Child Support | Custody

In Australia, child support and child custody (referred to as parental responsibility or parenting arrangements) are governed by family law, with the aim of ensuring that the best interests of the child are prioritized following the breakdown of a relationship.

Child Support

The child support is the financial support paid by parents to help with the costs of a child aged under 18.

The law says that both parents have a duty to support their children financially whether they are biological (birth) or adoptive parents, same-sex or otherwise.

The Child Support Scheme is managed by Services Australia (Child Support), a Commonwealth Government agency.

Support Assessment

In order to work out the amount of child support that should be paid, Services Australia (Child Support) will look at:

• Each parent’s income and their combined income
• How much time each parent cares for the child (level or percentage of care)
• The child’s age
• If a parent has biological or adopted children from past and new families (in the case of stepchildren, a court order is required to be provided)

Change of Circumstances

You need to inform Services Australia immediately if there are changes in your circumstances that could affect your child support. This is important, because some changes cannot be backdated.

If you do not tell Services Australia, you might:

• Pay the wrong amount of child support and owe money (debt) or pay too much (overpayment)
• Get the incorrect child support amount (underpayment or overpayment)

Enforcement of Child Support

If the paying parent does not meet their child support obligations, Services Australia can enforce the payments through measures such as:

• Garnishing wages
• Seizing tax refunds
• Suspending passports
• Initiating legal proceedings for non-payment

Custody

In Australia, child custody (now commonly referred to as parenting arrangements or parental responsibility) is governed by the Family Law Act 1975. The law emphasizes the best interests of the child as the primary consideration when making custody decisions. The terms “custody” and “access” are no longer used and instead, the focus is on parental responsibility, living arrangements and time spent with each parent.

Best Interests of the Child

Australian law sets out a list of factors that describe how a Court will assess what is in the ‘best interests of the child’. Parents might also find it helpful to consider these factors when deciding on parenting arrangements:

• The safety of the child and people who care for the child (including any history of family violence and family violence orders)
• The child’s views
• The developmental, psychological, emotional and cultural needs of the child
• The capacity of each person who will be responsible for the child to provide for the child’s developmental, psychological, emotional and cultural needs
• The benefit to the child of having a relationship with their parents, and other people who are significant to them
• Anything else that is relevant to the particular circumstances of the child

Parental Responsibility

Parental responsibility means all of the duties, powers, responsibilities and authority that parents have in relation to their children.

Each parent ordinarily has parental responsibility for the child regardless of whether they are married, in a de facto relationship, never in a relationship or otherwise. This means that both parents can independently make decisions about the child.

When the parents of a child under the age of 18 separate, they both continue to share parental responsibility for the child in this way.

Parenting Time

There are no hard and fast rules about making arrangements for which parent a child will live with or spend time with after their parents separate.

There is no rule that children must spend equal or “50:50” time with each parent.

In most cases, it’s best that both parents discuss their child’s individual needs and come to their own agreement about where a child will live, and how they will spend time with their parents.

Types of Parenting Orders

Generally, the following are the few types of parenting order:

• Living Arrangements which specifies with whom the child will live and when.
• Time Spent with the Other Parent that details the time the child will spend with the non-custodial parent including weekends and school holidays.
• Parental Responsibility which outlines who will make major decisions in the child’s life like schooling and health care.
• Communication Orders that address how the child will communicate with the parent they do not live with like phone and video calls.
• Specific Issues Orders which cover other specific issues, such as passports, relocations or religious upbringing.

Parenting Agreement

Parenting agreements are agreement between parents considering needs and best interests of the child which can be:

• An oral agreement
• A written parenting plan
• An agreement that is put into a formal court order that is called consent order

Parenting Plans

A parenting plan is a written record of an agreement between the parents about the care of the children that is also signed and dated. However, it is not a legally enforceable agreement.

Community-based family support services that offer dispute resolution can help parents make a parenting plan to suit the particular family circumstances.

Parenting Orders

If parents continue to disagree about parenting arrangements, they may need the court to determine the parenting arrangement.

Parents may also make an agreement between them but want it to put into formal consent orders.

Factors for Parenting Agreement

When making a parenting agreement, parents should focus on what is best for their child. As children grow, and their needs change, parents may have to update their parenting agreement.

Parents may have to think some the factors listed below:

• Who the child should live with and spend time with
• Who should be responsible for making major long-term decisions for the child and potentially the way consultations should be carried out if parents are to consult with each other
• The child’s relationship with other significant people
• Steps to be taken before an application to the court is made if the agreement no longer reflects the changing needs of the child or the parties
• The process to be used for resolving disputes, and
• Any other aspect of the care, welfare or development of the child or any other aspect of parental responsibility for a child.