- When can you challenge alimony?
Home /Articles on bankruptcy of individuals
Author of the article: Konstantin Milantiev
Last revised June 18, 2021
Reading time 10 minutes
Alimony is a mandatory payment that one family member must pay to another. In Russia, most often these are regular transfers made by the father of the mother of his child. Alimony can also be paid to a former spouse if, for example, he became disabled during the marriage. They can also be collected from a child who will support an elderly parent.
Not all people want to be involved in another person's life. When alimony debts accumulate, citizens wonder whether it is possible not to pay them. Let's leave aside discussions about morality and consider how to write off alimony debts.
Relatives: to whom do you owe
First, let's determine who you may owe alimony to. To do this, it is worth leafing through the Family Code of the Russian Federation. We find the required Chapter V - Alimony obligations of family members. Alimony is paid by blood relatives or persons related by family ties.
Parents must support their minor children, the law says. The amount of obligations has been established. For one child, one quarter of the income is paid, for two - a third, for three or more - half of the income. These obligations will have to be fulfilled even if the court decides to terminate parental rights.
Adult children should take care of parents who need it. Spouses or former spouses also have mutual obligations to pay alimony. For example, a needy ex-spouse, if he became so during the marriage or within a year after its dissolution. Siblings have obligations to support their disabled siblings. They must take care of relatives: grandparents - about their grandchildren and vice versa, pupils - about their teachers, stepdaughters and stepsons - about stepfathers and stepmothers.
Alimony agreement
You can agree to pay alimony orally or in writing. But informal agreements are easy to ignore, because verbal promises cannot be presented to the court. It is better to enter into a written agreement with a notary or establish the amount of alimony in court. In this case, it can only be changed officially by signing a new agreement with a notary. Or through the court. If the party does not fulfill the obligation, then with the notarial agreement you can go to the accounting department where the debtor works, or to the FSPP.
For bailiffs, a notarial agreement on the payment of alimony has the force of an executive document.
Collect through court
Alimony can be established and collected and forcibly - through the court. In this case, there will be a full-fledged trial in which you can present documents, checks, receipts indicating expenses on one side and income on the other.
The payer can give his reasons for reducing the amount of alimony. One of the reasons for reducing child support is if there are other children.
For example, the ex-husband married a second time, another son was born, who also needs to be supported. Previously, the child from the first marriage was the only one and received 25% of the father’s income, but now there is also a dependent. According to the law, if there are two children, 33% of the income can be withheld from the father. Now each son will receive 16.5% of his father's salary. Even if they are in different families.
Spending report
When drawing up a written agreement on the payment of alimony, the ex-spouse can indicate a clause on the provision of a report in the text of the document. If the woman signs it, which will mean agreement with every point of the agreement, then a report must be provided.
In the absence of such a clause, a man can only verbally ask for reporting on expenses. If the ex-spouse gives her voluntary consent, then the report can be provided at her request.
If alimony payments are assigned in court, the judge can only determine the amount of payments and the method of transferring them. The alimony payer cannot demand a report on the expenditure of the transferred money.
If a man has serious reasons to believe that the transferred money is being spent for other purposes, then he should contact the guardianship authorities. Authorities need to submit an application with a request to conduct an inspection of the living conditions of the children and mother, the availability of food, clothing and shoes for minor children. The application should include a request to find out whether the mother is spending the money received on herself, infringing on the interests of the children.
Based on the application, the guardianship authorities take all necessary measures. If the father’s fears are confirmed during the inspection, then the guardianship representatives will have to go to court to influence the negligent mother.
By law, the mother will represent the interests of a minor child until the age of 18 and therefore can manage his money. A woman can spend money at her own discretion, but taking into account the children's interests.
How alimony is written off at the debtor’s place of work
Alimony in case of bankruptcy of individualsRelated article
The debtor himself can voluntarily submit a notarized agreement on the payment of alimony to his employer, so that the money is withheld from his salary. The recipient of alimony can also do this - for example, the ex-wife will submit a notarial agreement at the place of work of the child’s father. Within three days after receiving the next salary, the accounting department will transfer the payment to the recipient.
If a person does not pay, or if a debt has accumulated, then a writ of execution for alimony or a notarial agreement can be submitted to the bailiffs. The draft dodger will have to pay additional fees. The bailiff will impose a 7% fee on the amount collected.
Timing and cost
If parents and children decide to voluntarily refuse child support, then the entire registration process can be completed within 24 hours - it all depends on the preparedness of the parties and knowledge of the specifics of filling out the agreement. However, it is quite possible that it will take several days in the absence of information about the procedure for drawing up the document or in the case of complications, to reach agreement on a number of controversial issues.
As for financial expenses, for certification of an agreement to terminate alimony, parents need to pay 250 rubles - the amount of the state fee is determined in Art. 333.24 Tax Code of the Russian Federation. Additional expenses are associated with the technical services of a notary - the amount depends on the chosen specialist and the region of registration, on average it is 1.5-2 thousand rubles.
When going to court to terminate alimony to parents, the amount of the state duty is established according to the provisions of Art. 333.19 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation and depends on the cost of claims (amount of payments per year). The amount varies from 400 rubles to 60 thousand rubles.
For your information
After payment of the fee and upon filing of the claim, the first termination proceeding
Child support payments to parents are granted for a month. If one meeting was enough, then we can talk about luck, since often the child is forced to prove the need to cancel payments for several weeks. After the court makes a satisfactory decision, parents are given another month to file a claim to appeal the verdict. And only after 30 days the resolution comes into force.
What can a bailiff do for alimony debts?
To understand what a bailiff can do when collecting alimony debts, it is worth familiarizing yourself with the Federal Law “On Enforcement Proceedings”. The bailiff has a wide range of powers.
If you are wondering whether bailiffs can write off money, then the answer is: they can, and even are obliged to do so. By law, the bailiff has access to personal information and can monitor the movement of funds through the debtor’s accounts. The bailiff has the right to call you to the FSSP department or come to your residential address, make an inventory and seize movable and immovable property. And all this is legal. He can also:
- withhold debt from wages, other income, even unemployment benefits;
- check accounts, deposits, electronic wallets and submit an order to write off money received there;
- arrest and sell property (not only a car, but also expensive equipment, shares, shares in LLCs and other assets - everything that is found, except for the only home),
- prohibit travel abroad,
- temporarily revoke your driving privileges,
- put the debtor on the wanted list,
- impose an administrative fine and even subject to compulsory labor or criminal liability. Article 157 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation allows criminal liability to be applied to a person who maliciously evades paying alimony. The bailiffs' website provides comments on its use.
How bailiffs work - law and reality 2021 Related article
For failure to pay alimony, you can go to prison, although this measure is rarely used for the simple reason that it is not profitable for the state to keep the defaulter in prison. It is more rational to force him to fulfill his obligations, and to do this, use the entire arsenal of means to which the bailiff service is entitled.
If you don’t pay alimony, the bailiffs will write off the money from your bank accounts. If there are savings, they will take the entire amount of the debt, and if you receive a salary, pension or income from self-employment on the card, then the bailiffs can write off up to 70% of the monthly income in the case of accumulated alimony debts. You can find out whether enforcement proceedings have been initiated against you by the bailiff for free through the bank of court decisions. Follow the instructions to find out why you were charged.
On their website, bailiffs regularly report on the unusual ways they manage to collect alimony. They meet debtors at the airport, conduct road raids together with the traffic police, and even arrest pets in order to achieve payment of debts.
Such actions do not always comply with the law, for example, the animal must be kept in humane conditions, fed and walked, so bailiffs extremely rarely carry out threats. We described how to challenge the illegal actions of bailiffs, as well as repeated and illegal withdrawals of money here.
Problems and nuances
Despite the extensive regulatory framework, the process of collecting alimony from children by parents is often complicated by the peculiarities of judicial practice. To avoid complications, you need to take into account a number of significant nuances:
- All issues should be resolved voluntarily - in this way, excessive costs and deterioration of relations with relatives can be avoided.
- If you do not have time to study the regulations and requirements regarding the procedure for terminating alimony, parents should use the services of a lawyer with experience in this field or get advice on our website. Otherwise, the claim may be rejected or the consideration of the case may be delayed for several months.
- Despite the absence of grounds specified in the law for terminating alimony to parents, a child can still declare the need to cancel payments on the basis of disability or retirement age.
- Studying the findings of practice will help you understand what the chances are of getting a positive court decision.
IMPORTANT
In many ways, the outcome of the actions of the alimony obligee is determined by his preparedness for this process. If a child wants to seek termination of alimony payments to his parents through the court, he will need to spend a lot of time studying the nuances of regulatory documents and the results of decisions already made in similar cases. The law protects the interests of people in need, so if children want not to pay alimony to their parents, it will be difficult to achieve a satisfactory verdict on the claim without proper preparation.
Comments Showing 1 of 1
- Alexey Anapov 23:57 02/18/2020
I spent a lot of time looking for a solution to the problem of paying alimony to my parents. I reviewed many sites, but one article is missing something, another contains outdated information, and a third is simply impossible to read due to banal grammatical errors. And only here I found what I needed: there are links to laws, and current sample documents (which is especially important), and analyzes of the intricacies of legislation in various situations - all the necessary points are provided for resolving the problem of having to pay alimony. This article is the best I've come across in my search. So thank you for your work.Answer
Avoid alimony: in what cases is alimony written off?
Many people are concerned about how they can get rid of child support, but the answer is simple and unequivocal - no way. It is impossible to write off the debt - neither through the court, nor through the MFC, nor through the bailiffs. Even after bankruptcy, the child support debt will remain with you. It is legally possible to reduce the amount of obligations or be completely released from them if there is a good reason. For example, illness or difficult financial situation.
The Family Code provides for two ways to release alimony debts: voluntarily by agreement of the parties or through the court.
An agreement on forgiveness of alimony debt is drawn up in writing and contains the details of the parties, the reason why the alimony debtor cannot return the funds, what amount is subject to forgiveness and the signature of the parties. It must be certified by a notary. For example, a child grew up, began to earn money and forgave his father or mother for the lack of financial support. Anything can happen.
Contrary to popular myths, a person is not exempt from paying alimony if a spouse or child has changed status.
- If your ex-wife got married, this will not affect your payment of alimony for your common child. They are not reset or decreased.
- When the child becomes an adult, that is, he turns 18, the father or mother will no longer pay current child support, and the debt for previous years will not go away. They are subject to a general statute of limitations of three years, meaning the claim can be filed in court within 3 years after reaching adulthood. A penalty of 0.1% is charged on alimony debt for each day of delay.
If it is not possible to write off debts by mutual agreement, then alimony debts are reduced or forgiven through the court. Let's consider the grounds for partial exemption from alimony.
When can you challenge alimony?
- Alimony was accrued by mistake, that is, in principle, awarded unlawfully. The unreasonableness of alimony is confirmed by a court decision, which must be attached to the claim for the return of alimony or debt write-off. For example, you were misled and paid child support for someone else's child.
- The defaulter is declared disabled (that is, he lives on a disability pension and is unable to get a job for objective reasons), or he supports other family members (children or adults who are seriously ill). If new family members have appeared - a child has been born, guardianship has been granted to a parent, then the amount of alimony can be reduced.
- The debt may be reasonable if, for example, you prove that most of the time the child lived with you and borne the expenses themselves. The courts can accommodate and reduce or write off part of the debt when a defaulter is drafted into the army or serves a sentence in prison.
The court may forgive part of the alimony or reduce it if the debtor’s financial situation worsens. However, it should not happen through his fault. The reasons must be compelling. For example, a natural disaster, a layoff at work (the debt will not be written off or reduced if you do not work as you wish). The court may write off the debt completely if a disaster destroyed the debtor's property.
A claim to write off debts or reduce the amount of assistance to a relative is filed in the magistrate’s court - the same one that made the decision on payments. You will need to document the reason for avoiding payments. For example, present a conclusion from a medical commission about your incapacity for work, or about the illegality of calculating alimony.
The court accepts the claim within five days and can consider the case without the participation of the parties.
Alimony payments for ex-spouse
According to the legislation of the country, the ex-wife has the right to demand alimony payments for her maintenance in the following cases:
- during pregnancy with a joint child;
- after the baby is born and up to 3 years;
- registration of a disability group earned during marriage or after divorce for 12 months.
Each of the above situations deprives a woman of the opportunity to work and earn money. She needs to restore her health or take care of her baby. Therefore, in accordance with Art. 89, 90 of family law, former spouses are obliged to provide each other with financial support.
But today it is not uncommon for women to resort to deception in order not to work and receive alimony for themselves and for the maintenance of a child under 3 years old. Ex-husbands, in turn, are looking for legal opportunities not to provide financial assistance to their ex-wife.
Will bankruptcy save you from alimony?
Recognizing you as insolvent allows you, albeit with a temporary restriction of rights, to get rid of various obligations. But not from everyone. You cannot escape those debts that are inextricably linked with a person.
The answer to the question whether alimony debts can be written off through bankruptcy will disappoint many. This is impossible. These obligations are tied to your identity. If the debtor is declared insolvent, alimony continues to accrue, as well as interest for not repaying it on time.
What does bankruptcy give to an individual? persons? Article on the topic
Bankruptcy Law No. 127-FZ provides for how alimony debt is paid in bankruptcy. The alimony debt is included first in the register of creditors. This means. What if some property is sold during bankruptcy, or money is collected from wages, then the alimony debt will be paid off first. If there is money left after repaying the alimony debt, the remainder will be distributed among other creditors - banks, microfinance organizations, tax authorities, management companies.
If there is little or insufficient money in the bankruptcy estate, and the alimony debt in bankruptcy is not closed, then it is not written off, unlike loans and other arrears. The ex-wife will receive a writ of execution and continue to collect the debt from the bankrupt.
We talked in more detail about the rules for satisfying creditors' claims in bankruptcy in this material.
Thus, you cannot be exempt from paying alimony, but you can completely legally write off other debts. Contact our lawyers, we will tell you for free how to get rid of loan debts, how to start living in peace without bailiffs, debt collectors and prohibitions.
