At the moment, there are 2 options to recover alimony – by filing a lawsuit or submitting an application to the Administration of the Maintenance Guarantee Fund (hereinafter referred to as the Administration). The procedure and deadlines for filing a lawsuit or application to the Administration differ.
According to the rules of the Cabinet of Ministers No.37, the minimum amount of alimony is 25% of the minimum wage for children under 7 years old, and 30% of the minimum wage for children from 7 to 18 years old or up to 21 years old if the child continues to receive basic, secondary, professional or special education.
The minimum wage in Latvia for 2019 is 430 euros. It is planned that in 2021 the minimum wage will increase to 500 euros, respectively, the amount of alimony will also increase.
The minimum amount of alimony is the amount that each parent must provide, regardless of his financial situation.
The amount of alimony payments from the Administration is lower than the minimum amount of alimony according to the rules of the Cabinet of Ministers.
Until December 31, 2019, the amount of alimony for children under 7 years old is 24% of the minimum wage, which is 103.20 euros, for children under 18 years old or up to 21 years of age 28.5% of the minimum wage, which is exactly 122.55 euros.
In 2020, alimony amount will be equal to the minimum size of alimony according to the rules of the Cabinet of Ministers, respectively 25% of children under 7 years old and 30% of children under 18 years old or 21 years old.
I
When filing a lawsuit to recover alimony for the child support, it is vital to understand:
- The size of alimony will be minimal size or bigger;
- If the amount of alimony is more than the minimal, the justification why the child needs just such amount;
- If the amount of child support is more than the minimal, the presence of evidence documents justifying the cost of the child for the specified amount.
If the amount of alimony is minimal, then the court, does not require evidence and substantiation of the reason for the recovery of such amount, when considering the claim. As stated above, the minimal amount of alimony is the amount that each parent must provide.
If the amount of alimony in the lawsuit claimed more, then it is necessary to justify the court the reason for this amount and provide evidence, receipts, statements from the account, and other documents confirming the amount and reasons for the costs of the child, whether it’s medicine, visits to doctors due to the disease, of various kinds additional classes, etc.
The court considers the claim, the justification and the filed documentation. As a rule, it is rare when a court decides to recover the amount of alimony that was indicated in the lawsuit if it is larger than the minimal amount. The court always listens to the explanations of the second party, its material condition and evidence of why the second parent cannot pay the indicated amount.
In practice, the court usually decides to recover the average alimony amount between the amount indicated in the lawsuit and the amount that the second parent is ready to pay.
As for the terms and amount of the state duty, the court considers the claim in the usual manner, which means that the process can take from several months to up to a year.
According to the Civil Procedure Law, a plaintiff who files a lawsuit to recover alimony for a child is exempted from state duty.
It is important to note that if a claim for the alimony is filed with a divorce suit, the state fee must be paid in the usual manner – 145 euros.
II
When applying for the alimony collection of the Administration, it is vital to understand:
- The administration pays only the minimum amount of alimony;
- The parent with whom the child lives, and the child both have a personal code in Latvia, and both have a declared place of residence in Latvia;
- The second parent does not participate in the provision of the child and does not support him.
The procedure for filing an application with the Administration is simpler than with a court. The term for considering an application and decision making take on average up to 2.5 months. After receiving the application, the Administration sends the application to the second parent and gives a period of up to 20 days to provide explanations. Lack of explanation is not an obstacle to a decision. After that, the Administration within 20 days considers the documents and makes a decision on the payment of alimony or refusal.
The Administration’s refusal to pay alimony can be sued through the court. Submitting an application to the Administration is a free service. The Administration pays alimony from the Administration budget every month for the previous month.
It is important to note that after the adoption of a positive decision on the payment of alimony from the budget of the Administration, the second parent, who does not participate in the maintenance of the child, becomes a debtor to the Administration. In other words, the second parent is obliged to pay the amount of alimony already to the Administration itself, together with interest.
The Administration regularly tightens the conditions for debtors in order to increase payments from them. The second parent can enter into an agreement with the Administration on the payment of alimony, thereby reducing the risk of receiving sanctions from the Administration, for instance,
it is worth mentioning that the register of debtors is public and banking institutions take this information before deciding on a loan. Also, evasion of child maintenance is a criminal offense. Administration also has the right to prohibit the debtor to drive a vehicle, and others.
If the second parent, during the payment of alimony from the budget of the Administration, begins to pay alimony directly to the parent with whom the child lives, it is vital to inform the Administration and request to stop paying alimony from the budget of the Administration. Otherwise, if such information is found out, the Administration will recover already overpaid alimony from the parent with whom the child lives.