Alimony

Alimony is a result of one of the parents failing to support the child which leads to the right of the other parent to be compensated for the past expenses as well as future ones.

Parents have a responsibility to provide for the child, including food, shelter, clothing, toys and education.

Alimony by Court Order:

If the parents cannot come to an agreement on child support, alimony payments and terms can be determined by court. The general rule assumes monthly child support to be 25% of the income of parent for one child, 30% for two children and 50% - for three and more children. Though court can either reduce or increase the portion of the child support in relation to income, the objective is to maintain the same level of material support as during marriage.

Out of Court Alimony Settlements:

Family Law allows alimony matters to be settled out of court if the parents come to a child support agreement (part 1 article 80 Family Code RF). In this case, the parties can decide for themselves amount and terms of child support payments. As such, agreement can be a fixed amount, a percentage or a mix of both. The parent that carries the child support liability can not only assume monthly payments, but also cover certain annual expenses; for example, annual summer holidays at a resort, music lessons, sports etc.

Alimony can also apply to children. Where parents are disabled, children are to support and provide for their incapable parents as per part 1 article 87 Family Code RF. Alimony for parents are always set by court as a fixed amount; however, if child-parent alimony is settled out of court, the terms and conditions of the parent care are determined by parents and children themselves.

Legal centre INDEPENDENCE represents interests of our clients in Russian courts in field of alimony and asset division during divorce. For instance, in November 2009 we helped set a fixed monthly alimony payment of 50 000 rubles for one child.

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