If you are a resident of the UK, have a child, and worried about not having any private arrangement for your child’s future living expenses, then the child maintenance service is an ideal option for you. Child maintenance service follows a scheduled fixed amount after calculating the maintenance amount. In general, the parents of the child manage the payments.
In case of collecting and transferring payments, you need to pay a small fee while receiving or making a payment.
Eligibiliiity criteria:
To be eligible to apply for child maintenance service, your child’s age needs to be below 16. Besides, you have to be a UK resident with the full legal right of living in the UK. As a person, you can only be able to apply if you are a parent (no matter whether you live with your child or not), grandparent or the guardian of the child. Children aged more than 12 living in Scotland can also independently apply for child maintenance service.
However, if you are a full-time student with zero income or a person living in prison, you can’t pay for child maintenance. Persons with an existing consent order authorised by a court are also not allowed to use child maintenance service.
Fee:
To apply for the child maintenance service, you need to pay only £20. This amount will also be levied if you are;
- A sufferer of abuse or domestic violence.
- Aged below 19.
- Live in Northern Ireland.
How to apply:
If you decide to apply for child maintenance service, first contact them by dialling the child maintenance phone number for starting a discussion. They will help you with all the related information and explain you the process of application. While applying it is mandatory to submit your family information such as;
- Details of the child for whom you will be applying.
- Your National Insurance Number.
- Bank account details.
Arrangement of payments:
There are several payment arrangements available for child maintenance service. Payments are available between parents or it can be deducted directly from the salary of the parent (informing the employer). You can also pay for child maintenance by reducing your social benefits. The person/parent who receives the payment has a responsibility to take proper care of the child, while this does not apply for the person/parent who pays. You can even make payments to yourself right after coming to an agreement about the amount. This system is known as Direct Pay. Standing order is the most convenient way of making payments. Under this process, payments directly go from payee bank account to receiver bank account, without any third party involvement. If you are a paying parent, you will receive a letter with full instruction on how to pay, commonly known as the payment plan.
Final thought:
Child maintenance service is truly beneficial for your child as it financially ensures your child’s future. So, being a parent, if you have not availed this benefit yet, you must avail it as soon as possible. To know more information you can dial the child maintenance contact number.