[2025] UKUT 027 (AAC)

The Child Support Act 1991 (the “1991 Act”) establishes a scheme for the provision of child support, which is administered on behalf of the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions by the Child Maintenance Service.

The 1991 Act assumes that a child is cared for by one parent, and that parent is referred to as the ‘parent with care‘. The other parent is, in most circumstances, the ‘non-resident parent’.

Where both parents are involved in caring for a child the 1991 Act treats this as a ‘special case’ under section 42, and regulation 50 of The Child Support Maintenance Calculation Regulations 2012 (the “Calculation Regulations”) applies.

If there is no ‘non-resident parent’ the child support scheme doesn’t apply.

Section 50 of the Calculation Regulations provides:

“50.- (1) Where the circumstances of a case are that-

(a)

an application is made by a person with care under section 4 of the 1991 Act; and

(b)

the person named in that application as the non-resident parent of the qualifying child also provides a home for that child (in a different household from the applicant) and shares the day-to-day care of that child with the applicant, the case is to be treated as a special case for the purposes of the 1991 Act.

(2)

For the purposes of this special case, the person mentioned in paragraph 1(b) is to be treated as the non-resident parent if, and only if, that person provides day to day care to a lesser extent than the applicant.

(3)

Where the applicant is receiving child benefit in respect of the qualifying child the applicant is assumed, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, to be providing day to day care to a greater extent than any other person.

(4)

For the purposes of paragraph (3), where a person has made an election under section 13A(1) of the Social Security Administration Act 1992 (election not to receive child benefit) for payments of child benefit not to be made, that person is to be treated as receiving child benefit.”