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Australia Cracks Down on Child Support Cheats

By Janet Langjahr

Child support arrearages in Australia top $1 billion. And the arrearages are growing at the alarming rate of $50 million a year.

In a desperate effort to stem the tide, Australia is going to take a closer look at separated parents suspected of understating their income information.

Private investigators will perform visual surveillance of such parents for a year.

Both parents will also have to produce tax returns to child support enforcement personnel.

And the child support enforcement agency has partnered with a private company to seize and sell a parent’s assets, such as a car or home, to collect arrearages.

After a year, the program will be evaluated based upon its impact on collections.

If it works, who knows where else the program might be adapted and implemented? And what will be next?

The mere thought might have a positive impact on child support collections all over the world.

Read more in

• this Sydney Morning Herald article: Child-support cheats face surveillance
• this Canberra Times article: Child support crackdown:detectives to spy on cheats
• this Syndey Morning Herald article: Private eyes spy on defaulting parents
• this Fairfax Age article: New measures to target shifty parents

Full post as published by Florida Divorce - Child Custody - Domestic Abuse Law on July 02, 2008 (boomark / email).