If your child's other parent does not live with you, they are usually expected to help with the cost of raising your child through child maintenance. A common worry is whether receiving maintenance will reduce your benefits. The reassuring answer is that it does not. This guide explains how child maintenance works, how to arrange it, and why it does not affect your benefits.
What child maintenance is
Child maintenance is regular financial support towards a child's everyday living costs, paid by a parent who does not live with the child to the parent or person who does. It is meant to help with the cost of things like food, clothes and other essentials. Both parents remain responsible for supporting their children financially, and child maintenance is the way this is arranged when parents live apart.
It does not affect your benefits
The most important point for anyone on benefits is that child maintenance does not count as income for your means-tested benefits. Whether you receive a little or a lot, it does not reduce your Universal Credit, Housing Benefit, Council Tax Reduction or other benefits. This means maintenance is genuinely extra money for your family, on top of whatever benefits you receive, which is why it is always worth arranging if you can.
Arranging maintenance privately
Many parents arrange child maintenance privately between themselves, which is often called a family-based arrangement. This is usually the simplest and quickest way, with no fees and full flexibility over the amount and how it is paid, as long as both parents can agree and stick to it. A private arrangement works well where parents are on reasonable terms, and it avoids the costs and formality of going through the official service.
The Child Maintenance Service
If you cannot agree privately, or an arrangement breaks down, you can use the Child Maintenance Service, the government body that calculates and can collect maintenance. It works out how much should be paid based mainly on the paying parent's income, the number of children, and how often the child stays overnight with them. The service can arrange for payments to be made directly between parents, or collect and pass on the money, though fees can apply.
How the amount is worked out
The Child Maintenance Service calculates payments using a formula based on the paying parent's gross income and the number of children they must support, with reductions to reflect nights the child spends with the paying parent and any other children they support. Broadly, the more the paying parent earns and the more children involved, the higher the payment, up to set limits. The aim is a consistent, predictable amount based on the paying parent's ability to pay.
If payments are not made
If a paying parent does not pay what they should through the Child Maintenance Service, the service has powers to enforce payment, such as taking it directly from wages or bank accounts. If you have a private arrangement that breaks down, you can switch to the Child Maintenance Service. Do not give up on maintenance you are owed, as there are ways to enforce it, and the money makes a real difference to your child.
Maintenance and shared care
Where children split their time between both parents, maintenance takes account of how many nights the child spends with the paying parent, reducing the amount as the number of nights increases. In some shared care situations, no maintenance may be due either way. If care is genuinely shared, it is worth understanding how this affects any calculation, as it can significantly change the amount payable.
Why maintenance being ignored matters
The fact that child maintenance does not count as income for benefits is genuinely important, because it means there is no trade-off between receiving maintenance and keeping your benefits. Every pound of maintenance is a pound extra for your family, rather than reducing your Universal Credit. This is a deliberate rule designed to make sure children benefit fully from both their parents' support and the benefits system, so it is always worth pursuing maintenance you are owed.
Choosing how to arrange it
When deciding between a private arrangement and the Child Maintenance Service, think about your relationship with the other parent and how reliable payments are likely to be. A family-based arrangement is free, flexible and quick where it works, while the Child Maintenance Service offers structure and enforcement where agreement is difficult. You can start with a private arrangement and move to the service later if it breaks down, so the choice is not permanent.
Fees and the collection service
The Child Maintenance Service can simply work out the amount and let the parents arrange payment directly, or it can collect the money from the paying parent and pass it on. Using the collection service can involve fees for both parents, so many use the calculation and pay directly between themselves to avoid charges. It is worth understanding any fees before you choose, so the arrangement works as well as possible for your family.
Keep a record of payments
Whatever arrangement you have, it helps to keep a record of the maintenance that is due and what has actually been paid. This is useful if a private arrangement breaks down and you need to move to the Child Maintenance Service, or if you need to show what has been paid. A simple record avoids disputes about what was owed and paid, and helps you act quickly if payments stop.
Maintenance for children with disabilities
Child maintenance usually continues while a child is under 16, or under 20 if they remain in approved education or training, in the same way as Child Benefit. For a disabled young person who stays in education longer, maintenance can continue accordingly. If your child has a disability and you are unsure how long maintenance should be paid, it is worth checking, as their continued education may mean support should carry on for longer than you expect.
In short
Child maintenance is support from a parent who lives apart from their child, and crucially it does not count as income for your benefits, so it does not reduce your Universal Credit or other support. You can arrange it privately or through the Child Maintenance Service, which calculates it based on the paying parent's income and can enforce it if necessary.
The bottom line for families
For any parent raising children apart from the other parent, it is worth remembering that maintenance and benefits are designed to work together rather than against each other. The key messages are simple: child maintenance is worth pursuing because it is extra money that does not reduce your benefits, and there is more than one way to arrange it. Whether you agree it privately or use the Child Maintenance Service, getting maintenance in place, and keeping it flowing, makes a real difference to your children, so it is well worth the effort even when arranging it feels difficult at first or the relationship between you is strained.
Where to get help
Child Maintenance Options, Gingerbread and Citizens Advice can help you arrange maintenance. See our guide to benefits and support for single parents for the wider picture.