Shared parenting
If the child stays overnight with the non-resident parent on average at least one night a week, we can reduce the amount of child maintenance the non-resident parent has to pay. This is called ‘shared care’.
If you share the care of your child with the other parent, please let us know as soon as possible so that we can use this information when we make the new calculation.
In the case of shared care, we reduce child maintenance for that child by one-seventh for each night of the week that the child stays with the non-resident parent.
If care of a child is shared equally between both parents, we:
- reduce the child maintenance by half
- then reduce the child maintenance again by another £7 a week for that child. The amount of £7 is set down in law.
Basic and reduced rate
If a child stays overnight with the non-resident parent for at least 52 nights a year, we will reduce the child maintenance due to the parent with care of that child as follows.
Number of nights of overnight care by non-resident parent per year |
Child maintenance for the child will be reduced by |
| 52 to 103
|
1/7
|
| 104 to 155
|
2/7
|
| 156 to 174
|
3/7
|
| 175 or more
|
1/2
|
Child maintenance in basic-rate or reduced-rate cases cannot fall below £5 as a result of the adjustments for shared care.
Flat rate
If the non-resident parent is getting a benefit that means they pay child maintenance at the flat rate, and they share the care of their children for at least 52 nights a year, the non-resident parent will not have to pay any child maintenance.
|
