The collection of alimony for the past period is the procedure for obtaining funds laid down by law for the maintenance of a common child, which for various reasons were not paid until the moment of appeal to the courts.
For what period can I pay child support?
In our country, the rights of the child are protected. Article 107 of the Family Code of the Russian Federation states that the plaintiff has the right to recover child support for a common child for a period up to three previous years from the date of filing an application for them with the court. At the same time, the condition must be met that, until this time, the collector attempted to receive the funds, but the person who must provide them evaded payment.
The difference between debt on alimony and collection over the past period
Many are confused in the wording “collection of alimony for the past period” and “arrears of alimony”. When suing, one must understand that there is a significant difference between the two.
We will deal with this issue. Debt arises in the event that between the parties a voluntary agreement was reached to pay alimony or a court decision was made on this, but the one who was supposed to make payments did not.
Alimony for the past period is the means that the party had the right to receive for the maintenance of a common child, but did not conclude an agreement on this issue and did not file a lawsuit in court. If the interested party wishes to receive such alimony, it must be borne in mind that indisputable evidence must be presented to the court that earlier several attempts were made to agree on the receipt of the laid down funds, but there was no result, since the defendant openly refused to pay them or simply ignored these requests.
The reason for the non-appeal of the claimant to the court is of no fundamental importance. There is an obligation for both parents to support their children under any circumstances, and it doesn’t matter if they live together or are divorced. Nobody has canceled these rules yet. And in order for the due payments to be received in full, you need to contact the courts, write a statement of claim for the collection of alimony and wait for a positive court decision.
Past Child Support Conditions
So, we appeal to the court. We are writing a statement on collecting child support. In this case, certain conditions established by law must be observed. There are only three of them.
- There is a statute of limitations. The collection of alimony for the past period is possible only for the three-year period of time that preceded the appeal to the court.
- During this time, which elapsed before the filing of the application, the plaintiff should have made active attempts to receive the required funds for the maintenance of the child.
- The third condition is that the ex-spouse should have avoided payments in every possible way.
All of this must be proven. Such evidence may include:
- records of telephone conversations;
- third party certificates;
- telegrams;
- written notices and complaints.
The testimony that the claimant appealed to the debtor is the most common evidence for our courts. If there are people among the plaintiff’s friends and relatives who have heard the conversation between the claimant and the defendant, they can be asked to appear at the hearing and confirm that such precedents have taken place.
If the plaintiff has any correspondence in which he requested financial assistance for the common child, then it can be brought to court as evidence. This can be ordinary letters or SMS-messages, e-mail, as well as communication on social networks. In order for this evidence not to raise questions in court, they should be drawn up properly. For help, it’s best to contact a lawyer or attorney.
We appeal to the court
First you need to contact the magistrate’s court of residence. There file a claim for the recovery of alimony. It must indicate the requirements that the plaintiff wishes to present to the defaulter for the past and upcoming periods. If you have difficulties with the preparation of the application, you can see the sample. You can also find out about the collection of alimony from the justice of the peace, but usually at the polling stations such examples of paperwork are available.
Alimony recovery procedure
The application must necessarily indicate the name of the judicial section, information about the plaintiff and the defendant, as well as the requirements that the collector puts forward. In addition, it should be noted that the plaintiff repeatedly appealed to the non-payer for financial support, but there was no answer, or this request was refused.
The statement may ask for the requisition of the necessary documents from commercial and state organizations that could confirm the plaintiff’s appeal to the defendant for financial assistance or to call witnesses to court. A list of required official papers must be attached to the application.
The collection of alimony for the past period is possible in hard cash or as a percentage of wages. The statement of claim must indicate how much money will be recovered. If the plaintiff wishes to receive them in a solid amount, then it is necessary to justify this, that is, to prove that the defendant has additional income besides the official one.
This statement is signed by the claimant or his authorized representative. The power of attorney must be certified by a notary. From the moment the claim arrives in court, it will be considered within a month. In the event of claims by interested parties in this claim, it may be appealed within ten days.
Judicial recovery of alimony is carried out from the date indicated in the court decision or court order.
List of documents attached to the application
So, what documents should be filed with the application to the court? The list of them is as follows:
- photocopy of the statement of claim;
- photocopy of the claimant's passport;
- birth certificate of a child;
- divorce certificate;
- a certificate from the housing authorities, which indicates that the child lives with the plaintiff;
- a document confirming the size of the plaintiff's income;
- a document confirming the amount of income of the defendant;
- written requirements for the second party to provide support for the child.
Recovery in hard cash
Consider how to calculate with this option for receiving alimony. In this case, it must be remembered that justification is needed for why the defendant must pay a fixed amount. Such justification should be proof that he has unaccounted income, for example, he receives a salary “gray” (in an envelope), and not “white”. In this case, you may be required to pay child support in the equivalent of one minimum wage (minimum wage).
In order to calculate what amount should be paid for recovery over the previous three years, it is necessary to multiply the minimum wage by 3 and multiply by 12. At the same time, it must be understood that the minimum wage could change over the past three years, so the calculation should be made taking this fact into account.
Recovery as a percentage of earnings
In our country, by law child support amount as a percentage of wages is:
- for one child - 25%;
- for 2 children - 33%;
- for 3 or more children - 50%.
For this option to collect alimony, you need to know exactly the size of the defendant's earnings. For this reason, the court seeks documents from the debtor, which will indicate the size of its income over the past three years. If the debtor has not worked anywhere all this time (or part of it), then the calculation is based on the average wage in the Russian Federation at the moment.
