Mitton and Mitton (Child support)

The applicant, Mitton, sought review of a decision made by the Registrar of Child Support concerning the registration of an overseas maintenance liability. The dispute centred on the method used to convert a foreign currency maintenance amount into Australian dollars for the purposes of child support assessment and collection. The decision under review affirmed the Registrar's calculation.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the Registrar had correctly applied the relevant provisions of the *Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988* (Cth) and associated regulations in converting the overseas maintenance liability into Australian currency. Specifically, the Tribunal had to determine if the Registrar’s method of using the average of two Consumer Price Index (CPI) rates to vary the registered particulars, and subsequently converting the amount, was lawful and appropriate.

Senior Member R Ellis affirmed the Registrar's decision. The Tribunal reasoned that the Registrar had acted within the scope of their statutory authority in varying the registered particulars of the overseas maintenance liability by reference to the average of the two CPI rates. This variation was then used as the basis for converting the foreign currency amount to Australian dollars, in accordance with the legislative framework governing the registration and collection of overseas maintenance liabilities. The Tribunal found no error in the Registrar's application of the relevant conversion principles.