Source: Inland Revenue Department –
Hon David Parker
Minister of Revenue
Dr Deborah Russell
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of Revenue
18 March 2021
Law simplifies and encourages child support
- Fairer and more effective penalty rules
- Compulsory deductions of financial support from source deduction payments made by an employer for newly liable parents
- A fairer definition of “income” used for child support purposes, and
- A four-year time bar on the reassessment of child support
The Child Support Act has been amended to reduce the scheme’s complexity, improve fairness and increase compliance.
“The Government wants to encourage greater compliance and greater engagement from liable parents. It is clear that some of the penalties imposed for unpaid child support are actually deterring people from meeting their obligations when those penalties start mounting up,” Revenue Minister David Parker said.
“This new legislation removes incremental penalties.”
Parliamentary Under-Secretary Dr Deborah Russell said the changes made the scheme as fair and simple as possible.
“The Government is committed to making changes that will mean better long-term outcomes for more Kiwi children and this will provide certainty for parents and the 185,000 qualifying children,” she said.
The aim is to prepare the child support scheme to transition to Inland Revenue’s new technology platform and in doing so, further simplify the administration of the child support scheme. The Child Support Amendment Bill improves the administration of the child support scheme in line with Inland Revenue’s “right from the start” philosophy.
