One-Parent Family Payment and Maintenance
Maintenance paid by the other parent of your child or children is assessed as means in calculating your One-Parent Family Payment, along with any other income. If you receive maintenance for both yourself and your children, then both are taken into account. If you are receiving maintenance from more than one person the total of these payments will be considered in the assessment of your means.
Half of any maintenance received is taken into account in assessing the rate of your One-Parent Family Payment (OFP).
Ninety-five euro and 53 cent (€95.23) of maintenance received (per week) can be offset against your housing costs such as rent or mortgage repayment if you have such costs. Half of the remainder will then be assessed as means. Proof of rent and mortgage payments will be requested.
Contact information for the other parent
If you are not receiving maintenance, you will be asked to contact the child’s other parent to arrange for maintenance to be paid, you will also be asked to provide their contact information. You must make efforts to seek maintenance from the other parent if you are receiving One-Parent Family Payment. There is further information on the Department’s website here about what they will accept as reasonable efforts on your part. There are different conditions for married and unmarried claimants.
The Department can also seek to have the maintenance contribution increased if they think it is not sufficient. This will be done through the Department’s Liable Relative Unit. It is important to note that the Department makes the decision to seek additional maintenance and NOT the individual who is in receipt of the payment. You can contact the Liable Relative Unit of the Department directly at 042 9392710.
Domestic Abuse
In situations where domestic abuse was or continues to be an issue it may not be safe to seek maintenance. You should not be asked to contact the other parent yourself, and the Department of Social Protection (DSP) has a guideline for their staff about this. If you are applying for OFP because you have left an abusive relationship, it is really important that you disclose this abuse or any concerns you have about your safety and that of your children, to the staff at the DSP, as well as to others who can help.