When parents separate, one of the first questions that comes up is how much child maintenance should be paid?
And it’s not always an easy conversation.
One parent might feel they’re being asked to pay too much. The other might worry they won’t receive enough to cover the children’s everyday costs.
The good news is that you don’t have to work it out from scratch.
The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) uses a formula to calculate how much maintenance should be paid, based mainly on income, the number of children and how often they stay with each parent.
But here’s something many separating couples don’t realise.
You don’t have to use the Child Maintenance Service if you can agree on payments yourselves.
And if you’re getting divorced, it’s worth understanding how child maintenance fits alongside your wider financial settlement.
Let’s look at how it all works.
What is child maintenance?
Child maintenance is money paid by one parent towards the everyday costs of raising their children after separation.
It’s generally paid by the parent who doesn’t have the main day-to-day care of the children to the parent who does.
The money helps towards things like food, clothing, housing and other everyday living expenses.
Both parents have a responsibility to support their children financially, regardless of whether they were married.
And importantly, child maintenance is separate from your divorce financial settlement.
Your financial settlement deals with things like your home, savings, pensions and other assets. Child maintenance deals with ongoing financial support for your children.
How much child maintenance should I pay?
The amount depends mainly on four things:
- The paying parent’s gross income before tax, with certain adjustments.
- How many children they need to support.
- How many nights the children stay with the paying parent.
- Whether the paying parent supports other children.
The CMS gets income information from HMRC and uses it to calculate a weekly maintenance amount.
For parents with an adjusted gross weekly income between £200 and £800, the basic calculation is:
| Number of children | Percentage of weekly income |
|---|---|
| One child | 12% |
| Two children | 16% |
| Three or more children | 19% |
For example, if you earn £500 a week before tax, after any relevant adjustments, the starting calculation would be:
- One child: £60 a week.
- Two children: £80 a week.
- Three or more children: £95 a week.
These are starting figures. The final amount could be lower if the children stay overnight with you regularly, or if you support other children.
Different calculations apply to people on lower incomes and to earnings above £800 a week. The CMS generally takes income into account up to £3,000 a week.
You can check your estimated payments using the government’s child maintenance calculator.
I’d recommend doing this before discussing maintenance with your ex. It gives you both a sensible starting point based on the same figures.
Does 50/50 shared care mean no child maintenance?
This is probably one of the biggest areas of confusion.
If both parents provide equal day-to-day care of their child, neither will generally have to pay child maintenance through the CMS.
But simply having the children stay with you regularly doesn’t automatically mean you won’t have to pay.
The CMS looks at the number of overnight stays and, where relevant, who provides the child’s day-to-day care.
For the usual basic-rate calculation, overnight stays reduce maintenance as follows:
| Nights per year with paying parent | Reduction |
|---|---|
| Fewer than 52 | No reduction |
| 52–103 | One-seventh |
| 104–155 | Two-sevenths |
| 156–174 | Three-sevenths |
| 175 or more | 50%, plus £7 a week per child |
There are additional rules for lower-income cases.
Here’s an example.
Suppose the starting maintenance amount is £80 a week for two children.
If both children stay with the paying parent for 104 nights a year, the payment would reduce by two-sevenths, bringing it down to approximately £57.14 a week.
One thing worth understanding is that daytime contact on its own doesn’t reduce child maintenance under the standard overnight-stay calculation.
And where parents genuinely share care equally, the CMS also considers day-to-day responsibilities rather than relying on the number of nights alone.
Does my ex’s income affect child maintenance?
Generally, no.
The standard CMS calculation is based on the paying parent’s income, not the receiving parent’s earnings or their new partner’s salary.
So, if your ex earns significantly more than you, that doesn’t automatically reduce the maintenance you have to pay.
Equally, if your ex starts living with somebody who earns a good salary, that doesn’t automatically mean your child maintenance payments stop.
What can affect the calculation is whether the paying parent supports other children.
For example, if they or their partner receive Child Benefit for another child, the CMS may reduce the income figure used in the calculation.
The standard reductions for other supported children are 11% for one, 14% for two and 16% for three or more, where the relevant income rules apply.
Can we agree child maintenance between ourselves?
Absolutely. And if you have a reasonably amicable relationship, this is often the simplest approach.
It’s called a family-based arrangement.
You agree how much will be paid, how often payments will be made and whether there will be any additional contributions towards particular expenses.
You can use the government’s child maintenance calculator as your starting point, but you’re not required to follow its figure.
For example, you might agree that one parent pays £300 a month towards everyday costs while the other covers school uniforms or certain activities.
There’s no charge for making this arrangement, and you can adjust it as your circumstances change.
The downside is that an informal arrangement isn’t automatically legally enforceable.
If payments stop, you may need to apply to the CMS to establish a formal maintenance calculation.
That’s why I’d suggest putting any private agreement in writing, even when you’re getting along well.
It helps avoid misunderstandings further down the line.
What if we can’t agree on child maintenance?
If you can’t agree, either parent can apply to the Child Maintenance Service.
The CMS will calculate the amount payable using the statutory rules.
There are two main ways to manage payments.
Direct Pay
The CMS calculates the maintenance amount, but the paying parent makes payments directly to the receiving parent.
There are no ongoing collection fees.
This can work well when you want an official calculation but are happy to handle the payments yourselves.
Collect and Pay
The CMS collects the maintenance from the paying parent and passes it to the receiving parent.
However, this service comes with additional charges.
The paying parent pays an extra 20% on top of the maintenance amount, while the receiving parent has 4% deducted from what they receive.
For example, on a maintenance payment of £300:
- The paying parent would pay £360.
- The receiving parent would receive £288.
That’s a significant difference, which is why it’s worth maintaining a workable payment arrangement wherever possible.
You can find out how to apply through the government’s Child Maintenance Service.
What happens if my ex stops paying child maintenance?
This depends on how your maintenance has been arranged.
If you have a private agreement, the CMS cannot automatically enforce it. You would need to consider making a formal CMS application.
If you’re using Direct Pay, you can report missed payments and ask to move to Collect and Pay.
Once the CMS is responsible for collecting payments, it has enforcement powers.
These can include taking money directly from wages, pensions, benefits or bank accounts.
For serious cases involving unpaid maintenance, further enforcement action may be available, including liability orders and action against property.
The important thing is not to ignore missed payments.
Keep records of what has been agreed, what has been paid and anything outstanding.
When does child maintenance stop?
Child maintenance generally continues until a child reaches 16.
However, if they’re still in approved non-advanced education or training, such as A-levels, it can continue until they finish qualifying education or reach 20, whichever comes first.
University degrees don’t normally count as qualifying non-advanced education.
And remember, any unpaid maintenance doesn’t simply disappear when regular payments end.
Outstanding arrears can still be recovered.
Can child maintenance be included in a divorce consent order?
Yes, and this is where it’s important to understand the difference between child maintenance and your wider divorce finances.
A financial consent order is a legal document that sets out the financial arrangements agreed between divorcing spouses.
It’s approved by a judge and can make arrangements covering property, savings, pensions and other financial matters legally binding.
A consent order can also include agreed child maintenance payments.
For example, it could record how much one parent will pay each month, when payments are due and how certain additional expenses, such as school fees, will be covered.
However, there is an important limitation.
Where the CMS has jurisdiction, a child maintenance provision in a consent order does not permanently prevent either parent from asking the CMS to reassess maintenance.
Generally, once the order has been in place for 12 months, either parent can apply to the CMS for a new calculation.
This means you shouldn’t assume that including child maintenance in your divorce settlement fixes the amount indefinitely.
Some additional financial commitments, such as school fees, can be treated differently, so the wording and circumstances matter.
Do I need a consent order if we’ve already agreed child maintenance?
Not necessarily for the child maintenance alone.
But if you’re getting divorced, agreeing child maintenance doesn’t settle your other financial claims against each other.
This is something I regularly explain to couples.
You might have agreed who pays the mortgage, how much child maintenance will be paid and even who keeps the family home.
But unless your financial settlement is properly recorded in a court-approved consent order, you could still have outstanding financial claims against each other after the divorce.
And that’s a completely separate issue from whether you’re paying the right amount of child maintenance.
At Easy Online Divorce, we help individuals and couples put their agreed financial arrangements into a legally binding consent order, including a financial clean break between spouses.
We can also include agreed child maintenance arrangements where suitable, subject to the relevant legal rules and the court’s approval.
If you’ve already agreed your financial settlement, take a look at our Consent Order Service.
And if you’re getting divorced and want both the divorce and financial arrangements handled together, our Divorce and Consent Order packages may be a better fit.
Frequently asked questions about child maintenance
Do I have to pay child maintenance if I don’t see my children?
Yes. Child maintenance and contact arrangements are separate issues. Not seeing your children doesn’t remove your responsibility to support them financially.
Can I stop paying child maintenance if my ex remarries?
No. Your ex getting married or moving in with a new partner doesn’t automatically end your child maintenance obligation.
Is child maintenance calculated before or after tax?
The CMS generally uses gross income before Income Tax and National Insurance, with adjustments for things such as pension contributions.
Does child maintenance affect the division of our house or pensions?
Child maintenance is separate from the division of assets. However, the income and financial needs of both parents, including the needs of the children, may be relevant when deciding a fair divorce financial settlement.
Can child maintenance be changed if I lose my job?
Yes. Changes in income or circumstances can affect your payments. The CMS generally uses a 25% change in income as the threshold for switching to a different current-income figure, although other changes can also affect maintenance. Report changes promptly rather than stopping payments yourself.
Can we agree to pay more or less than the CMS calculation?
Yes, if you’re making a private family-based arrangement. You can agree an amount that works for your circumstances. However, either parent may subsequently apply to the CMS for a statutory calculation.
Final thoughts
Child maintenance doesn’t need to become another battle when you’re separating.
The government provides a clear calculation to help parents understand what’s expected, and if you can agree arrangements between yourselves, you don’t have to involve the CMS at all.
My advice is to start with the calculator, understand how the figures work and try to agree something that’s fair and practical for your children.
But remember that sorting out child maintenance is not the same as sorting out your divorce finances.
If you’re divorcing, make sure you also deal properly with your home, savings, pensions and any outstanding financial claims.
At Easy Online Divorce, we’re an SRA-regulated law firm specialising in fixed-fee online divorce and financial consent orders.
We help individuals and couples turn agreed financial arrangements into a legally binding settlement, without the expense and complexity of a traditional solicitor-led divorce.
