YKGQ and Child Support Registrar (Child support second review)

This matter concerned a second review by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) of a decision by the Child Support Registrar regarding the percentage of care of a child. The applicant, the father, had previously been assessed as having 39% care of the child, with the other party, the mother, having 61%. Following advice from the mother that care arrangements had changed from 24 February 2017, the Department of Human Services – Child Support recorded the father as having 0% care and the mother as having 100% care. The father objected to this change, asserting that the mother was in violation of existing court orders and was refusing him access to their daughter.

The primary legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the existing care determination should be revoked and replaced with a new determination, from what date any new determination should take effect, and whether an interim care determination should be made. The Tribunal was required to consider the actual care arrangements, the concept of a "care period" for assessment purposes, and whether "special circumstances" or "reasonable action" to comply with care arrangements warranted a departure from the recorded percentages. The Tribunal also had to consider the impact of ongoing Family Court proceedings concerning the child's care.

The Tribunal's reasoning focused on the undisputed fact that both parties confirmed the mother had 100% care of the child from 24 February 2017. While the applicant argued that this change was a result of the mother's non-compliance with court orders and that he was taking reasonable action to regain access, the Tribunal found that the psychologist's report, relied upon by the mother, indicated a substantial risk to the child's well-being if the previously ordered care arrangements had continued. Consequently, the Tribunal determined that an interim care determination was not necessary and that the care determination should be based on the actual care provided.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision of the Child Support Registrar's delegate and the initial AAT decision. It found that the mother had 100% care of the child from 24 February 2017, with effect from 4 May 2017, being the date of notification to the department. The objection was therefore disallowed, and the care determination was not revoked or replaced with a different percentage, but rather confirmed based on the actual care arrangements as at the relevant date.