Separation of Parents, Maintenance Allowance and Custody
Every child has the right to comprehensive development and well-being, even in the case of the separation of parents. If the parents do not live together but participate equally in raising the child, they must agree on which of them will receive family benefits for the child and how to share the right of custody.
If the parents wish for the benefits to be alternated between them, they must inform the Social Insurance Board about this and agree on the regularity with which they wish to receive the support, taking turns. If the parents do not reach an agreement on the payment of benefits, the parents must submit a new application to the Social Insurance Board each time to receive child allowances.
If one parent does not live with the child or does not take part in raising the child, he/she must pay a maintenance allowance. When agreeing on the conditions for the payment of maintenance allowance, the parents can rely on the rules set out in the Family Law Act. If the parents cannot reach an agreement regarding the payment of a maintenance allowance, it is possible to turn to court to demand the allowance.
What kind of allowances and benefits can a single parent receive?
Depending on the situation, a single parent can get:
- Childbirth allowance (320 euros, one-time) for the birth of a child, 1,000 euros per child in the case of triplets or multiples;
- Child allowance for each child until they turn 19. If the child studies in basic school, upper secondary school, or vocational education institution and does not yet have secondary education, child support is paid until graduation or the end of the school year when the child turns 19 (80 euros per month for 1–2 children in a family, 100 euros per month from the third child);
- Parental benefits up to 605 calendar days until the child turns three years old;
- Benefit for a family with many children if the family has 3-6 children (650 euros per month) and 7 or more (850 euros per month);
- Single parent child support (80 euros per month) if there is no information about the child’s father in the child’s birth certificate or the child’s other parent has been officially declared a fugitive;
- Monthly payments to the parent of a disabled child (the amount depends on the degree of disability) and to the disabled parent (19.18 euros per month).
What is maintenance allowance and how is it paid?
The child has the right to receive comprehensive support from his/her parents. Parents must support their minor child. It is also necessary to provide for a child who, as an adult, acquires primary, secondary or higher education or studies in the curriculum of vocational training. As a rule, the maintenance obligation ends when the child turns 21. Therefore, it is the right of the child and the duty of the parent to pay a maintenance allowance to the child if the parent does not live with the child or if he/she does not take part in raising the child.
Since parents have equal rights and obligations towards their children, maintenance should cover half of the expenses incurred for the child. Maintenance allowance is money paid to support the child, so the parent raising the child must use the allowance in the best interests of the child. If the parents do not live together or decide to separate, it is necessary to agree on child maintenance, determining, among other things, in which way and for which period the maintenance allowance should be paid.
Sometimes the child has a home with both parents (a so-called “alternating home”), so both parents bear the costs related to the child’s home. On the other hand, an alternating home does not always mean that the maintenance allowance does not have to be paid; it is also important to monitor the proportionality of expenses for the child. An agreement that excludes the fulfilment of the maintenance obligation in the future or limits the maintenance obligation unreasonably, is void. It is recommended to agree in writing or notarially, in the latter case, among other things, immediate submission to enforcement should be agreed upon so that it can be used as an enforcement document if necessary.
Enforcement documents are court decisions and other documents that the bailiff can take for enforcement without initiating a case. It is best for the child if the parents cooperate and the agreements work, including when it comes to the maintenance allowance. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Maintenance allowance is a child’s right, so if the separated parent does not pay maintenance voluntarily, the parent raising the child must turn to the court to protect the child’s rights. Every child has the right to comprehensive development and well-being. To claim a maintenance allowance, the child’s legal representative can file a lawsuit on behalf of the child in the county court of the child’s place of residence. If the child maintenance agreement is notarised, in the case of refusal to pay maintenance, the bailiff can be approached without the need to go to court first.
If the other parent does not object to the maintenance claim, it is reasonable to initiate an expedited payment order procedure. Both this and the statement of claim can be made electronically in the E-file environment.
If the parent does not fulfil the obligation to maintain the child and opposes the maintenance allowance claim, the court will order him/her to pay the maintenance allowance to the child. The court can also award a maintenance allowance in a lower amount than the minimum amount based on valid reasoning. If the financial status of the parent raising the child or the other parent’s financial situation changes, a petition to change the amount of maintenance allowance can be submitted to the court.
If the parent has appealed to the court, but the judgment has not yet been made, he or she can receive a maintenance allowance from the state during the court proceedings. Read more about maintenance allowance here.
Parental custody
Parental custody includes the right to take care of the child and his/her property and to make decisions on matters related to the child.
The parent entitled to custody is usually also the child’s representative. Parents generally have joint custody of the child, which does not end when the parents end their relationship or when the child stays with one parent. Parents cannot agree on ending joint custody, but they can agree on how they will handle joint custody issues.
Joint custody can only be terminated by the court based on the parent’s application. Parents must share custody jointly, regardless of whether they live together or not, whether the child lives mainly with one parent or has an alternating home. Joint custody means, among other things, that both parents have the opportunity to have a say in matters concerning the child, but also that important matters related to the child (e.g. which school or hobbies the child attends, which health services are provided to the child) are decided jointly by the parents.
Thus, the parent with whom the child lives after the separation does not automatically have greater rights in making decisions concerning the child than the other parent. Only the matters of the child’s daily life can be decided by the parent alone during the time the child is with him/her. If the parents who have joint custody do not wish to divide this right jointly in the future, each parent has the right to request from the court in a non-lawsuit procedure that the custody of the child be partially or fully transferred to him/her.
The court can also resolve a custody dispute during divorce proceedings. The court will not approve the application if a child of at least 14 years of age objects to the transfer of custody rights or if there is a reason to assume that the termination of joint custody rights and the granting of sole custody rights to the petitioner are not in line with the child’s best interests. The court makes a decision on the termination of joint custody and the granting of custody to one parent primarily based on the interests of the child, taking into account, among other things, the mental and financial readiness of both parents to raise the child, the spiritual attachment to the child and the commitment to care for the child, as well as the future living conditions of the child. If the right of custody belongs to one parent based on a court decision, the other parent may apply for the transfer of the right of custody if the circumstances on which the court decision was based have changed significantly.
The custodial parent is the child’s legal representative. Parents with joint custody have joint representation. The parent represents the child alone if he/she has sole custody of the child or if the court has granted him/her the sole decision-making rights to make decisions regarding important matters. For example, if a parent has been given sole decision-making rights when choosing a school for a child, that parent can decide alone which school the child will attend. At the same time, the parent who has been granted sole custody in matters of the child’s health can make decisions alone regarding the child’s health. Regardless of the right of custody, parents must always make decisions based on the best interests of the child, including not endangering the child with their actions or inactions (for example, hiding important information about the child’s health from the other parent, etc.). The right of sole custody does not release either parent from maintenance obligations or limit the right of communication of the other parent.
Starting from July 1, 2024, an amendment to the Family Law Act will enter into force, according to which parents can terminate or transfer joint custody with the help of a family mediator during the state family mediation service.