Does a consent order involve child maintenance?
A consent order may include provisions for child support, but the consent order only binds the child maintenance for a full year. After that point, the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) is in charge of enforcing child support and determining the amount owed.
In order to be able to provide child maintenance as evidence of income when applying for a mortgage or even a rental agreement, many individuals include it in a consent order.
But after a year, the CMS takes over, and they will advise you to set up a family-based plan.
In the event that you are unable to come to an agreement, you may request that they calculate the amount that should be paid; this amount will then be legally obligatory, even if it differs from the amount specified in the consent order.
Recall that spousal maintenance and child maintenance are two distinct areas of family law. Both may include monthly payments from one side to the other, but the laws handle them quite differently. We usually advise getting separate legal counsel on this matter because it’s a tricky issue. A worldwide maintenance payment may occasionally be made by combining spousal and child maintenance.
