On Wednesday, the Minister of Justice Lea Danilson-Järg introduced a draft to the Riigikogu The unicameral parliament of Estonia. in its first reading, which clarifies the legal regulations related to the collection of child support and makes the use of special measures applied in enforcement more unambiguous.
The number of alimony debtors has increased by 1,300 people in the last two years, rising from 8,000 to 9,300. At the same time, the total amount of basic maintenance requirements has increased by 10 million euros, reaching 42 million. This has been caused by a number of circumstances, such as the sudden increase in housing maintenance costs and the general price increase, as well as the new maintenance calculation system that came into force at the beginning of the year.
"The draft ends the disputes about how the alimony requirement should be enforced. In the future, bailiffs will be explicitly obliged to take current maintenance claims for enforcement, not only previously accumulated arrears of maintenance payments. With this, we help to achieve a situation where the child receives the means necessary for survival on a monthly and regular basis, as it should happen according to the family law," said the Minister of Justice, commenting on the bill. "This is an important addition to ensure the well-being of children, which families have been waiting for a long time. Estonia is becoming one step more child-friendly again."
The draft also specifies the rules for the application of strict measures designed to enforce alimony. From now on, the situation where the debtor fulfills the obligation to pay periodic maintenance outside of the enforcement procedure, but despite this, the bailiff applies strict measures, for example, seizes housing loan payments to cover the previous debt. The principle is established that the implementation of special measures designed to enhance the enforcement of alimony claims is allowed only if a demand for periodic alimony has been submitted to the enforcement. Such measures are not used to enforce arrears of alimony payments accrued for the previous period.
"The strict rules for enforcement of alimony are so intense for the debtor that they must be introduced only if the debtor consistently avoids paying the monthly alimony to the child. If such measures are also applied to previous indebtedness, the debtor loses the opportunity to pay current maintenance directly to the child without the intervention of the bailiff, which is not reasonable," said Danilson-Järg.
In addition, the draft supplements the issues of the procedure for the payment of state fees intended to support the enforcement procedure: the fee for mediation of alimony received from a foreign country and the fee paid by the state for collecting alimony for a minor child. In the first case, the Minister of Justice is given the authority to establish a more precise procedure for paying the fee. In the second case, it is specified that the payment of fees paid by the state to bailiffs is organized by the Chamber of Bailiffs and Bankruptcy Administrators.
The bill is scheduled to enter into force on December 1.