When does CM officially stop?

Noodle

Active member
I know that child maintenance should stop officially once child has left school but what if child is refusing to go to school on a long term basis ?
 
This has been something that has some confusion surrounding it.

It needs to be paid until either

a) 31st August following the child's 16th birthday
b) A certain date after education and training ceases, but it's only payable until child's 20th birthday

Generally it's after A levels at age 18, unless they go to university or college afterwards.

In other words, as long as they are in education or training (eg apprenticeship) up to the 20th birthday.

Maybe you should take up SS suggestion that he comes to live with you :-) Then no CM to pay. Although as we have found, teenagers are very expensive to keep!
 
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But if they are refusing to attend school ? If he is refusing to attend school now then not looking good for college!
 
Sorry - I just edited my post above and changed a few things!

If he's refusing to attend school, is he in his last GCSE year?
 
He'll be in year 11 then. GCSE year. So his last year of school if he goes elsewhere to do A levels or leaves to do an apprenticeship. They kind of get lax I think when they're close to leaving and GCSE's are a lot of pressure. SS gets quite a bit of study time - I think it's a couple of weeks off before GCSE's. It's school holidays at the moment but SS school has extra classes during the holidays due to upcoming GCSE's. Maybe it's those he's refusing to go to? He can't actually refuse to go because EFH could be prosecuted if he doesn't go at all. She'd need to say he was home schooling (and prove it). Even if he doesn't go to school he is "in education" of some sort I think - by law so CMS is still payable.
 
Well they have threatened prosecution, this is all largely hearsay but apparently the school are not being very helpful , as far as I am aware he is still registered at the school but still refusing to go. There is talk of redoing GCSEs next year and they are throwing the words ADHD around a lot.
I home schooled my son so i know the protocol about absence from school. Its my guess that EFH is having a very difficult time with Ss at the moment.
Sd told me, they have tried to fine EFH but shes refusing to pay on the basis that the school have not supported her enough, Ive been told that the teacher told EFH that the problem lies with her parenting, obviously she wont have accepted that!
I gave the usual hmmm and oh and ahs in the right places as i was being informed of this little gem 🤣
 
But its not looking good as usual 😕 because if he does go back to school and decides to do his GCSEs next year, obviously prolonging his education which is to the financial benefit of EFH
Always no end in sight 🙄
 
I know how you feel.
Here the maintenance goes to the child directly at 18. As soon as they are of age, the money is no longer transferred to the parent.
 
That's a good system Maya! But doesn't stop an EFH manipulating or guilt tripping and getting the child to give her the money (I know I am so cynical but I've seen a lot!).

Noodle - I actually feel sorry for SS. It would be awful to have to go through it all again a year later. GCSE's are a big pressure. I think they do too many mock exams these days (although that might depend on individual schools).

If his attendance drops below 50% they can prosecute. But no doubt she will say he's sick or something.
 
OOOOh I can't add much on the UK here but if it makes anyone feel slightly better in Canada - Child Support can continue until they are NOT considered a child of the marriage which means if they go to University - it can continue until they are twenty bloody FIVE!!! Thats right. My partner can be forced to pay child support until the child is 25 years old. His 23 year old is taking his time doing his university and his ex wife tried taking him to court to continue paying child support which even into their 20s was around 800-1000 per month for each child (he has 2 with her). AND they had something called an RESP - which is an amount parents put away that is tax free and the govt gives a small matching stipend which was around 65k for each child. The ex wife did one for the son and my partner did one for this daughter with his ex wife. The mum of the daughter with the ex partner (not ex wife) did her childs RESP.
 
These are high numbers, a lot of money. Here the age limit is 27.
Even higher, but the alimony I got from my ex according to courts was 250 for each daughter and than it went up with inflation. He was just starting to make good money when we got divorced. I was there for the tough times and was stuck with a loan for the apartment we were living in. My DDs didn’t want me to sue their father, they were afraid of loosing him, so I stuck it out. He was after my apartment which my mother helped me buy. I couldn’t really say he was a high earner, because he wasn’t.
He also had a shockingly arrogant lawyer that made me look like an opportunist to make more money.
That’s how it was. So I had to ask him to give additional allowance to our daughters.

Alimony payed to the child can be good and bad, depending on the child’s habits and spending it for the right things.
If the parent stops paying it, the child has to sue the parent, crazy. My girls asked me not to take any action against my ex, because he was making a lot of money compared to when we got divorced and wouldn’t give them a dime more. His now ex wife gave my girls pocket money.
Later when they went to college, and moved out, I had to beg him for an hour to give them more pocket money. He told me bluntly that he will never pay a dime of alimony in his life any more.
He was having issues in his own marriage and we got the short end of the stick.
In the end he agreed as long as I never saw the money, I never asked anything for myself.
He left, that was it for me.
My EDD was also buying an apartment and he promised to participate. When asked he bluntly said no, I don’t have the money. Really, he earns 5000-7000 eur a month net. I don’t and I helped as much as I could.
I don’t understand him. He has become a very bitter man.

There is no perfect system. As a single mother, I would feel much safer with a bit more money. He took all the savings we had too. Nut the apartment was mine.
 
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