Policy Title: Empowering Recipient Parents: Reforming the Child Support Scheme
Policy Focus Area: Family Law, Law Reform
Tier of Government: Federal
Policy Vision: To create a fair and equitable Child Support Scheme that empowers recipient parents, ensures the financial security of children, and safeguards against financial abuse.
Policy Objective:
1. To address the systemic issues within the Child Support Scheme that enable financial abuse and manipulation.
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To decouple child support from family tax benefits, ensuring that recipients are not penalized for receiving child support payments.
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To close loopholes that allow for the minimization or non-payment of child support.
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To compel payers to lodge tax returns and link non-compliance with child support payments to their credit ratings.
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To provide a child support guarantee paid by Services Australia to offer recipient parents certainty in cases where payers fail to make payments.
The Civil Voice Party acknowledges the distressing impact of financial abuse perpetrated through the Child Support Scheme, as highlighted in the Family Law Forum and subsequent report. We are committed to enacting legislative reforms that prioritize the well-being and financial security of recipient parents and their children. By implementing these policy objectives, we aim to create a more just and supportive system that upholds the rights and dignity of all individuals involved in child support arrangements.