Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that Child Maintenance Service liability accurately reflects actual care arrangements, including in cases where the paying parent has become the primary carer but Child Benefit remains registered to the other parent.

To qualify for maintenance payments a child must meet the Child Maintenance Service's (CMS) criteria. They must be under 20 years of age and in full time non-advanced education or approved training, and eligible for Child Benefit. They must also be habitually resident in the UK and usually living in the same household as the receiving parent. Child maintenance defines a child the same way as Child Benefit does to offer consistency across rules.

If the CMS is satisfied that both parents have equal day-to-day care for the child, in addition to sharing overnight care, there is no requirement for either parent to pay child maintenance. There is no statutory definition of day-to-day care; our definition is broadly aligned with that of Child Benefit, where an ‘overall care test’ is used. This provides consistency across government.

The CMS shared care rules are designed to reflect the financial responsibilities of both parents based on the care provided to the child. The inclusion of overnight stays as a measure of shared care is intended to offer a clear, administrable way to assess the level of care each parent provides.

CMS does not routinely contact local authorities or schools to verify care arrangements. Instead, it relies on evidence provided by parents and applies an “overall care test” aligned with Child Benefit principles. Receipt of Child Benefit is regarded as a strong indicator of entitlement but, in circumstances where parents dispute the level of shared care, caseworkers consider all relevant evidence. A decision is made on the balance of probability to determine who provides day-to-day care. Where this evidence indicates a change in primary care, the CMS will update and adjust maintenance liability, even if Child Benefit remains registered with the other parent.

Collection activity is not automatically paused during verification, but CMS can exercise discretion where there is clear evidence of a dispute over care arrangements.

Where payments have been made in error following an incorrect care-status determination, CMS has processes to refund overpayments to the paying parent and, where appropriate, to recoup funds from the receiving parent. Reimbursement decisions are discretionary and consider whether the overpayment resulted from CMS error and whether the paying parent has requested repayment.