The Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 2009

• Citation: S.I. 2009/2909
• Sections: 5

Section 1 Citation, commencement and interpretation

(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 2009.

(2) Subject to paragraph (3), these Regulations shall come into force on the day after the day on which they were laid before Parliament.

(3) Regulations 2 and 3(2) and (3) shall come into force on 4th December 2009.

(4) In these Regulations—

“ the Act ” means the Child Support Act 1991;

“the Maintenance Arrangements and Jurisdiction Regulations ” means the Child Support (Maintenance Arrangements and Jurisdiction) Regulations 1992 ;

“the Maintenance Assessment Procedure Regulations ” means the Child Support (Maintenance Assessment Procedure) Regulations 1992 ;

“the Maintenance Calculation Procedure Regulations ” means the Child Support (Maintenance Calculation Procedure) Regulations 2000 .

Section 2 Amendment of the Maintenance Arrangements and Jurisdiction Regulations

Omit regulation 7 of the Maintenance Arrangements and Jurisdiction Regulations (cancellation of a maintenance assessment on grounds of lack of jurisdiction) .

Section 3 Amendment of the Maintenance Assessment Procedure Regulations

(1) The Maintenance Assessment Procedure Regulations are amended as follows.

(2) After paragraph (3) of regulation 20 (supersession of decisions) , insert—

(3A) For the purposes of paragraph 2 of Schedule 4C to the Act , the circumstances in which a decision may be superseded under paragraph (2) or (3) include where the material change of circumstances causes the maintenance assessment to cease by virtue of paragraph 16(1) of Schedule 1 to the Act or where the Commission no longer has jurisdiction by virtue of section 44 of the Act (jurisdiction) .

(3) After paragraph (21) of regulation 23 (date from which a decision is superseded) , insert—

(21A) Where a superseding decision is made in a case to which regulation 20(3A) applies and the material circumstance is—

(a) a qualifying child dies or ceases to be a qualifying child;

(b) the person with care ceases to be a person with care in relation to a qualifying child; or

(c) the person with care, the absent parent or a qualifying child ceases to be habitually resident in the United Kingdom,

the decision takes effect from the first day of the maintenance period in which the change occurred.

(4) In Schedule 1 (meaning of “child” for the purposes of the Act) —

(a) for paragraph 1 (persons of 16 or 17 years of age who are not in full-time non-advanced education), substitute—

(1) The conditions which must be satisfied for a person to be a child within section 55(1)(c) of the Act are that the person—

(a) is registered for training with a qualifying body; and

(b) is a person in respect of whom child benefit is payable.

Period for which a person is to be treated as continuing to fall within section 55(1) of the Act

(1A) Where a person (“P”) has ceased to fall within section 55(1) of the Act, P is to be treated as continuing to fall within that subsection for any period during which P is a person in respect of whom child benefit is payable.

(b) for paragraph 2 (meaning of “advanced education” for the purposes of section 55 of the Act), substitute—

(2) For the purposes of section 55 of the Act “advanced education” means education for the purposes of—

(a) a course in preparation for a degree, a diploma of higher education, a higher national diploma or a teaching qualification; or

(b) any other course which is of a standard above ordinary national diploma, a national diploma or national certificate of Edexcel, a general certificate of education (advanced level) or Scottish national qualifications at higher or advanced higher level.

(c) for sub-paragraph (2) of paragraph 4 (interruption of full-time education), substitute—

(2) The provisions of sub-paragraph (1) do not apply to any period of interruption of a person’s full-time education which is followed immediately by a period during which child benefit ceases to be payable in respect of that person.

(d) omit paragraph 5 (circumstances in which a person who has ceased to receive full-time education is to be treated as continuing to fall within section 55(1) of the Act);

(e) for paragraph 6 (interpretation), substitute—

(6) In this Schedule “qualifying body” has the same meaning as in regulation 5(4) of the Child Benefit (General) Regulations 2006 (extension period: 16 and 17 year olds) .

Section 4 Amendment of the Maintenance Calculation Procedure Regulations

(1) Schedule 1 to the Maintenance Calculation Procedure Regulations (meaning of “child” for the purposes of the Act) is amended as follows.

(2) For paragraph 1 (persons of 16 or 17 years of age who are not in full-time non-advanced education), substitute—

(1) The conditions which must be satisfied for a person to be a child within section 55(1)(c) of the Act are that the person—

(a) is registered for training with a qualifying body; and

(b) is a person in respect of whom child benefit is payable.

Period for which a person is to be treated as continuing to fall within section 55(1) of the Act

(1A) Where a person (“P”) has ceased to fall within section 55(1) of the Act, P is to be treated as continuing to fall within that subsection for any period during which P is a person in respect of whom child benefit is payable.

(3) For paragraph 2 (meaning of “advanced education” for the purposes of section 55 of the Act), substitute—

(2) For the purposes of section 55 of the Act “advanced education” means education for the purposes of—

(a) a course in preparation for a degree, a diploma of higher education, a higher national diploma or a teaching qualification; or

(b) any other course which is of a standard above ordinary national diploma, a national diploma or national certificate of Edexcel, a general certificate of education (advanced level) or Scottish national qualifications at higher or advanced higher level.

(4) For sub-paragraph (2) of paragraph 4 (interruption of full-time education), substitute—

(2) The provisions of sub-paragraph (1) do not apply to any period of interruption of a person’s full-time education which is followed immediately by a period during which child benefit ceases to be payable in respect of that person.

(5) Omit paragraph 5 (circumstances in which a person who has ceased to receive full-time education is to be treated as continuing to fall within section 55(1) of the Act).

(6) For paragraph 6 (interpretation), substitute—

(6) In this Schedule “qualifying body” has the same meaning as in regulation 5(4) of the Child Benefit (General) Regulations 2006 (extension period: 16 and 17 year olds) .

Section 5 Transitional provisions – qualifying child

(1) Where the circumstances in paragraph (2) apply the effective date of—

(a) a maintenance assessment or maintenance calculation made following an application under section 4 or 7 of the Act; or

(b) a supersession decision made under section 17 of the Act where the relevant change of circumstances is that a person has become a qualifying child by virtue of these Regulations,

is the day on which this regulation comes into force.

(2) The circumstances are—

(a) before these Regulations came into force there was a maintenance assessment or maintenance calculation in force in relation to the qualifying child to whom the application or supersession relates;

(b) a person (“C”) who was a qualifying child to whom that maintenance assessment or maintenance calculation relates, ceased to be a qualifying child on or after 10th April 2006 by virtue of no longer falling within the provisions of—

(i) Schedule 1 to the Maintenance Assessment Procedure Regulations (meaning of “child” for the purposes of the Act); or, as the case may be,

(ii) Schedule 1 to the Maintenance Calculation Procedure Regulations (meaning of “child” for the purposes of the Act); and

(c) child benefit was payable in respect of C on the day C ceased to be a qualifying child and is payable in respect of C on the day on which this regulation comes into force.

(3) Where an application under section 4 or 7 of the Act is made in a case to which the circumstances in paragraph (2) apply in respect of a maintenance assessment, the definition of “the relevant period” in regulation 28(3) of the Child Support (Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2000 (linking provisions) , is modified as follows—

(3) For the purposes of paragraph (1) “the relevant period” means the period starting on the day immediately before the day the maintenance assessment ceased to have effect under paragraph 16(1) of Schedule 1 to the Act, to the day that the application referred to in paragraph (1) is made, in a case where the circumstances of regulation 5(2) of the Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 2009 (transitional provisions – qualifying child) apply.