Child Support

Child support is a formula-based payment scheme administered by Inland Revenue under the Child Support Act 1991, requiring separated parents to contribute to the cost of raising their children based on income and care arrangements, rather than a court-set amount. Each parent's income is first reduced by a flat living allowance ($30,557 for 2026-27, up from $29,909 for 2025-26; a higher $34,252 applies if the parent receives a supported living payment) and by an allowance for any other dependent children they support, giving each parent's child support income.

The cost of the children themselves is then estimated from IRD's published child expenditure tables, which scale with the parents' combined child support income, the number of children, and their ages (0–12 versus 13+). Each parent's share of that cost is based on their share of combined income, then offset by the percentage of nights they care for the children — more nights of care reduces what a parent owes (or increases what they receive).

A statutory minimum annual rate ($1,211 for 2026-27, up from $1,175 for 2025-26) applies to whichever parent is assessed as the payer, so that a minimal liability still results in some payment. Parents can apply through myIR, and either parent can request a formula assessment even without agreement from the other.