Question:

After a divorce or separation, who is responsible for paying child maintenance and how is the amount determined?

DBM’s Mamati Gumbi explains:

One of the biggest misconceptions about child maintenance is that only the father is legally responsible for supporting a child.

This is not true.

In terms of the Maintenance Act and the Children’s Act, both parents have a legal duty to maintain their child according to their respective financial means and the child’s reasonable needs.

This duty exists whether the parents were married, unmarried, divorced or never lived together.

There is also no fixed formula for calculating child maintenance in South Africa.

The Maintenance Court considers factors such as:

• each parent’s income and financial resources;
• each parent’s reasonable monthly expenses;
• the child’s age and specific needs;
• costs relating to education, medical care, clothing, food, transport and accommodation;
• and the standard of living the child enjoyed before the parents separated.

The courts have consistently held that a child’s best interests are paramount.

The Supreme Court of Appeal confirmed that both parents must contribute to the maintenance of their child in proportion to their financial ability.

Every family’s circumstances are different.

Whether you are applying for maintenance, defending a maintenance claim or seeking to increase or reduce an existing maintenance order, professional legal advice is essential.

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