Children: Maintenance
Commons · Question 16456 · Tabled 7 Jul 2026 · Department for Work and Pensions · Official record
Answered 14 Jul 2026
Question
Asked by Melanie Onn
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what further steps he is taking to close potential loopholes in Child Maintenance that allow paying parents to avoid the agreed payments if they are paid in cash.
Answer
Answered by Andrew Western, 14 Jul 2026
Where a paying parent changes jobs, The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) uses real-time information from HMRC where available, to quickly identify new employment and adjust maintenance calculations accordingly. People who are self-employed are required to ...