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New Zealand law explained for everyone

Child Support Act 1991

Voluntary agreements - Qualifying voluntary agreements

49: Minimum instalment required before agreement can be accepted

You could also call this:

"Payments in child support agreements must be at least $10 per week"

For a voluntary agreement to be accepted, you need to make sure that each weekly payment is at least $10. This applies to agreements about supporting children or the other party involved.

If you have a document with more than one agreement, and it's about paying for both children and the other party, you need to make sure that each weekly payment for the children is at least $10, and each weekly payment for the other party is also at least $10.

Sometimes, you might have two or more agreements between the same people about payments for children. In this case, even if each agreement is less than $10 per week, the person in charge (called the Commissioner) might still accept them if the total of all the weekly payments adds up to $10 or more.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM254079.

Topics:
Family and relationships > Children and parenting
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48: Voluntary agreements that qualify for acceptance, or

"Rules for making child or partner support agreements that the government will accept"

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50: Exception where payee is UCB beneficiary, or

"Special rules apply when the person receiving child support payments gets an unsupported child's benefit"

Part 3Voluntary agreements
Qualifying voluntary agreements

49Minimum instalment required before agreement can be accepted

  1. No voluntary agreement shall qualify for acceptance by the Commissioner under this Act unless each weekly instalment is not less than $10.

  2. A document that contains more than 1 voluntary agreement for the purposes of this Act and that provides both—

  3. for payments towards the support of 1 or more qualifying children; and
    1. for payments towards the support of the other party,—
        1. shall not qualify for acceptance by the Commissioner under this Act unless—
      1. each weekly instalment in respect of the child or children is not less than $10; and
        1. each weekly instalment in respect of the other party is not less than $10.

          1. Notwithstanding subsections (1) and (2), the Commissioner may treat an agreement as qualifying for acceptance if—

          2. 2 or more voluntary agreements are made by the same parties providing for payments to be made in respect of 1 or more qualifying children; and
            1. the sum of the weekly instalments payable under those agreements is not less than $10.