It so happened that any child born into the world has a full right to receive parental care and alimony. Unfortunately, the parental instinct does not always take place. From legislation (paying attention to the Constitution of Ukraine), parents are obliged to financially support their child until their son or daughter can earn their living. That is why it is so important to understand what constitutes the recovery of alimony. Moreover, the obligation to provide for the child applies regardless of the relationship of the parents: whether they are married or not.
If one of the parents forgets about their responsibilities, the legal mechanism of regulation comes to the aid of the child in the form of coercion to material support through the payment of alimony. This mechanism is also the main one in the case of divorce, which allows providing the common child with material benefits that would contribute to its harmonious development.
How do I get alimony?
The possibility of obtaining alimony never arises just like that. That is, one of the parents must self-withdraw from raising a child and supporting it financially. There should be no good reason for this. Such a scenario is possible not only in the case of divorce. Moreover, one of the spouses, while married, can ignore their responsibilities to provide the child with normal living conditions and development. Situations can be different. So, after the official breakup of the relationship between the spouses, the father continues without any compulsion to do everything that depends on him, so that his child does not feel violated.
After a divorce, one of the parents will certainly feel the full weight of the burden of independent upbringing and maintenance of the child. It is worth understanding that promises of help to a child must be supported not only by words but also by deeds. Therefore, you cannot delay the application for alimony recovery, because it can be quite problematic to get what is required by law. It is worth taking up the case immediately after there are at least the slightest grounds for collecting monetary support from a negligent parent.
Recovery of alimony in Ukraine can be achieved if you follow the following scheme:
- first of all, try to settle the issue of paying alimony with your spouse peacefully. Try to negotiate a specific fixed number once a month.
- If the spouse agrees to your alimony settlement, then this agreement should be recorded by a notary, as a variant of a civil contract.
- If the agreement was not reached, then you need to apply to the court with a request for the appointment of compulsory payments.
The court’s decision will be binding since the current legislation threatens evaders from payments with a large number of problems. But this path is thorny and difficult, so it is important to contact a good family lawyer who can explain all the nuances and help in solving your specific situation. Kasyanenko & Partners Law Company will do everything possible to ensure that the process of collecting alimony goes smoothly for you and without unnecessary difficulties.
Methods of establishing child support
There are two ways to calculate the number of alimony:
- part of all revenue;
- fixed number of money.
The choice of the calculation method is influenced by a huge number of parameters: starting from the income of the spouse and ending with the workplace constancy.
If we are talking about the number of alimony in the form of a part of income, then wages, scholarships, pensions, one-time monetary incentives and other documented sources of income are taken into account. The family code of Ukraine provides an accurate calculation of the part of the spouse’s income, depending on how many children claim financial support. In the case of one child, this is 25% of all income, for two children – 33% and 50% of income for three or more. Speaking of a fixed amount, it should not be lower than 50% of the minimum subsistence level for a child at a certain age.
The choice of what alimony your child will receive depends on various nuances. For example, if the spouse does not have an official job, it is better to think about a fixed amount of money. If the father has a permanent and well-paid job, then the percentage of alimony will be more appropriate. In other words, when claiming monetary payments, you can specify the desired method of withholding alimony.
Features of filing an application for alimony through the court
To recover alimony through the court, you need to apply to the appropriate authority with an application. Modern laws allow a spouse to file documents for alimony in the court of their place of residence if they are acting in the interests of their children. In this case, you will not have to pay the court fee. A request for compulsory payments is issued as an application for a court order. In this case, it must indicate the place of work or residence of the spouse. If you do not have data about the Respondent’s current place of residence, then you must specify the last known data.
If the defendant resides in another country, you can control the outcome of your case. First, the court decides on the recovery, after which the relevant notification is sent to the country of residence of the spouse. This happens based on an international Convention to which Ukraine is a party through the Ministry of justice. Most often, the Respondent has the opportunity to appeal the number of alimony in the direction of its reduction, but this does not affect the mandatory payments.
Is it possible to change the number of alimony?
If alimony is a fixed number that does not suit one of the participants in the case, then you can always submit a corresponding application to the court to change the number of payments. At the same time, this application cannot suspend payments that have already been made, and the spouse will be obliged to provide for the child until the new decision comes into force. Changing the number of alimony does not happen from scratch. There must be reasons for this, which include:
- deterioration of the General financial condition, reduction in work or reduction of wages;
- changes in the family structure that require additional expenses for maintenance;
- deterioration of health status with significant spending on treatment;
- new child maintenance costs.
The number of alimony can be reduced or increased by a court decision.
What about debtors?
If alimony has not been received for three months, it is mandatory to take the necessary measures to recover the debt. If the essence of alimony is based on the voluntary consent of the spouse under a civil contract, then you should contact a notary or a court. If the payment is compulsory, the debt should be handled by the Executive service.
In Ukraine today, from the legislative point of view, there are conditions under which it is simply not profitable not to pay alimony because there are some restrictions for those who have given up their duties for three or more months:
- driver’s license revocation;
- no possibility of crossing the border;
- ban on the use of weapons;
- ban on hunting and related activities.
At the same time, the lack of payments cannot be motivated by the lack of a permanent job, because the state offers to work off the debt on public works. Malicious defaulters who refuse to perform community service will be imprisoned for 15 days.