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Difference between revisions of "Spousal Support"
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==Spousal support and social assistance== | ==Spousal support and social assistance== | ||
If you are applying for welfare or are receiving welfare, you may be required to sign a form that allows the ministry administering social assistance to take whatever steps are required get an order spousal support on your behalf and, sometimes, keep the spousal support it collects. This is called ''assigning'' your spousal support rights to the ministry. The point of this is to allow the provincial government to recapture some of the money it spends on social assistance from someone else who might have a legal responsibility to support you. | If you are applying for welfare or are receiving welfare, you may be required to sign a form that allows the ministry administering social assistance to take whatever steps are required get an order for spousal support on your behalf and, sometimes, keep the spousal support it collects. This is called ''assigning'' your spousal support rights to the ministry. The point of this is to allow the provincial government to recapture some of the money it spends on social assistance from someone else who might have a legal responsibility to support you. | ||
The collection of spousal support payments for people on social assistance is run by the [http://www.eia.gov.bc.ca/publicat/bcea/fmp.htm Family Maintenance Program]. (This is a completely different organization than the program which enforces child support payments between spouses, the [http://www.fmep.gov.bc.ca Family Maintenance Enforcement Program].) FMP has the authority to begin court proceedings for spousal support and can apply for new orders for spousal support, or apply to change old orders for spousal support | The collection of spousal support payments for people on social assistance is run by the [http://www.eia.gov.bc.ca/publicat/bcea/fmp.htm Family Maintenance Program] (FMP). (This is a completely different organization than the program which enforces child support payments between spouses, the [http://www.fmep.gov.bc.ca Family Maintenance Enforcement Program].) FMP has the authority to begin court proceedings for spousal support and can apply for new orders for spousal support, or apply to change old orders for spousal support, and it will do this as it sees fit without much involvement on the part of the recipient at all. | ||
===FMP and people entitled to receive support=== | ===FMP and people entitled to receive support=== | ||
If you might be entitled to receive spousal support, the Family Maintenance Program may make a court application for an order requiring your spouse to pay support. You will not have a say in the matter if FMP decides to do this, and FMP may bring on such an application for so long as you might be entitled to receive support | If you might be entitled to receive spousal support, the Family Maintenance Program may make a court application for an order requiring your spouse to pay support. You will not have a say in the matter if FMP decides to do this, and FMP may bring on such an application for so long as you might be entitled to receive support. | ||
FMP will make their application whether you like it or not, and they can require that you cooperate in their application. On the other hand, FMP will be responsible for managing any court applications they begin. You will not have to worry about arguing the application yourself. | FMP will make their application whether you like it or not, and they can require that you cooperate in their application. On the other hand, FMP will be responsible for managing any court applications they begin. You will not have to worry about arguing the application yourself. | ||
You may be allowed to keep some of the support money | You may be allowed to keep some of the support money that the ministry collects on top of your social assistance payments. Your case worker will tell you how much. | ||
===FMP and people obliged to pay support=== | ===FMP and people obliged to pay support=== | ||
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When FMP brings on an application for support, they bring it as if they were the person entitled to receive the support, and the application will be dealt with on that basis. It will be your job to defend their application, and you may want to hire a lawyer to do so. | When FMP brings on an application for support, they bring it as if they were the person entitled to receive the support, and the application will be dealt with on that basis. It will be your job to defend their application, and you may want to hire a lawyer to do so. | ||
You cannot defend FMP's claim by saying "but my spouse is on welfare, she doesn't need any support from me." That's actually the whole point of FMP's application; they're trying to reduce the government's expenses by looking for money from someone who has or ought to have an obligation the welfare recipient in the first place. | You cannot defend FMP's claim by saying "but my spouse is on welfare, she doesn't need any support from me." That's actually the whole point of FMP's application; they're trying to reduce the government's expenses by looking for money from someone who has or ought to have an obligation to the welfare recipient in the first place. | ||
==Spousal support and income tax== | ==Spousal support and income tax== | ||