By Emily Austin.

Under the Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988 (“the Act”) the Child Support Registrar (“the Registrar”) has power to prohibit a person from leaving Australia if they have persistently failed to discharge their child support debts without a reasonable excuse.

This power comes in the form of a Departure Prohibition Orders (“DPO”), the contravention of which could result in the imprisonment of the infringing party for 12 months. A Registrar has complete discretion whether they issue a DPO, provided the following conditions are satisfied:

  1. There is a debt owing
  2. The defaulting parent has not made satisfactory arrangements to discharge the debt; and
  3. The Registrar believes it is desirable to issue a DPO to ensure the defaulting parent does not leave Australia without making payment.

A DPO has the effect of restricting the defaulting parent from taking holidays, or travelling for business until they have met their child support obligations. The premise is that, if a defaulting parent can take a holiday, they can afford to meet their child support obligations.

Before making a DPO, the Registrar must have regard to the considerations set out in the Act. These include, but are not limited to the following:

  1. the capacity of the person concerned to pay the debt or debts;
  2. the length of time the debt has been owing
  3. the number of occasions a debt has been owing.
  4. What action has been taken to recover the debt or debts,
  5. such other matters as the Registrar considers appropriate.

A defaulting parent who is subject to a departure prohibition orders, may still be able to travel overseas if they apply for a departure authorisation certificate from the Registrar.

Given the above, it is very important to ensure that your child support debt is up to date! There are many options when it comes to the assessment and collection of child support, and these are details in another post here: https://tiyce.com/blog/the-abc-of-child-support/

If you find yourself subject to a DPO and need further advice, please do not hesitate to contact us.

We are here when you need us.

 

Photo by JESHOOTS.COM on Unsplash