MPWY and Child Support Registrar (Child support second review)

This matter concerned a second review of a child support assessment before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. The applicant, MPWY, sought to vary the assessed percentage of care for the parties' two children, arguing that the care arrangements had changed since the previous assessment. The Child Support Registrar opposed this variation.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the percentage of care for the children had changed, and if so, whether that change warranted a variation of the child support assessment. This involved assessing whether the current care arrangements complied with the previous assessment and, crucially, whether the applicant had taken reasonable action to obtain the care of the children, as required by the *Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988* (Cth) in circumstances where the actual care provided differed from the assessed percentage.

The Tribunal found that while the actual care provided to the children had shifted, the applicant had not taken reasonable action to secure the agreed-upon percentage of care. The Registrar's decision was therefore upheld, as the applicant had not satisfied the statutory preconditions for varying the assessment based on a change in care.

The decision under review was varied to reflect the Tribunal's findings, but the outcome was that the original assessment remained in force due to the applicant's failure to demonstrate reasonable action to obtain the children's care.