Update child maintenance regulations to better recognise equal care arrangements
Introduce a presumption of equal care where children live roughly equally with both parents. Update regulation 50 guidance to reduce reliance on Child Benefit to determine which parent is liable for child maintenance payments.
Signatures
30
signatures
Government response threshold (10,000) · 30/10,000
Debate threshold (100,000) · 30/100,000
- 15 APR 2026Petition opened for signaturesCreated by Stuart Smith
Background
Parents who share care equally are often forced to pay child maintenance because CMS commonly assumes the Child Benefit recipient is the primary carer. This assumption can ignore clear evidence from schools, healthcare records, calendars, and communications. We believe updating Regulation 50 would help to recognise genuine 50/50 parenting, reduce unnecessary disputes and tribunal appeals, save public resources, and ensure fair maintenance calculations.