums or Council Tax), some travel costs for contact and work (there is an element of discretion), and earlier capital settlements. The remaining figure is known as your 'assessable income'.

Your 'assessable income' is then divided by two. If this calculation produces a figure which is less than the Maintenance Requirement then that figure will be your Full Maintenance Assessment. If the figure exceeds the Maintenance Requirement, a further amount ('Additional Element') is added to the MR, and the total becomes the Full Maintenance Requirement.

The number of children involved will be taken into account. If the PWC is in employment then her ability to pay will be calculated and may reduce your assessment.

For cases on the current child maintenance scheme CMEC reduces the amount of maintenance by one seventh for each night of the week that the child stays with the non-resident parent.

Radical changes to the proposed then and more like CSA 1.

A good move as it will be a lot more fairer on the NRP's. CSA 2 is heavily biased towards the PWC and hopefully this new CMEC proposal above will sort out a lot of the mess the CSA has caused.......No more PWC screwing their ex's for every last penny and leaving them with nothing.

marksoton

Only problem is i don't believe the information to be correct ! And as N 71 stated yesterday CSA1 ( CSCS ) was far from good for many.

Sensemaya

mitchaa wrote: »

No more PWC screwing their ex's for every last penny and leaving them with nothing.

Give over, mitchaa. How can the PWC scr*ew the NRP over when the legislation is set by Parliament?

mitchaa

Sensemaya wrote: »

Give over, mitchaa. How can the PWC scr*ew the NRP over when the legislation is set by Parliament?

Example would be man and wife with their 3 kids seperating. The male part of the equation is likely to move out and at risk of making his kids homeless has to continue paying the mortgage for his family.

The female part of the equation applies for CSA at 25%, leaving the NRP not enough to live on.

This is grossly unfair towards the NRP, my example is not wild either, it is happening all the time, you only need to read these forums.

The way the rules are at the moment it makes the above entirely possible and this needs to be stopped.

What should happen in this situation would be to offset the mortgage, offset the rent for his new house, offset the travel to pick up his children and get to work and then take 25% of what is leftover. (I suspect very very little)

Or would you disagree? If so, what would be a reasonable solution to this problem and how would you solve it to cater for ALL?

Im not arguing with you, i just think CSA is very very unfair towards the NRP.

The CSA2 legislation has been passed by the government, but you only need to look at the reputation of the CSA to realise it has been a massive failure.

This new plan proposed has surely not just been made out of thin air with no basis

Sensemaya

mitchaa

Thank you for replying in such depth to my comment.

No break up of a family is the same.

Take the example of an NRP that just stops paying the mortgage and damn the consequences to their children. Some NRPs are like that.

What happens in that scenario?

I have given up discussing the CSA. It is fruitless and achieves nothing. I did contribute to the Henshaw Report - as did MrGG - but the H report solved nothing.

My conclusion -as I'm sure you will agree - is the CSA is a Kakfaesque nightmare. It will never run efficently, it's continues to ruin the lives of ALL the people that become involved in the torturous experience that lasts for years and years.

I do not know the answer or remedy that will make for a fair system.

dippynina

I know this has been covered before but I have heard so many conflicting answers I am unsure which is correct... My partner has twin boys who were 16 in December 2008. They have no plans on leaving school at the moment. At what age does he stop paying child support? What are the differences between 'full time education' ,'further education', college and uni in terms of paying child support?
Thanks!!

N71

dippynina wrote: »

I know this has been covered before but I have heard so many conflicting answers I am unsure which is correct... My partner has twin boys who were 16 in December 2008. They have no plans on leaving school at the moment. At what age does he stop paying child support? What are the differences between 'full time education' ,'further education', college and uni in terms of paying child support?
Thanks!!

The simple answer is when they are no longer in receipt of child benefit.

If they stay on for two years full time education/further education/college, so they'd leave school/college in May'ish 2011 - PWC would still be getting child benefit til the September after their 18th Birthday - or until they start work.

If they carry on to Uni, child benefit would stop anyway, as would child maintenance.

dippynina

Thank for that. What happens if they leave school at school at 16, don't get a job and end up on benefits?

LizzieS_2

They cannot claim any benefits until 18, other than ESA for remaining in education, or a 20 week continuance of CB if registered with connextions and seeking work.

dippynina

I much appreciate all the info! So if they leave school at 16 and not working - does the parent with care still get child benefit, therefore we still pay child support up until they are 18?