Hon Peter Dunne
Government Bill
337—1
Explanatory note
1 Title
2 Commencement
3 Principal Act amended
Part 1Formula assessment of child support
4 Long Title repealed
5 Interpretation
6 Objects
7 New section 4A inserted
4A Overview of child support payable under formula assessment
Amendments to Part 1 (liability to pay)
8 Children who qualify for child support
9 New headings and sections 7B to 19 substituted
7B Number of parents of child
Application for formula assessment
8 Who may apply for formula assessment
9 Social security beneficiaries must apply for formula assessment
10 Form of application
11 Multiple applications in single form
12 Deemed application by beneficiary
13 Notification by Commissioner of application
Determining care cost percentages
14 Commissioner to establish proportions of care
15 How Commissioner establishes proportions of care
16 Determining care cost percentages
Liable parents and receiving carers
17 Identification of liable parents and receiving carers
18 Effect of being liable parent or receiving carer
Beginning of liability to pay child support under formula assessment
19 When liability to pay child support starts
10 New section 25 substituted
25 When liability to pay child support ceases
Amendments to Part 2 (assessment of amounts)
11 New headings and sections 28A to 36D substituted
28A Commissioner to assess child support payable under formula assessment
29 Formula for assessing annual amount of child support
30 Minimum annual rate of child support
Determining income percentages
31 Income percentage
32 Child support income amount
33 Adjusted taxable income
34 Living allowance
35 Dependent child allowance
36 Multi-group allowance
Amounts payable in respect of receiving carers
36A Where parent is sole receiving carer
36B Where all receiving carers are non-parents
36C Where 2 or more receiving carers, with at least 1 parent
Expenditure on children
36D Child expenditure tables
12 Effect of election
Amendments to Part 5 (procedures)
13 Minimum rate of child support or domestic maintenance
14 New section 82 substituted
82 Parents and receiving carers to advise Commissioner of changes
15 New sections 88 to 89 substituted
88 Notice of assessment of formula assessment of child support
88A Details in notices of assessments
89 Notification by Commissioner to other payers and payees
Amendments to Part 6 (objections)
16 Objections to appealable decisions
17 Objections to assessments
18 Requirements in relation to objections
Amendment to Part 6B (Commissioner-initiated administrative reviews)
19 Commissioner may make determination under this Part
Amendments to Part 7 (appeals and departure orders)
20 Sections 100 and 101 repealed
21 Orders that may be made
Amendment to Part 9 (payment)
22 New section 152B inserted
152B Offsetting child support payments
New Schedules 1 and 2 inserted
23 New Schedules 1 and 2 inserted
Consequential amendments
24 Consequential amendments to principal Act
25 Consequential amendment to Adoption Act 1955
Part 2Departures from formula assessment, collection, penalties, and relief
Amendments to Part 7 (grounds for departure from formula assessment)
26 Matters as to which court must be satisfied before making order
Amendments to Part 8 (automatic deduction)
27 New heading and sections 129 to 131A substituted
Financial support to be collected only by automatic deduction or other method acceptable to Commissioner
129 Financial support generally to be paid only by automatic deduction
130 Payments to be made by other methods if automatic deduction not required or inappropriate
131 Payment of child support by recognition of qualifying payments for child's direct benefit
131A Provisional recognition under section 131
Amendments to Part 8 (penalties)
28 New sections 134 to 134C substituted
134 Penalties for late payment of financial support debts
134A Status of penalties under section 134
134B Saving for penalties imposed under section 134 before 1 April 2014
134C Act's provisions on liable people's financial support debt also apply to payees' debts arising from overpayments
Amendments to Part 8 (relief from penalties)
29 Interpretation for purposes of sections 135A to 135O
Amendment to Part 8 (payment agreements)
30 New heading and section 135AA inserted
Sufficient reason for declining to enter into or make payment agreement
135AA Non-compliance without reasonable cause with previous payment agreements
Amendments to Part 8 (discretionary relief from penalties)
31 Application of sections 135B to 135G
32 New section 135FA inserted
135FA Discretionary relief from incremental penalties unpaid before agreement entered into on or after 1 April 2014
33 Discretionary relief for residual incremental penalty debt
34 New section 135GA inserted
135GA Discretionary relief for residual penalty-only debt
Amendment to Part 8 (mandatory relief from initial late payment penalties)
35 New sections 135GB and 135H inserted
135GB Relief from initial late payment penalty if full or substantial compliance with payment arrangement entered into or made on or after 1 April 2014 and within 3-month period
135H Relief from initial late payment penalty if full compliance with payment arrangement entered into or made before 1 April 2014 and within 3-month period
Amendments to Part 8 (mandatory relief from incremental penalties)
36 Relief from incremental penalties unpaid before agreement entered into
37 Relief from incremental penalties in relation to arrangements entered into or made before commencement
38 Relief from ongoing incremental penalties if payment agreement in force
39 Relief from ongoing incremental penalties if deduction notice in force
40 Method in which payments to be made
Amendment to Part 10 (automatic deductions)
41 Deduction notice
Amendment to Part 11 (discretion to write off certain child support debt)
42 New section 180A inserted
180A Commissioner may write off benefit component of child support debt if receiving carer is or was social security beneficiary and recovery would place liable person in serious hardship
Schedule 1New Schedules 1 and 2 inserted
Schedule 2Consequential amendments to principal Act
The Parliament of New Zealand enacts as follows: