Lump Sum child support 277-02030000

A lump sum binding agreement must:

• meet the general requirements for a child support agreement, see the Child Support Guide 2.7.1: What is a child support agreement?, and
• include a legal advice statement for each party, and
• include a legal advisors certificate for each party, and
• state the lump sum payment is to be credited against the amount payable under the administrative assessment or the periodic payment in the agreement

In addition:

• there must be an administrative assessment in force prior to the application for acceptance being made, and
• the amount of the lump sum must equal or exceed the current annual rate of the administrative assessment

If the documents provided do not meet all of the six essential criteria, it cannot be accepted as lump sum binding agreement, see Agreements between Child Support customers.

Go to Step 4.

Look for specific references to section 124 within the wording of the order. For example: ‘That pursuant to section 124 of the Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989’

If section 124 is not specifically mentioned, check the wording of the provisions in the order. To be a section 124 order it must specify that child support will be made as non-periodic payments.

The court order must also state whether the annual rate of child support is to be reduced by an amount or percentage (section 125). If the order doesn’t state that the annual rate is to be reduced, the non-periodic payments are to be paid in addition to the assessed annual rate. If the order states that the annual rate is to be reduced by the non-periodic payments, the order must specify the relevant amount or percentage,

See Court varied assessments (CVA) including lump sum orders for further assistance. A section 124 order is not technically a court varied assessment as the court is not making any variation to the assessment itself. However, the procedure remains relevant as it outlines the general procedural requirements for loading a court order onto Cuba and contacting customers. For instructions for processing a section 124 order, go to Step 6.

Look for specific references to section 123A within the wording of the order.

Example 1

‘That pursuant to section 123A of the Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989’

If section 123A is not specifically mentioned, check the wording of the provisions within the order. To be a section 123A order it must specify the amount of the lump sum, and that the lump sum is to be credited against 100% (or another specified percentage) of the amount payable under the liability.

Example 2

‘The court orders Parent A to provide child support to Parent B for the children D, E and F by way of a lump sum payment of $X. This amount is to be credited against the administrative assessment(s) of child support. From start date, the lump sum child support is to be credited as 100% (or some other specified percentage) of the annual rate of child support payable, until the lump sum is exhausted.’

If the order does not mention s123A or specify the provisions above, it may be a section 124 order for non-periodic provisions, a child support agreement or a court varied assessment. Seek assistance from a Service Support Officer (SSO).

See Court varied assessments (CVA) including lump sum orders for further assistance. A section 123A order is not technically a court varied assessment as the court is not making any variation to the assessment itself. However, the procedure remains relevant as it outlines the general procedural requirements for loading a court order onto Cuba and contacting customers. For instructions for loading a section 123A order, go to Step 6.

Regardless of whether the document is or isn’t going to be accepted as a lump sum binding agreement, the full details must be loaded, pended and documented onto Cuba for record keeping and finalisation purposes. See Agreement Lump Sum Window Help.

Ensure every document received is fully documented in the case notepad and is batch-filed appropriately, see Documenting Child Support information in Cuba.

Pend the registration.

Return to Agreements between Child Support customers for assistance in making the decision to accept or reject the agreement.

If the lump sum is to be credited at the rate of 100% of the child support payable, a $0 liability will raise on the Payer Account Summary each month indicating that no amount is payable by the payer. Once the lump sum credit is fully used, a monthly liability will commence being raised on the Payer Account Summary and is payable by the payer.

The Resources page contains examples of lump sum credits.

Once the document is definitely confirmed as a sealed copy of a section 123A court or a section 124 order, seek assistance from a SSO to determine how the court order should be processed.

Ensure every document received is fully documented in the case notepad and is batch-filed appropriately, see Documenting Child Support information in Cuba.

Pend the registration.

Contact both customers before finalising the order, see Court varied assessments (CVA) including lump sum orders.