It is not uncommon for one of the parents (less often both) to shirk their responsibility to support a minor child. This can happen both before and after alimony is assigned. In the second case, the recipient has every right to demand that the FSSP authorities take measures to find the negligent debtor, especially if the latter is deliberately hiding and evading payment of the due child support.
What should the claimant do and how to put the alimony debtor on the wanted list, forcing the relevant authorities to work?
When a search for a debtor is announced
Most often, an unscrupulous payer hides from the bailiffs and the debt collector after a court decision has been made and enforcement proceedings have been opened.
The search for a debtor is a set of measures carried out by a bailiff aimed at establishing the location of the payer, as well as clarifying his financial and property status. In some cases, which will be discussed below, it is permissible to bring administrative or criminal liability.
Another situation is when the debtor (defendant) is absent during the hearing of the case in court. This often happens if the whereabouts of the debtor are unknown.
In this case, the court, if there are doubts about the legality of the stated demands or the need to establish the opinion of the defendant, will itself suspend the case, issue a ruling on putting the person on the wanted list and transfer it to the police.
The police will take measures to establish the whereabouts of the debtor or send documents to the court about the impossibility of establishing his whereabouts.
Application processing time
The legislation defines a three-day period that is given to the bailiff for the purpose of considering the application received from the child’s parent. Having studied the circumstances set out in the application, the official makes a decision on the possibility of a search or the absence of grounds for conducting it.
The search for an alimony debtor is carried out only after the bailiff has issued a Resolution, which contains a decision to put the obligated person on the wanted list. As a general rule, like any other document of enforcement proceedings, copies of the resolution must be sent to the recipient of payments and the payer. The parties to enforcement proceedings have the right to appeal this decision.
How to put a child support debtor on the wanted list
The debtor is put on the wanted list after he stops paying alimony. After the writ of execution is received by the bailiff, he is obliged to call the payer for a conversation and explain to him the procedure, amount and frequency of payments, as well as answer all controversial issues. Thus, the basis for the search may be the first delay in payment and the lack of information about the whereabouts of the debtor.
If the debtor does not appear when summoned to the bailiff, while the debt continues to grow and the citizen obligated to pay maintenance does not appear at the place of registration or residence, the bailiff may consider this an evasion of the execution of the decision. In this case, the debtor is put on the wanted list.
The search order is issued by the bailiff who is in charge of the execution document.
He can do this independently (if it becomes known that the debtor has disappeared) or upon a written statement from the following persons:
- Plaintiff.
- A child receiving alimony if he is 18 years old (if he collects arrears of alimony or increases the payment period on the grounds provided for by the Family Code).
- Prosecutor.
- Representative of the guardianship and trusteeship authorities.
To initiate the search procedure, any of the persons listed above should submit a written application to the bailiff in charge of alimony proceedings.
Application to search for alimony debtor
This document is submitted to the office of the FSSP, which within 3 working days forwards it to the SPI conducting the proceedings. The bailiff has 3 more days to obtain the consent of the senior bailiff (head of the territorial unit) and issue a search order.
The application form is free, but must contain the following information:
- Full name of the FSSP department to which the document was sent.
- Full name of the bailiff who is conducting the proceedings and the name of the FSSP service department.
- Information about the parties - the claimant (applicant) and the payer. It is necessary to provide as complete information as possible about both, including full name, address of registration and actual residence (if possible, passport details), place of work and telephone number.
- Descriptive part - a mandatory link to the executive document is indicated on the basis of which alimony is collected, and all the circumstances are disclosed - when he stopped paying, why, etc.
- Confirmation of the debtor’s absence at the place of residence - it is enough to simply mention his absence, the bailiffs will still check;
- The final part - with reference to the Federal Law “On Enforcement Proceedings”, states a request to take search measures.
- Appendix – you can specify any additional data and documents of interest.
Submitting an application does not involve paying state fees or any other expenses. As attachments, you can provide statements from your personal account (often a personal account is opened for alimony). This data will help determine the amount of debt.
The application can be drawn up independently without any problems. If during its preparation you have any legal questions, you can always ask our lawyers completely free of charge and directly on the website. A sample for review or self-preparation of the document is posted below.
How is the search going?
After receiving the application, the bailiff must issue an appropriate order to put the debtor on the wanted list. After the decision is made, the FSSP official begins to carry out search activities.
As part of the search for the debtor, the bailiff establishes the location of the defaulter and, at the same time, his financial situation by sending requests to:
- Bodies of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (including the traffic police).
- Russian Pension Fund.
- Social insurance funds.
- Tax Service (FTS)
- Rosreestr.
- Banking institutions.
If there is reason to believe that the debtor has died, gone missing, or suffered under unclear circumstances, the bailiffs also send requests to medical institutions, morgues, and various clinics at the place of residence. This part of the activities is carried out in close cooperation with law enforcement agencies.
Bringing the debtor to justice
Every year, more than 100 thousand citizens are put on the wanted list in the Russian Federation - the bulk of them are debtors and non-payers of alimony. According to statistics, 80% of those wanted are found. After this, the court determines the person’s guilt.
Responsibility may be administrative:
- recovery of property and money of the debtor;
- arrest;
- compulsory work.
How to seize a debtor's property
In severe cases, criminal liability is possible - arrest, imprisonment, forced labor/correctional labor.
What are the consequences of putting a debtor on the wanted list?
In addition, the SPI travels to the debtor’s place of residence, during which the payer’s property may be seized. Seizure of bank accounts is also permitted. Having a debt of more than 10,000 rubles. gives the right to include a negligent payer in the so-called FSSP debtor database, being in which will create a lot of unpleasant consequences for him:
- Restrictions on traveling abroad.
- Problems when obtaining a foreign passport, since debtors cannot obtain permission to leave the country;
- Obtaining loans from banks, microfinance organizations;
- Suspension (or temporary withdrawal) of a driver's license.
If somewhere a debtor comes to the attention of the bailiffs, for example during a random raid to identify debtors, then information about him will immediately be transferred to the initiator of the search activities.
Evasion from paying alimony can be expressed not only in non-payment of funds for child support, but also:
- failure to report (understatement) income;
- change of place of residence without notifying the SPI;
- moving to other regions;
- avoiding contacts with the FSSP, disconnecting all types of communication (changing phone number);
- obstructing the activities of the IFI;
- disruption of measures to implement the decision;
- threats to FSSP employees.
All these actions can become the basis for imposing administrative liability on the payer in the form of a fine or even arrest for up to fifteen days.
If the evasion continues for more than 12 months, then it becomes malicious and allows the possibility of criminal liability.
Important: At the beginning of 2021, a law came into force in Russia allowing persons who have not paid alimony for more than a year (given that their location is unknown) to be declared missing in court. In this case, the child of the draft dodger will receive the right to receive survivor benefits, and the accumulated debts can be covered by selling real estate owned by such a bad parent (even if this is the only home).
Actions of bailiffs within the framework of a search case
The main regulations governing the search for hiding debtors are 229-FZ and Methodological Recommendations 0014/10 dated April 18, 2014. Based on Art. 67 229-FZ, in relation to defaulters whose debt exceeds 10,000 rubles, the bailiff makes a decision on a temporary ban on leaving the territory of the Russian Federation. If the writ of execution was not issued by court, only a court can prohibit foreign travel at the request of a bailiff or a recoverer. On the day the search warrant is approved, a search case is opened and registered.
Actions of bailiffs within the framework of a search case:
- Request information from official sources.
- Familiarization with documents confirming the personal data of the wanted person.
- A survey of citizens is an oral conversation with persons who presumably have information about the debtor and his whereabouts.
- Making inquiries - obtaining information orally from various organizations and institutions related to the debtor.
- Inspection of property, inspection of premises, vehicles, land plots belonging to the wanted debtor.
Electronic registers of clients, users, owners, recipients and payers maintained in government agencies, private banks and commercial organizations greatly simplify the task of bailiffs in searching for debtors.
The official sources of information for the investigation are:
- credit organizations;
- bodies of the Ministry of Internal Affairs;
- Federal Tax Service;
- EGRN;
- Pension Fund;
- employment Service;
- social protection;
- other.
Bailiffs carrying out investigative activities have the right to disseminate information about persons evading payment of alimony in all divisions of the FSSP, the media, and post advertisements in public places and on the Internet portal of their department. If the collector, on his own initiative, used the services of a private detective on the basis of Federal Law 2487-1, the bailiff can accept the information received and use it after a mandatory check.
Important! During the inspection, bailiffs must respect a person’s right to non-interference in his private life, not to disclose personal or family secrets, and not to pursue any additional goals other than those specified in the decision to initiate a search case.
Refusal to search
The IPI’s refusal to carry out a search must be in writing; the applicant can appeal such a decision by contacting:
- To the senior bailiff - the head of the territorial unit.
- To the regional department of the FSSP.
- To the prosecutor's office (if there is evidence that the SPI is acting in violation - for example, he received a bribe from the debtor, is in a family relationship with him, and in other cases).
- To the court with a complaint about the inaction or actions of the bailiff.
When applying to any of the listed authorities, you must indicate the date of filing the application, what the violations committed by the IPI (actions or inactions) were expressed in, as well as references to the violated (contested) legal norms. To file a complaint, it is better to get advice from experienced lawyers on this issue.
Find out more about the procedure for appealing the actions or inaction of a bailiff here.
How to recognize a debtor as missing?
If there is no information about a person for 12 months, and the claimant has not received alimony payments for a long time, then the debtor can be considered missing. First of all, the bailiff sends a notification to the collector that there has been no information about the debtor for more than 1 year. With this notification, the claimant applies to the district court at his residence address. He needs to draw up a statement with a request to recognize the debtor as missing.
There is no need to attach any other certificates or certificates to the application. The court will independently request all the necessary data from the FSSP service.
The final step is to go with a court order and an application for payment of a survivor's pension to the Pension Fund.
How to recognize an alimony defaulter as missing?
Is the search for alimony debtor effective?
Practice shows that a refusal to search for a debtor is almost never issued; the investigative investigators almost always make positive decisions. The possibility of confiscating a driver's license and a ban on traveling abroad were the most effective measures that forced debtors to pay off almost 37% of all alimony debts in 2021. New legal norms that have tightened liability for non-payment (discussed above) will make the collection procedure even more effective.
It is worth noting that when filing complaints about IFIs, 98% talk about their inaction. This is due to the high workload of the latter, as well as the physical impossibility of fulfilling the duties assigned to them by law. In this regard, search activities are formal in nature, expressed in sending several requests without real interest in finding the debtor. It is easier for the bailiffs to recognize him as missing than to waste time searching to no avail.
In general, the debtor search procedure often helps to pay off the debt and prevent further violations of the rights of the child.
Consequences of evading alimony payments
In cases where a citizen is wanted for non-payment of alimony and does not respond to the actions of the bailiffs, the case goes to court. The maximum penalty in a criminal case can be three years in prison.
But more often one of the following sanctions is applied:
- Correctional labor for up to a year;
- Forced labor for the same period;
- Imprisonment for up to a year (but a maximum of three).
One way or another, legal liability is provided for tax evasion in the form of an administrative fine or criminal punishment.
