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Child Support
In family law and government
policy, child support or child maintenance is the ongoing
obligation for a periodic payment made directly or indirectly by
a non-custodial parent to a custodial parent, caregiver or
guardian, or the government, for the care and support of
children of a relationship or marriage that has been terminated.
In family law, child support is often arranged as part of a
divorce, marital separation, dissolution, annulment,
determination of parentage or dissolution of a civil union and
may supplement alimony (spousal support) arrangements.
The right to child support and the responsibilities of parents
to provide such support have been internationally recognized.
The 1992 United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, a
binding convention signed by every member nation of the United
Nations and formally ratified by all but two, declares that the
upbringing and development of children and a standard of living
adequate for the children's development is a common
responsibility of both parents and a fundamental human right for
children, and asserts that the primary responsibility to provide
such for the children rests with their parents. Other United
Nations documents and decisions related to child support
enforcement include the 1956 United Nations Convention on the
Recovery Abroad of Maintenance, which was ratified by the vast
majority of UN member nations.
In addition, the right to child support, as well as specific
implementation and enforcement measures, has been recognized by
various other international entities, including the Council of
Europe, the European Union and the Hague Conference.
Within individual countries, examples of legislation pertaining
to, and establishing guidelines for, the implementation and
collection of child maintenance include the 1975 Family Law Act
(Australia), the Child Support Act (United Kingdom) and the
Maintenance and Affiliation Act (Fiji)Child support laws and
obligations are known to be recognized in a vast majority of
world nations, including the majority of countries in Europe,
North America and Australasia, as well as many in Africa, Asia
and South America.
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