Often there are situations when the parents of the child break up and do not maintain a relationship. The law and the state, establishing rules for the maintenance and payment of funds, are designed to protect minor citizens in material terms, regardless of how their parents' relationships develop.
Legal documents
The rules for the payment of alimony in the Republic of Belarus are regulated by the state code on marriage and the family. The 11th chapter of the Code states:
- basic material and property responsibilities of parents;
- obligation to pay child support;
- income from which you can withhold payments;
- cases of additional content, except for maintenance payments.
The same chapter defines the procedure for drawing up an agreement on the payment of alimony. Chapter 12 regulates the issues of payment and collection of mandatory payments for the maintenance of children. A sample application for child support in Belarus is presented in the photo below.
When does the right to alimony arise
The very concept of alimony implies the free transfer of funds (or other material goods) from one person to another who has the right to do so.
Such payments can be made both on their own (voluntarily), and by court order.
At the same time, cash deductions are not assigned to anyone without the presence of presumptive factors. The grounds for the payment of alimony are several conditions:
- Confirmed and recorded fact of blood or family relationship (between the alimony and the recipient of financial assistance).
- Separate organization of the economy.
- Inability of the recipient to support himself.
How is payment made?
Applying for child support in Belarus is considered to be the moment the debt on child support begins to count. From this day, they are either extinguished by the alimony, or in case of non-payment, a debt is formed. Debt collection ends when you reach 18 years of age (in some situations later). Debt is not written off from non-payers, ways to pay off debt (transfer of property, housing, values in payment of debt) are being sought.
In the organization where the parent is obliged to pay child support, they keep a certain amount in favor of the recipient. This can be done both voluntarily, in the presence of a written statement of the alimony, and forcefully. In this case, the company receives a writ of execution from the relevant enforcement bodies and, on the basis of the order, withholds and transfers the money to the recipient, regardless of the will and desire of the alimony.
Therefore, the employer must:
- To keep the amount in the established monetary amount from salary accruals and other incomes every month
- Not later than three days after the payment of salary or other income, transfer money to the recipient or give it in cash through the cashier, or send it by postal order.
Who is eligible for payments
The right to receive alimony in Belarus are:
- Children under 18 from biological parents.
- Children over 18 years of age recognized as disabled.
- Women during the period of bearing a child from their former spouses in the event of a divorce, subject to pregnancy before the divorce.
- Any of the former spouses (mother or father) involved in raising a child under three years of age or a disabled child under 18 years of age or an adult legally incompetent child.
- Parents from children of working age if recognized as incapable and in need of support.
- Any former spouse who has lost legal capacity due to an illness and needs financial support from another.
Most often, courts hear cases of child support in Belarus.
How to set according to income
The amount of alimony in Belarus is set as a percentage of the alimony's income (to salary, other official income):
- For one child - 1⁄4 of the income or 25%.
- For two children - the amount is slightly higher - 33%.
- For three or more children - half the income - 50%.
If there are more than three children, then child support does not increase in proportion to the number of children. It is worth noting that in some situations, payments can be reduced.
In what cases the amount of payments may decrease
A parent who pays alimony is entitled to apply to the court with a request to reduce alimony. The basis for the satisfaction of such a claim may be:
- The presence of other children who, after payment of penalties, have a lower per capita income (in this situation, cash payments are redistributed evenly).
- Disability of the parent (loss of health) with the assignment of 1 or 2 groups.
- Other situations when the parent is not able to pay penalties (limited legal capacity, mild mental disorders).
However, the rights of children in such situations are protected by law and payments are provided, below which cash payments should not be.
Minimum
Minimum child support in Belarus is tied to the size of the subsistence minimum budget (BPM). This parameter is reviewed quarterly and includes the amount of money for which you can purchase the most necessary food and household items (hygiene, medicines). At present, it amounts to 213.67 Belarusian rubles (about $ 100). Depending on the number of children, child support cannot be lower than the amounts indicated below:
- For one child - 50% of BPM or 50 dollars.
- For two children - 75% BPM ($ 75).
- For three or more - 100% is paid, the full amount of BPM.
What income is not paid for child support?
Alimony in Belarus is levied on official salaries. This method is the most common in practice, and if the parent has an official salary, where all income is spent through the bank, the child will receive monthly payments steadily.
However, not all officially confirmed incomes are to be used to pay alimony. So, alimony is not levied on:
- Compensation for unused vacation.
- Severance pay upon dismissal.
- Travel and lifting.
- Pension allowances.
- Payments for burial.
- State payments for children.
- Benefits liquidator Chernobyl.
Voluntary order
Civilized and responsible people usually know how to negotiate and do not refuse to maintain offspring. In this case, they can conclude an agreement where they stipulate the procedure and amount of payments, terms. To complete the agreement, parents' passports and a child’s birth certificate are required. You may need a document confirming the availability of property in case of transfer of real estate on account of the payment of alimony. The document is concluded with a notary public. Moreover, the amount cannot be less than the statutory amount (below the percentage of BPM), even if both parents agree. Here, cash or non-cash method of transferring money is prescribed. The agreement can be terminated or amended. One-sided modification of the document is not allowed.
Payment options may be as follows:
- Fixed monthly amount.
- A fixed one-time amount (once a year, quarter, half year).
- A certain percentage of the salary.
- Transfer of property against alimony.
Court enforcement
The law governing the payment of alimony in Belarus provides the opportunity to seek payments through the courts, even if they are paid voluntarily. In the absence of such payments, this is the only way to force the parent to support the child. State duty when filing such a claim is not charged.
Payments can be claimed no more than for the previous 3 years, provided that the parents were tried to be involved in child support during this period. If the place of work and income is unknown, then for the calculation take the data from the last place of work. For unemployed, child support in Belarus is calculated based on the average salary in the country. If the debt is not paid, debt will accumulate. Debt is calculated based on the average earnings of the parent received by him during the period of non-payment of alimony.
In addition to the accumulated debt, the penalty is charged a penalty for each day of delay in the amount of 0.3%. In case of non-payment of funds for the maintenance of a child for more than three months, a criminal case may be initiated against the debtor. In practice, withdrawing money from those who do not want to support children is not an easy task. They can be sent to institutions restricting freedom for the purpose of employment, but payments for such labor are minimal. In the presence of valuable property or real estate, it may be withdrawn in favor of the child in the future to cover the debt.
Retention of penalties does not relieve the parent of the obligation to participate in the upbringing and unforeseen expenses of the child. Deprivation of parental rights does not exempt from the obligation to support their children. Often, such persons are forced to get a job to deduct at least minimum payments in favor of children. They have a number of restrictions (tear away real estate, leave the country), since a special seal “obligated person” is put in the passport.
There are also frequent cases of concealment of part of the income in order to reduce the amount of child support in Belarus. In this case, an appeal to the tax authorities will be effective.
Sometimes difficulties arise in organizations, and employees can go on vacation at their own expense for a while. This can also happen for personal reasons. In such periods, no payroll is made and child support is suspended. The employee during this time arises debt on alimony. This debt can be identified in the control of the bailiff. The payroll accountant can (but is not required to) notify the executive authorities. Moreover, if the employee did not have the intention to evade child support, the debt will be written off gradually in the future upon returning to work and receiving payment for it. The penalty, which was formed during the period of forced downtime, is reimbursed from the funds of the social welfare fund and subsequently recovered from the organization.
What child support payments in Belarus after 18 years
After 18 years, child support usually ceases to accrue. However, there are exceptions to this rule:
- In case of disability of an adult (assignment of disability groups 1 or 2). It doesn’t matter exactly when such a situation occurred: at 18 or 23, the parent will still be required to pay maintenance.
- With the financial situation of the child below average. In these cases, alimony may be awarded even with scholarships, allowances and pensions. In this case, the child himself has the right to apply for alimony for both parents. In practice, such cases are rare, since in most cases it is difficult to find child support for young children, not to mention the older age.