Family and children
Child maintenance: amount, procedure and recovery in Kazakhstan
Child maintenance is not a one-off arrangement but a legal right that can be enforced even if the other parent resists. We explain who can recover maintenance and how, which documents are needed and what happens after a court decision.
Many people are familiar with the situation where the other parent stops contributing to the child's upkeep. Some simply stop paying after a divorce, some were never married, and some try to agree verbally, but over time the arrangements fall apart. At that point it is important not to act at random: mistakes in documents or procedure can drag the process out for months.
Most often people waste time waiting for things to sort themselves out, or they file documents in the wrong place. As a result, the child does not receive the maintenance they are entitled to, and the other parent accumulates arrears. Below is a step-by-step look at how recovery of child maintenance works in Kazakhstan, what options exist and what to pay attention to first.
Who is entitled to child maintenance and when it is recovered
The law obliges both parents to maintain their minor children — regardless of whether they are married or not. The parent who lives apart from the child and does not contribute to their upkeep must pay: child maintenance is withheld from the father or mother, and it is received by the other parent, with whom the son or daughter has remained.
Divorce is not required to recover maintenance. A child's right to claim maintenance does not depend on the dissolution of the marriage: a claim may be filed even where the family remains intact, if a parent does not support the child. An application may be made at any time while the need for maintenance persists.
Most often maintenance is recovered when the parents:
- live separately without formalising a divorce;
- are married, but one of them evades maintenance;
- have dissolved the marriage and have not agreed on payments;
- raise the child in turn or according to a schedule.
Maintenance on divorce and separately from it: how it works
Divorce and child maintenance are two different matters that are often confused. Divorce itself does not award maintenance: dissolution of the marriage ends the spousal relationship, but does not cancel a parent's obligation to support the children. Maintenance on divorce is recovered by a separate claim — either included in the divorce petition or filed later. It can also be recovered without a divorce: for example, where the family formally remains intact, but the father or mother does not contribute to the child's support.
Do not confuse child maintenance with maintenance for the wife: these are separate claims, and the court considers them in one or in different cases. A mother may claim maintenance while she is pregnant and expecting a common child, or while she is caring for him until he is three years old. Child maintenance and maintenance for the mother are two payments with different grounds, and on divorce the court decides the question of the children's maintenance either by agreement or through the court, if no agreement could be reached. The logic is similar for child maintenance and maintenance for the mother: the second claim applies for a limited period and ends as the child grows up, whereas child payments continue until majority.
- Divorce is formalised separately from the recovery of maintenance
- A claim for child maintenance is filed during the marriage or after divorce
- A wife who is pregnant or caring for a small child is entitled to separate maintenance
- Both matters are resolved amicably or through the court
Types of child maintenance and how it is withheld
The choice of the form of child maintenance depends on the payer's income: money is withheld from wages, the court awards a fixed sum, or combines both forms.
If income is stable, the court ties child maintenance to shares of income. If income is irregular, it sets a fixed sum. A mixed option is shares plus a fixed sum; the in-kind form is rare.
Maintenance for the support of minor children:
- From wages and other regular income — withheld at the place of work or through enforcement proceedings.
- In a fixed monetary sum — where income is irregular or concealed.
- Mixed — a share plus a fixed part.
- In kind — support in the form of property or services instead of money.
| Form | When it applies | How it is withheld |
|---|---|---|
| Shares of income | There is confirmed regular earnings | The payer's accounting department or the court enforcement officer |
| Fixed sum | Income is irregular, seasonal or concealed | By monthly fixed payment |
| Shares and fixed sum | Part of the income is stable, part is not | A combination of the two methods |
| Payment in kind | The payer has property or resources | Transfer of property, payment for services |
The method of recovery is determined by the court taking into account the payer's income and the interests of the child.
Child maintenance for minor children from the father and the mother
The obligation to maintain a minor child does not depend on the parent's sex. If a son or daughter lives with the mother, the father's child maintenance is recovered from him; if the child stays with the father, then the mother will pay. Sex is irrelevant here: the law speaks of the obligation of a parent, not of whether that parent is a man or a woman.
Moreover, the parent with whom the child stays is also not released from the obligation to maintain the child out of their own funds. A parent's child maintenance is not payment for the other parent having “taken” the child, but the performance of a shared obligation. That is why child maintenance for minor children may be recovered both from the father and from the mother if the child in fact lives with the other parent or with a relative.
- The child lives with the mother — the father pays.
- The child lives with the father — the mother pays.
- The child lives with the grandmother or another relative — both parents pay.
- The parent with whom the child has stayed maintains the child out of their own funds.
Child maintenance for a child and who applies for it
When people speak of child maintenance for a child, they mean the money one parent transfers for the upkeep of their son or daughter. The right to such maintenance belongs to the child, and the adult merely manages it in the child's interests. That is why parents' child maintenance cannot be confused with personal payments in favour of a former spouse — here child maintenance and maintenance of the child are the same in substance.
The claimant in the case is the child's legal representative or the organisation where the child is being raised. This may be the other parent, a guardian or an adoptive parent, as well as a children's home or another institution. The money is credited to the child's account or handed to the legal representative for the child's upkeep. That is why the recipient is always the child, not the adult.
- the other parent — at the child's place of residence
- a guardian or adoptive parent
- the organisation where the child is being raised
Documents and evidence for recovering child maintenance
Before applying for maintenance for minor children, collect documents confirming the relationship and that the child lives with you. The application is accompanied by documents on the relationship, on the child living together with the claimant and on the payer's income. If there is no information on income, the court may request it from the tax authorities and the employer.
Living separately is confirmed by a certificate of family composition, an extract from the household register or an address certificate, while evasion of maintenance is confirmed by correspondence, receipts and a calculation of arrears. Such a calculation helps to show how much was not received over the past period.
- Child's birth certificate
- Certificate of family composition
- Information on the defendant's income
- Calculation of maintenance arrears
- Correspondence and payment documents
| Document | What it confirms | Who prepares it |
|---|---|---|
| Birth certificate | Relationship with the child | Claimant |
| Certificate of family composition | Living together | Claimant |
| Information on income | Amount of the payer's earnings | Claimant or court |
| Correspondence, receipts | Evasion of maintenance | Claimant |
The debt calculation is made as at the date of application.
Recovery of child maintenance through the court and enforcement of the judgment
After the court judgment is issued and comes into force, the claimant is given a writ of execution — the basis for compulsory deduction of maintenance. The writ is presented to a private or state court enforcement officer, who conducts the enforcement: sends orders to the debtor's place of work, checks property and accounts, and applies measures of compulsion. If the debtor pays voluntarily, enforcement proceedings may not be needed.
It is pointless to hide income, understate salary or refuse official employment: the obligation to support the child remains, the debt will be calculated from information on income, and where there is none — according to the procedure established by law. This only drags out the process and creates risks for the payer. Where recovery concerns child maintenance for the child and wife, or maintenance for the child and mother, it is better to set up a transparent payment arrangement straight away. The same applies when arranging parents' maintenance for children together with support for the mother — a single enforcement document simplifies control.
What helps at the enforcement stage:
- informing the enforcement officer of the debtor's actual income and place of work;
- monitoring that payments arrive on time and recording delays;
- passing information to the enforcement officer if the debtor changes place of work or residence;
- keeping documents on expenses for the child to confirm needs.
The main thing in a maintenance case is not verbal promises but written documents and timely recourse to a court enforcement officer, otherwise even a won case may remain on paper.
