Child Support: The Statutory Minimum and Options for Increasing Payments

What Is Child Support?

Child support consists of regular monthly payments made to cover a child’s needs by the parent who does not participate in the child’s upbringing. Child support is received by the parent who lives with the child or by the child’s legal guardian. The amount of child support determined by a court depends not only on the child’s age but also on changes in the child’s needs and the parents’ financial circumstances, and takes inflation into account.

Who Is Obligated to Pay Child Support?

A parent who does not participate in raising the child or providing for their needs is obligated to pay child support. Most commonly, this is the father, but there are situations where the mother leaves the family. At the same time, a child support claim can be filed even while the parents are married.

How to File a Claim for Child Support?

A claim for child support can be filed with the court at the place of registration of either the claimant or the respondent. No court fee is payable in such cases. The cost of filing a child support claim depends on the cost of legal assistance provided by a child support lawyer and, accordingly, on the specific circumstances of the case.

How to File a Child Support Claim Through Diia?

As of summer 2026, it is not possible to file a child support claim through Diia due to the lack of the relevant tools. However, a child support claim can be filed online through the Electronic Court system.

Can You File a Child Support Claim Without Getting Divorced?

There are cases where one parent does not provide financial support for the child even though the parents live together. Alternatively, the parents may live separately (for example, the mother and child have moved abroad) but do not wish to officially terminate their marriage. A claim for child support is filed with the court in the same manner — whether the parents are married or divorced is taken into account but does not affect the child support obligation.

What Is the Amount of Child Support in 2026?

In 2026, child support may be determined as either a fixed amount or a percentage of the parent’s income. The living wage for a child under 6 is approximately UAH 2,800, while for children aged 6 to 18 it is UAH 3,500. Half of the living wage constitutes the minimum amount of child support.

As for a percentage of income, there is currently no statutory standard, so judges rely on the approach established under previous legislation:

• child support for one child — ¼ of income;
• child support for two children — ⅓ of income;
• child support for three or more children — ½ of income.

However, the final court decision depends on the child’s needs and the parents’ financial circumstances.

What Is the Minimum Amount of Child Support in 2026?

The minimum child support payment in 2026 is half of the subsistence minimum for a child. For a child under 6, this amounts to UAH 1,400, while for a child aged 6 to 18, it is UAH 1,750. If a person wishes to receive child support above the minimum amount, we recommend seeking professional legal assistance.

What Is the Maximum Amount of Child Support in 2026?

The maximum child support amount for one child is 10 subsistence minimums: UAH 28,000 for a child under 6 and UAH 35,000 for a child aged 6 to 18. It is also possible to claim child support for an adult child who continues their education at a higher or secondary educational institution. To do so, the mother must submit a separate application and attach documents confirming the child’s enrolment and studies (contracts or agreements with the educational institution).

In such cases, the court may extend child support payments through a separate decision until the child completes their education, but no longer than until the child reaches the age of 23. If the child continues their education after reaching this age, they are no longer entitled to receive child support.

How Is Child Support Calculated for Two Children?

Child support for two children must also take into account the children’s actual needs and the parents’ financial circumstances. Typically, it amounts to ⅓ of the payer’s income, but it cannot be less than half of the subsistence minimum applicable to a child of the relevant age.

Is Child Support Deducted from Combat-Related Payments?

Child support is deducted from all types of income received by the payer, including combat-related payments. It is calculated as a share of the payer’s total military remuneration, including payments for participation in combat operations on the line of contact and bonuses. Child support based on combat-related payments can only be reduced by a court decision.

How Is Child Support Calculated If the Father Is Unemployed?

If the father is unemployed, child support is calculated based on the average salary in the relevant region, which is determined and published by the Cabinet of Ministers on a monthly basis. If there is no information about the child support payer’s income — for example, if he has no income, conceals his earnings, or evades payment — the enforcement service calculates the amount based on the share specified in the court order for child support.

If arrears accumulate, the recipient may seek to have the payer held criminally liable for failure to pay child support, which may encourage the payer to fulfil his obligations.

What Is the Amount of Child Support If the Father Lives Abroad?

If the father lives abroad, the mother may file a child support claim with the court at her place of residence. However, the court is likely to face difficulties in serving the father with court documents and determining his financial circumstances.

Even if he is legally employed abroad, a request must be made through international legal assistance mechanisms and the Ministry of Justice, which takes additional time.

If there is no information about whether the father is employed, child support will most likely be determined either as a share of his income or as a fixed amount, based on the average earnings in the locality where the child support recipient resides.

What Rights Does a Father Who Pays Child Support Have?

A father who pays child support has certain rights concerning the proper calculation and withholding of payments. For example, during court proceedings, he may submit applications and documents concerning his financial circumstances and challenge the child’s needs that he considers excessive. In other words, the father has the same procedural rights as the claimant and can also influence the court’s decision.

At the enforcement stage, the father has the right to challenge the calculation of child support, for example, if the enforcement service has incorrectly calculated his actual income. He may also apply for a reduction of child support if there are sufficient grounds to do so, such as a deterioration in his financial circumstances following the loss of his job.

How to Prove the Need to Increase Child Support?

A person may seek an increase in child support if the payer’s financial circumstances have changed and child support was previously determined as a fixed amount. Evidence that the payer has started receiving a higher income from employment may be sufficient.

An increase may also be requested when the child’s needs have increased and the existing amount of child support is no longer sufficient. For example, the child may require medical treatment or education, and the mother may provide relevant supporting evidence.

How to File a Claim to Increase Child Support?

An application seeking an increase in child support must comply with procedural requirements. The previous court decision must be attached to the claim. Evidence that the payer’s income has increased should also be provided. To prepare the evidence and properly substantiate the increase in the child’s needs, it is advisable to seek a legal consultation. A court will grant the claim only where the expenses in question are genuinely necessary.

Can Child Support Be Increased Without Going to Court?

Child support can be increased without a court decision by entering into an appropriate agreement before a notary. However, it should be noted that paying child support into the child’s personal bank account is possible but is not considered the proper method of fulfilling child support obligations.

There is also an option to transfer real estate to the child in full settlement of child support obligations. In such a case, the court may issue a decision terminating the obligation to pay child support.

How to Pay Child Support Through the Enforcement Service?

After receiving a court decision ordering the payment of child support, the recipient receives a court order or writ of execution, which is submitted to the enforcement service either in person or by mail.

The enforcement service, in turn, summons the debtor who is required to pay child support and provides them with a calculation of the outstanding debt.

Child support payments are calculated not from the date the court decision is received, but from the date the claim was filed with the court. Therefore, by the time the court decision is received, the enforcement officer has already calculated a certain amount and arrears may have accumulated.

The debtor is required to repay the outstanding amount and, subsequently, make regular child support payments either directly to the recipient’s bank account or to the enforcement service, which then transfers the funds to the recipient.

What Happens If Child Support Is Not Paid?

Current legislation provides for liability for failure to pay child support. If the payer fails to transfer the required funds, the enforcement service may take compulsory enforcement measures, including:

• imposing a fine or penalty for non-payment of child support;
• suspending the right to drive vehicles;
• ordering community or corrective work;
• freezing bank accounts and seizing property;
• restricting travel abroad.

A significant amount of child support arrears may even constitute grounds for initiating criminal proceedings.

How Can I Check Child Support Arrears Online?

Child support arrears can be checked online through the “Enforcement Proceedings” section of the Diia app or on the website of the Unified Register of Debtors, provided that the enforcement proceeding identification number is available.

Using this identification number, both the debtor and the recipient can access the enforcement proceedings portal, where all relevant documents are available, including the child support arrears calculation.

If there is no current calculation of the outstanding amount, an application can be submitted to the enforcement service requesting that the debt be calculated as of the current date. Alternatively, the amount can be calculated independently using an online child support calculator.

If child support has been ordered as a fixed monetary amount, the amount must be recalculated monthly, taking inflation into account. The specific procedure is that the enforcement service performs such calculations in certain circumstances, for example, when it receives an application or a writ of execution. Therefore, to ensure child support indexation, an application should be submitted to the enforcement service each month.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

 

Who Calculates Child Support for Military Personnel?

Child support payments for military personnel may be withheld either by the military unit or by the enforcement service. The enforcement service responsible for enforcing the court decision has access to information from the military unit regarding the servicemember’s income. It may calculate the amount due and require the payer to make the payment.

Alternatively, the enforcement service may send the writ of execution to the military unit. The document specifies the amount that must be withheld from the servicemember’s income each month as child support, as well as the portion to be transferred towards repayment of any outstanding arrears.

In this case, the accounting department of the military unit, without requiring the servicemember’s additional consent, withholds the specified amount when calculating their salary or military remuneration and transfers it to the child support recipient’s account.

Why Is the Enforcement Service Not Transferring Child Support?

Delays in transferring child support are often caused by bureaucratic procedures and the workload of the enforcement service. If payments are delayed for a week or longer, you should contact the head of the enforcement service and request that appropriate measures be taken to ensure that the child support is transferred to the recipient.

What Is Child Support for a Wife’s Maintenance?

Under the Family Code, the right to receive maintenance payments belongs not only to children and incapacitated parents but also to a wife who is pregnant or has a child under the age of 3.

In effect, these are payments for her own maintenance, in addition to the funds she receives for the child. A woman may file a separate claim in her own name, providing justification for her financial needs. The court may grant the claim by awarding either a fixed monetary amount or a share of the payer’s income.

Until the child reaches the age of 3, the payer may be required to provide maintenance for the wife. However, this amount is generally relatively small and lower than child support payments.

How Does the Enforcement Service Calculate Child Support?

Until the new child support law enters into force, child support continues to be calculated, as before, either as a fixed monetary amount or as a share of the payer’s income. The enforcement service calculates child support in accordance with the court decision.