It has been the guideline for alimony payments for 60 years - critical voices are calling for revision
Created: 01/19/2022, 09:39 am
By: Ines Baur
Anyone who is separating and is looking for guidelines on the subject of child support can use the Düsseldorf table to calculate their claims.
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Henning Kaiser
The Düsseldorf table serves as a guideline for calculating child support.
For 60 years now, it has been the guideline for how much maintenance a child of separation is entitled to.
But more and more voices are calling for a revision.
Munich – Underage children have a legal right to payment in kind and cash support.
If parents separate, the child usually lives with the mother and the father provides financial support.
The family court determines how much the dependent parent has to pay.
However, the Düsseldorf table gives generally accepted guideline values.
More money for children of separation from January 1st, 2022
On January 1, 2022, the Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court adjusted the child support rates upwards by a few euros.
The minimum maintenance corresponds to the lowest level of payments.
The minimum that a child can expect as maintenance.
It is from January 1, 2022 for children
up to the 6th birthday: 396 euros,
up to the 12th birthday 455 euros,
up to the 18th birthday 533 euros.
The amount depends on the subsistence level of the child and the so-called Minimum Maintenance Ordinance.
The payment often applies to low-income earners and low-income dependents.
The amounts increase in increments based on the net income of the cash support payer.
High earners who have more than 5,500 euros net will be charged on a case-by-case basis.
If a parent who is responsible for maintenance cannot pay, the child is entitled to an advance maintenance payment.
Criticism of the Düsseldorf table
Not all institutions have agreed with the Düsseldorf table for a long time. The
maintenance and family law interest group
, ISUV for short, criticizes in a press release that the deductible has been the same for three years. In the meantime, however, rents and energy costs have risen massively. "It is unbalanced and unfair if child support is constantly being increased and the deductible remains unchanged." The association wants child support and deductible to be adjusted in parallel. Because "ultimately, the costs of those responsible for maintenance are also increasing," says ISUV Chairwoman Melanie Ulbrich.
The
Association of Single Mothers and Fathers
has concerns about such proposed changes.
The great fear is that even less maintenance will have to be paid, resulting in even more cases of deficiencies and the risk of poverty for single-parent families will continue to increase.
Everyone agrees that the Düsseldorf table needs to be put to the test.
How high is the deductible currently?
The deductible, also known as personal needs, is based on the applicable minimum subsistence level.
It is set at EUR 1,160 if the benefit is paid for a child up to the age of 21 and applies to dependents who are employed.
Anyone who is unemployed has a rate of 960 euros.
Calculation example - how much maintenance is to be paid?
If you want to know exactly how much maintenance he (or she) has to pay, take a look at the table and at his income group and the age of the child.
This shows the monthly maintenance.
Example: With a net income of 2,800 euros, maintenance for a seven-year-old child would be 524 euros per month, minus half the child benefit.
Means, according to the Düsseldorf table, 414.50 euros are due as child support.