Customer scenarios

John and Tina

John and Tina have been registered with the CSA for two years. John has just been offered a job transfer to Germany for 18 months. Tina contacts the CSA to find out what this will mean for her child support case. John has not always paid his child support on time and the CSA has been vital in ensuring that John supports his children. Jane, the CSA case officer who takes Tina’s call explains how international cases work, residency, overseas income and the CSA’s international child support arrangements.

As John is going to Germany for more than six months the CSA can consider transferring the case to their international section. John will need to provide information about how long he is planning on staying and his residency status. The CSA is able to work with the Department of Immigration and Citizenship to get this information if John will not provide it.

Each year John will be asked to provide information about how much income he will be earning in Germany, along with any Australian income such as from rental properties or shares.

The CSA will first try to come to a voluntary agreement with John to pay his child support through mail pay or telegraphic transfer.

If John does not make voluntary payments and becomes a permanent resident overseas, the CSA may have the case considered for transmittal to Germany. If so, Tina will need to complete a transmittal questionnaire within the prescribed timeframe before the case officer can begin work on the transmittal package for Germany. It can take several months before the case is ready to be sent to Germany. Once the case is sent to Germany it is then up to the German authorities to register the case through their system and begin collection.

Once a case is transmitted overseas the CSA has no control over how or when the money is collected. In some cases no further action is taken by the overseas authority. In other cases, payments are made through the overseas authority to CSA. Tina is advised by Jane, the Child Support Officer, that if John does not pay voluntarily it could be several months before she starts receiving regular payments again.

Andrew and Holly

Holly lives in the United Kingdom with her daughter Bea. Holly contacts the CSA to apply for child support as her ex-husband Andrew moved to Queensland two years ago and has not had contact with her or paid child support since leaving the UK.

Craig from the CSA informs Holly that she will need to apply through Reciprocal Enforcement of Maintenance Obligations (REMO) in the United Kingdom as the CSA cannot accept the application directly.

When the application for a child support assessment is received via REMO the Child Support Officer Craig searches for and locates an address for Andrew in Queensland. Craig then contacts Andrew and explains the Australian child support system. Andrew confirms he is now a resident of Australia and tells Craig that he was only required to pay 20 pounds per month in child support in the UK based on a 1994 court order and asks how the CSA can change that amount. Craig explains the UK and Australian child support systems are different and that because Andrew is now living in Australia Holly has the right to apply for an Australian assessment of child support under Australian law. This is why overseas applications have to be made through the country where the applicant lives so the overseas authority knows an application for an Australian assessment has been made.

Craig explains the CSA will do an assessment based on Andrew and Holly’s incomes from the previous year and this will be the amount that Andrew will have to pay to support his children. Once the assessment is made both he and Holly will receive assessment letters about how the amount is calculated. Holly has asked the CSA to collect the child support payments on her behalf so Andrew will receive a statement from CSA each month. He will then pay child support directly to the CSA who will send the money overseas to Holly.

Andrew asks what will happen if he does not pay. Craig explained that the CSA can then contact his employer and request the child support be deducted directly from his wages. Andrew says he did not know he had to pay child support once he left the UK so he is happy to pay it through the CSA.

Nick and Kerry

Kerry has just moved to Melbourne with her three children for a fresh start following her divorce from Nick. Nick has been paying child support through New Zealand Inland Revenue for 12 months.

Before she left New Zealand Kerry advised the New Zealand Inland Revenue Child Support (NZIRCS) that she was moving to Australia. NZIRCS advised Kerry that she could contact the Australian CSA when she arrived in Australia to register her case.

When Kerry calls CSA on 131272 she advises the Child Support Officer Andrew that she has a case in New Zealand. Andrew confirms that Kerry now considers herself habitually resident in Australia and she can now apply for child support through the CSA. Andrew tells Kerry to call CSA on 131272 if she has any questions about her case or if there are any changes in her income or the care of her children.

Andrew registers the case in Australia and notifies NZIRCS, who then end their case.

The CSA contacts Nick in Paraparaumu in New Zealand and tells him the CSA has registered a child support case for him and Kerry. Nick says he would rather pay through NZIRCS as it would cost him more money to transfer payments to Australia every month. Andrew tells Nick that we can arrange for his payments to be payable through NZIRCS, but there will be a delay while the case is sent back to New Zealand and he should make payments to Australian CSA until payment arrangements are set up in New Zealand.

Andrew then transfers the case to NZIRCS for collection. Kerry receives a letter advising her that the case has been transferred back to New Zealand for collection and there will be a delay before any payments are received. Any enquiries Kerry has will need to be made through the Australian CSA on 131272.

To negotiate payment of any arrears Nick will need to call NZIRCS on 0800 221 221 (free call from New Zealand) as they are now collecting the payments. Any administrative changes such as a change to Nick’s income or a change in care of the children Nick should call the CSA on +61 131272 or +61 3 621 60864

Kim and Daniel

Kim has just moved to Australia from the Philippines with her two children. She contacts the Child Support Agency but has limited information about her ex partner Daniel. They have been separated for five years and she has only sporadically received child support payments since then. They were married for four years, during which time the children were born. She explained that Daniel returned home to the USA when they separated but although she knows which state he is living in she does not know his address and is not sure how much he is earning or where he works. Kim said that Daniel has never been to Australia and does not think that Daniel will come to Australia to see his children but she would still like him to provide some financial support.

The Child Support Officer Keith explains to Kim that the Australian CSA has an agreement with the USA in relation to child support and that some States in the USA are able assist the CSA by providing contact details and income for a child support parents who lives in that State. Keith asks Kim for any information she has about Daniel and explains he will send a request to the USA. There may be a delay until this information is received but a child support case will start now and can be amended when correct income information is received. Keith also explains that Australian law allows the CSA to make an administrative assessment of how much child support Daniel is required to pay. In Australia, child support does not need to be determined by the courts.

Keith tells Kim that he can transfer her to Centrelink to investigate what her Centrelink entitlements are and tells her about other support services to help her plan her family budget.

Once Daniel’s address and income details are received from the USA the CSA will try to contact Daniel to explain his obligations under the Australian child support system. Keith also asks Kim to notify the CSA if she receives any payments directly from Daniel.

If Daniel does not make payments the case may be sent to the USA for registration and collection. If this happens Kim will be asked to complete a transmittal questionnaire to be included as part of the transmittal package that is sent to the USA. There could be a delay until the case is registered by the courts in the USA. There could also be further delays if Daniel opposes the application. Once the case is sent it is up to the US authorities to register the liability and collect the payments, the CSA does not have any control over this process. Kim can call the CSA for updates but we would not advise her to call more regularly than once every three months as we would not request updates from the USA more frequently than this.