Caroline Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2016-03-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 29 February 2016 to Question 27368, on what basis the Child Support Agency allows non-resident parents to self-categorise as self-employed for child maintenance purposes; whether the new Child Maintenance Service plans to adopt the HM Revenue and Customs definition of self-employed when considering the employment status of non-resident parents under the 2012 child maintenance scheme or to allow non-resident parents to self-categorise their own employment status; and if he will make a statement.

Priti Patel

For the older schemes of maintenance, income information is initially gathered from the parents themselves. As part of this initial conversation, they are asked whether they classify themselves as self-employed or not.

Calculation of their net income figure will always be based on the relevant taxation legislation for the nature of the employment, subject to any additional conditions imposed by Child Support legislation.

For the 2012 scheme, unlike the older schemes, the income used to calculate maintenance is a gross taxable earnings figure. Our primary mechanism for getting this information is direct from HM Revenue & Customs. As a gross figure is used, it does not matter whether they are employed or self-employed.