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Press release | 19-08-2008
When ex-partners who are liable to pay maintenance fail to pay any partner maintenance after a divorce or after the dissolution of a registered partnership, an appeal can be made to the National Bureau for the Collection of Maintenance Payments (LBIO).
The arrangement is expected to help the majority of the current group of 12,000 ex-partners who are on social security because they do not receive any maintenance. This also applies to the annual influx of a total of 3,200 maintenance recipients requesting the collection of partner maintenance. The Dutch Government has agreed to a proposal tabled by Justice Minister Ernst Hirsch Ballin and Youth Minister Andre Rouvoet to review the relevant legislation to this effect.
The aim of the arrangement is to accelerate the voluntary payment process. The Government still holds the position that payment of maintenance should in principle be made on a voluntary basis. In the event that collection proves impossible, an appeal can be made to the LBIO. This will safeguard the general interest that people will properly fulfill their maintenance obligations.
As a result of the intended extension of the LBIO's terms of reference, the public at large will have a single easily accessible facility, free of charge, to collect partner and child maintenance. This will not only improve the uniform settlement of appeals for collection but will also involve cost benefits. Individuals could already appeal to the LBIO for child maintenance. In practice, this appears to be a very effective facility. It is not compulsory to request the LBIO for assistance. In the event of non-payment, the maintenance recipient can also instruct a bailiff to attach the ex-partner's wages, for instance.
If the ex-partner fails to pay maintenance, those entitled to maintenance are often forced to obtain a social security benefit because they have insufficient income. The proposed measure will promote the fulfillment of the maintenance obligation and may even, after a certain period of time, limit the number of claims for social security. The arrangement will additionally relieve local authorities from having to exercise their powers to recover the social security from the persons liable to pay maintenance, when the court has ordered them to pay maintenance. If required, the interested party can be referred to the LBIO.
The Cabinet has agreed for the bill to be submitted to the Council of
State for its opinion. The texts of the legislative proposal and the Council
of State's opinion will be made public after they have been submitted to the
Lower House of Parliament.