child support for kids overseas ???

monkey1_2

Help,
I've been going around in circles on various official websites without success, now i put my question to the people who always come up trumps!!

I pay maintenance for my 10yo son (by mutual agreement not through csa) who lives with my ex wife. She has now met a wealthy American an is planning to move to the USA with my son. I planned on putting the maintenance money I pay into a savings account in order to pay for flights and holidays with my son. my ex says that under a U.S law I still have to pay the maintenance to her. I cant see how I'm subject to U.S law. But equally when I go to visit him, i dont want to be put in an orange boiler suit and whisked off to Guantanamo bay. Ideas anyone ???

marksoton

She is probably on about REMO.

http://www.csa.gov.uk/en/case/remo.asp

But she would have to apply for it through the courts in the US.

Are you happy for your son to move there ?

If not i would be in court ASAP, if only to make sure contact was maintained.

jacklink

as far as im led to belive you can stop her taking the child out of the country, look this up and see a solicitor a.s.a.p.

withabix

REMO would have to applied for in the US and would be passed on to the CSA in the UK to enforce.

There is no risk of you being whisked off to the US if you didn't pay.

Most important thing you need to do is see a Solicitor very quickly, either to try and get an injunction put in place to stop your ex taking your son away OR to get (internationally) legally enforceable access and contact arrangements put in place (frequency, arrangements and durations), to make sure that YOUR EX is responsible for the travel costs of contact visits, as it is her who is taking your son out of the country.

kelloggs36

does your child stop becoming your child just because they are out of the country? Sorry to sound harsh and it is awful that contact will be so little now, but nothing changes as far as your parental responsibilities lie.

marksoton

kelloggs36 wrote: »

does your child stop becoming your child just because they are out of the country? Sorry to sound harsh and it is awful that contact will be so little now, but nothing changes as far as your parental responsibilities lie.

True but the OP is on about putting the money towards vastly increased contact costs.

That doesn't seem unreasonable to me. After all it is the PWC's choice to move the child 6000 plus miles away.

koolmummy

jacklink wrote: »

as far as im led to belive you can stop her taking the child out of the country, look this up and see a solicitor a.s.a.p.

Leave to Remove cases are very hard to win. If it is the case that your ex has proper plans in place to emigrate, i.e housing, schools, income etc then in all likehood if you opposed the move and she started LTR proceedings she would win.There have been a couple of high profile LTR cases won by dad's recently but generally permission is given by the courts to go.

That said she does need your consent to take your child out of the UK to live if you have parental responsibility, if your consent is not forthcoming she would have to seek permission from the courts.

koolmummy

Kellogs is right. You should pay financial support towards your child.

On the other hand as your ex is wanting to emigrate she should be certainly contributing if not fully funding the costs associated with you maintaining a relationship with your child given she is moving to the States.

I would get something agreed and written up if you are agreeable to your child going.

tuggy

The mum could pay the costs for the child to return to the UK to visit you, since it is HER that has taken him away. But get it in writing, phone a solicitor and enquire if they offer a free first consultation as a lot do.

mitchaa

Can the NRP object to such a move? Does she need to ask his permission to leave the country with their child?

koolmummy

Yes he can object and yes she does need his consent to move.
They were married and therefore he has parental responsibility for the child.
I assume that contact and residence arrangements are agreed by consent rather than by court order as the maintenace is by mutual agreement, if the OP wants to oppose the move and he doesn't say he does, he would need to make an application to the court if they cannot agree.