Recovering Maintenance from Abroad

This item deals with the international enforcement of maintenance orders. The general legal provisions regarding maintenance in this country under the Family Law (Maintenance of Spouse's and Children) Act 1976 are dealt with elsewhere in this file. If the person who is due to pay the maintenance is living abroad it is obviously more difficult to enforce a maintenance order. The Maintenance Act 1994 and some international conventions which Ireland has signed allow for maintenance orders to be enforced in other countries. Arrangements were already in place with the UK since 1974. Even though it is now easier than before to enforce such orders abroad it is still advisable to get legal advice and assistance.
United Kingdom
The Maintenance Orders Act 1974 provides for the reciprocal enforcement of maintenance orders between Ireland and England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Under this Act, you may take proceedings in Ireland for the award of maintenance against a person living in the UK. You do need to know the whereabouts of the person in order to do this. When you get your maintenance order, there is then a procedure in place whereby you can have the order enforced in the UK. This is similar to the procedure which applies if someone from the UK seeks to enforce a maintenance order here. Initially they go to the Master of the High Court who may make an enforcement order. That is then enforced in the same way as a maintenance order made in Ireland.

Maintenance Act 1994
The Maintenance Act 1994 came into effect on 25 November 1995. It enabled Ireland to ratify a number of international conventions governing the recovery of maintenance payments abroad.

UN Convention
The UN Convention on the Recovery Abroad of Maintenance Payments (the New York Convention) came into effect for Ireland on 25 November 1995. The New York Convention is designed to facilitate the recovery of maintenance by a person living in one jurisdiction against a person living in another. It requires all states who are parties to the Convention to designate a Transmitting Agency which transmits claims for enforcement to other states and a Receiving Agency which receives such claims from other states.

The Transmitting Agencies have powers to gather information and must take reasonable steps to ensure that the law of the receiving state is complied with and may give opinions to the Receiving Agencies on the merits of the cases. The Transmitting Agencies may also recommend that free legal aid and exemption from costs be given to the person claiming. The Receiving Agency must take steps, on behalf of the claimant, to recover the maintenance. It must keep the Transmitting Agency informed about the progress of the case.

The Agencies may not charge any fees for their services.

Central Authority
Under the Maintenance Act 1994, a Central Authority was established for the purposes of carrying out the necessary functions under the Conventions. The Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform is the Central Authority at present. The authority liaises with the central authorities in other states. The Central Authority is the Transmitting and Receiving Agency for the UN Convention.

The Central Authority may act on behalf of a person seeking to have a maintenance order enforced in one of the designated jurisdictions. The Maintenance Act provides that a designated jurisdiction means any state which is a party to the UN Convention or any state which is declared by the Minister for Foreign Affairs to be a designated jurisdiction.

Reciprocal Arrangements
Ireland now has reciprocal arrangements with all the other states who are parties to the UN Convention i.e. all the other 14 EU Member States. Others:

• Algeria,
  
• Argentina,
  
• Australia,
  
• Barbados,
  
• Bosnia,
  
• Brazil,
  
• Burkino Faso,
  
• Cape Verde,
  
• Central African Republic,
  
• Chile,
  
• Croatia,
  
• Cyprus,
  
• Czech Republic,
  
• Ecuador,
  
• Guatemala,
  
• Haiti,
  
• Holy See,
  
• Hungary,
  
• Israel,
  
• Mexico,
  
• Monaco,
  
• Morocco,
  
• New Zealand,
  
• Niger,
  
• Norway,
  
• Pakistan,
  
• Philippines,
  
• Poland,
  
• Romania,
  
• Slovakia,
• Slovenia,
• Sri Lanka,
• Surinam,
• Switzerland,
• Macedonia (FYROM),
• Tunisia,
• Turkey,
• Yugoslavia.

On 1 May 1996, the USA was declared a designated jurisdiction which means that the same reciprocal arrangements for the recovery of maintenance were made between Ireland and each state of the USA.

Enforcement
If you want to enforce a maintenance order in any of the above countries you should contact the Central Authority in Ireland -

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform,
Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform,
43-49 Mespil Road, Dublin 4.
Tel: 01-6670344

The Central Authority here will transmit the claim to the Central Authority (Receiving Agency) in the other country.

You may have to give sworn evidence in the District Court about the facts of your claim and the District Court may then certify that the person named has a duty to maintain you. The District Court clerk will give you the relevant documents for sending to the other country. The Court may ask an appropriate court in the other country for certain documents needed to further your claim or may request the Central Authority to do so. Your claim will then be processed in the appropriate court in the other country.

The Central Authority for Ireland also receives claims from other countries for the implementation of maintenance orders against people living in Ireland. In these cases, the Central Authority applies to the Master of the High Court if the claim comes from an EU Member State or to the District Court if from another country. There are detailed provisions about your rights to give evidence, to rebut the claim etc. This can be done in Ireland and your sworn evidence is then transmitted to the other country.

The EC Convention
The EC Convention on the Simplification of Procedures for the Recovery of Maintenance has been ratified by Ireland and Italy but will not come into force until ratified by all the Member States. The Maintenance Act provides the procedures for implementing it. Its implementation will not bring any major change in procedures but should speed up the process for EU states.