Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989
Sections and provisions with full text and the judgments that cite each one.
Section 98N — Replies
(1) Any reply made by a party to proceedings under this Division must: (a) be in the manner specified by the Registrar; and (b) be made to the Registrar. Note: Section 150A provides for the Registrar…
Section 98P — Parties may jointly elect that Registrar discontinue proceedings
(1) In respect of proceedings under this Division, the liable parent and the carer entitled to child support may jointly elect that the Registrar discontinue the proceedings if the carer is not in…
Section 98Q — Procedure
(1) In making a decision under this Division, the Registrar: (a) may act on the basis of: (i) the information that the Registrar used to form the view that because of special circumstances that…
Section 98R — Registrar may refuse to make determination because issues too complex
If the Registrar is satisfied, after considering the information before him or her and the representations (if any), that the issues involved are too complex to be dealt with under this Part, the…
Section 98S — Determinations that may be made under Part
(1) The determinations the Registrar may make under this Part are as follows: (a) a determination varying the annual rate of child support payable by a parent; (b) a determination varying a parent’s…
Section 98T — Parties may enter into child support agreement
The parties to proceedings under this Part may, at any time before a determination is made in relation to the proceedings, enter into an agreement, purporting to be a child support agreement, in…
Section 98U — Decision on child support agreement
(1) Subject to subsection (2), if the Registrar is satisfied that an agreement entered into by the parties to proceedings is a child support agreement, the Registrar must accept the agreement. (1A)…
Section 98V — Pending application not to affect assessment
Subject to section 111C of the Registration and Collection Act (Stay orders), the fact that proceedings are pending under this Part in relation to a person does not, in the meantime, interfere with,…
Section 98W — Simplified outline
The following is a simplified outline of this Part: • Jurisdiction under this Act is conferred on certain federal and State courts. • Generally, a person may apply for an order under this Part…
Section 98X — Simplified outline of this Division
Jurisdiction under this Act is conferred on the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 2) and certain State and Territory Courts.
Section 99 — Jurisdiction of courts under Act
(1) Jurisdiction is conferred on the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 2) and, subject to subsection (7), the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory, and each Family Court of a…
Section 100 — Application of Family Law Act
(1) The Family Law Act 1975 (other than Division 4 of Part V of that Act), the standard Rules of Court, the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 1) Rules, the related Federal…
Section 101 — Appeals from courts of summary jurisdiction
(1) A Family Court of a State has jurisdiction to hear and determine appeals from a decree of a court of summary jurisdiction of the State. Note: See sections 47A and 47B of the Family Law Act 1975.…
Section 102 — Appeals to High Court
(1) An appeal must not be brought directly to the High Court from a decree of a court exercising original jurisdiction under this Act (other than the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia).…
Section 106 — Simplified outline
The following is a simplified outline of this Division: • A court may declare that a person should be assessed in respect of the costs of a child because the person is a parent of the child. • A…
Section 106A — Declaration that a person should be assessed in respect of the costs of the child
(1) This section applies if: (a) the Registrar refuses to accept from an applicant an application for administrative assessment of child support for a child under subsection 30(2); and (b) one of the…
Section 107 — Declaration that a person should not be assessed in respect of the costs of the child
(1) If the Registrar accepts an application for administrative assessment of child support for a child, an application may be made, subject to subsection (1A), to a court having jurisdiction under…
Section 107A — Implementation of declaration under section 107 if assessment relates to 2 or more children
(1) This section applies if: (a) the Registrar accepts an application for administrative assessment for child support for a child; and (b) a declaration is granted under section 107 that a person…
Section 108 — Implementation of decisions
When a decision of a court under this Division becomes final, the Registrar must immediately take such action as is necessary to give effect to the decision.
Section 109 — Pending application not to affect assessment
(1) Subject to section 111C of the Registration and Collection Act (Stay orders), the fact that a proceeding is pending under this Division in relation to a person does not, in the meantime,…
Section 110 — Simplified outline
The following is a simplified outline of this Division: • Normally, the Registrar cannot make a departure determination under Part 6A, and a court cannot make a departure order under Division 4 of…
Section 111 — Application for amendment of administrative assessment that is more than 18 months old
Parent or carer applications (1) A liable parent, or a carer entitled to child support, (the applicant) may apply to a court having jurisdiction under this Act for leave for: (a) the Registrar to…
Section 112 — Court may grant leave to amend administrative assessment that is more than 18 months old
(1) If an application is made to a court under section 111, the court may grant leave for: (a) the Registrar to make a determination under section 98S; or (b) the court to make an order under section…
Section 113 — Implementation of decisions
When a decision of a court under this Division is made, the Registrar must immediately take such action (if any) as is necessary to give effect to the decision.
Section 113A — Pending application not to affect assessment
Subject to section 111C of the Registration and Collection Act (stay orders), the fact that a proceeding is pending under this Division in relation to a person does not, in the meantime, interfere…
Section 113B — Simplified outline
The following is a simplified outline of this Division: • Certain courts can make an order under this Division to depart from the provisions of this Act relating to administrative assessment of child…
Section 114 — Additional particular objects of Division
Additional particular objects of this Division include ensuring: (a) that children have their proper needs met from reasonable and adequate shares in the income, earning capacity, property and…
Section 116 — Application for order under Division
(1) A liable parent or a carer entitled to child support may, in respect of an administrative assessment of child support for a child, apply to a court having jurisdiction under this Act for an order…
Section 117 — Matters as to which court must be satisfied before making order
Court may make departure order (1) Where: (a) application is made to a court having jurisdiction under this Act for an order under this Division in relation to a child in the special circumstances of…
Section 118 — Orders that may be made under Division
(1) The orders that a court may make under this Division are as follows: (a) an order varying the annual rate of child support payable by a parent; (b) an order varying a parent’s or non-parent…
Section 119 — Implementation of orders
(1) When a decision of a court making an order under this Division becomes final, the Registrar must immediately take such action as is necessary to give effect to the decision in relation to any…
Section 120 — Pending proceeding not to affect assessment
Subject to section 111C of the Registration and Collection Act (Stay orders), the fact that a proceeding is pending under this Division in relation to a person does not, in the meantime, interfere…
Section 121 — Additional particular objects of Division
Additional particular objects of this Division include ensuring: (a) that children have their proper needs met from reasonable and adequate shares in the income, earning capacity, property and…
Section 122 — Cases in relation to which Division applies
This Division applies where a carer entitled to child support wants a liable parent to provide, or a liable parent wants to provide, child support for a child otherwise than in the form of periodic…
Section 123 — Application for order under Division
(1) An application may be made to a court having jurisdiction under this Act for: (a) an order that a liable parent provide child support otherwise than in the form of periodic amounts paid to the…
Section 123A — Orders for provision of child support in the form of lump sum payment to be credited against amounts payable under liability
(1) The court may make an order that a liable parent provide child support for a child to a carer entitled to child support in the form of a lump sum payment to be credited against the amount payable…
Section 124 — Orders for provision of child support otherwise than in form of periodic amounts paid to carer entitled to child support
(1) Where: (a) a carer entitled to child support or a liable parent makes an application under paragraph 123(1)(a); and (b) the court is satisfied that it would be: (i) just and equitable as regards…
Section 125 — Court to state relationship between order and assessed child support
(1) If the court makes an order under section 124, the court must state in the order whether the annual rate of child support payable by the liable parent under any relevant administrative assessment…
Section 126 — Court to give reasons for order
(1) If the court makes an order under section 123A or 124, the court must: (a) give reasons for: (i) making the order; and (ii) if the order is an order under section 123A—the matters specified in…
Section 127 — Effect of orders on administrative assessment of child support
(1) This section applies if the court makes an order under section 124 that includes a statement under section 125 that the annual rate of child support payable by a liable parent under an…
Section 129 — Modification of orders under Division
(1) If an order under section 123A or 124 is in force in relation to a child (whether or not all things ordered to be done by the order have been done): (a) the court that made the order; or (b)…
Section 130 — Court to give reasons for modifications
(1) If the court makes an order under section 129, the court must: (a) give reasons: (i) for making the order; and (ii) if the court varies an order made under section 124 otherwise than by varying…
Section 131 — Court may make orders consequential upon the discharge of orders etc.
(1) This section applies where an order under section 123A or 124 is discharged by a court under section 129 or ceases to be in force because of section 142 (Cessation of orders under Act). (2) A…
Section 135 — Simplified outline
The following is a simplified outline of this Division: • Certain courts may set aside a child support agreement or a termination agreement if: (a) the agreement of one of the parties was obtained by…
Section 136 — Power of court to set aside child support agreements or termination agreements
(1) A party to either of the following agreements may apply to a court having jurisdiction under this Act for the court to set aside the agreement: (a) a child support agreement that has been…
Section 137 — Court may make orders consequential on setting aside of agreement
(1) This section applies where an agreement made in relation to a child is set aside under section 136. (2) A court having jurisdiction under this Act may make such orders (including orders for the…
Section 138 — Implementation of decisions
When a decision of a court under this Division becomes final, the Registrar must immediately take such action as is necessary to give effect to the decision for the purposes of this Act (whether by…
Section 138A — Simplified outline
The following is a simplified outline of this Division: • A court may make an order for the payment of child support if: (a) a child is in urgent need of financial assistance; and (b) an application…
Section 139 — Urgent maintenance orders
(1) Where, at any time after an application has been made to the Registrar for administrative assessment of child support for a child (whether or not the Registrar has accepted or refused to accept…
Section 140A — Simplified outline
The following is a simplified outline of this Division: • In exercising jurisdiction under this Act, a court has broad powers. • An amount of child support paid when there is no liability to do so…