Ayers and Carter (Child support)

This matter concerned an appeal by Mr Carter against a decision made by Child Support, which determined that he remained a resident of Australia for child support purposes. Miss Ayers, the other party, had contacted Child Support to advise that Mr Carter had possibly moved to [Country 3] and was living there with his new girlfriend, and later that he was working in [Country 4]. Mr Carter subsequently contacted Child Support to state he was leaving Australia permanently to live in [Country 1], was married to a [Country 1 national], and had no ties left in Australia.

The court was required to determine whether Mr Carter had established himself as a resident of a country other than Australia, and whether he had a permanent place of abode outside Australia, thereby ceasing to be a resident of Australia for the purposes of the Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988. This involved assessing the evidence regarding his domicile, his employment arrangements, his personal ties, and his stated intentions concerning his residency.

The court considered various pieces of evidence, including Mr Carter's Australian citizenship, his past residency in Australia, his employment history both in Australia and overseas, his marriage to a [Country 1 national], and his statements to Child Support and Miss Ayers regarding his intentions to reside permanently in [Country 1]. The court noted that while Mr Carter claimed to have left Australia permanently in September 2016 and intended to live in [Country 1], evidence suggested he continued to have financial ties to Australia, such as owning a motorbike and having items in storage. Furthermore, his employment was on a FIFO basis, and there were conflicting indications regarding his primary place of residence and his intentions. The court found that Mr Carter had not established a permanent place of abode outside Australia, nor had he demonstrated a clear intention to permanently reside elsewhere, particularly given his continued engagement with Australian financial matters and his FIFO work arrangements.

The court set aside the decision under review and substituted it with a new decision that Mr Carter was a resident of Australia for child support purposes.