VVTR and Child Support Registrar (Child support)

This matter concerned an appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal regarding a child support assessment. The parties involved were VVTR and the Child Support Registrar, with the dispute centering on the determination of the percentage of care for a child, L. The core of the disagreement stemmed from a change in the parents' living arrangements and the child's attendance at boarding school, which impacted the calculation of actual care provided by each parent.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the existing care percentage determination should be revoked and, if so, what the respective percentages of care for L should be during the relevant care period. Further consideration was given to which of sections 54F, 54G, or 54H of the relevant legislation applied to the circumstances. The parties agreed that if a change in care was found, it occurred on 12 February 2019, and the care period could extend until the child completed secondary schooling on 20 November 2019.

The Tribunal reasoned that the evidence supported a finding that the pattern of care provision, as defined by section 50 of the Act, applied. It was satisfied that the care period appropriately ran from 12 February 2019 to 20 November 2019, acknowledging the child's full-time education at boarding school during this time. The Tribunal set aside the previous decision and substituted a new determination, assigning 58% of care to BNMG from 12 February 2019 and 42% of care to VVTR from 26 June 2019.