Shared Care 50:50 CSA

I made a post about 6 months ago which covered some other points so I have made this new one hopefully to get some advice on this particular issue.

My ex wife and I have shared care of our 10 year old daughter; the typical pattern is and has been for the last 2 years - 7 nights with one parent then 7 nights with the other although each year my daughter has spent an additional 20+ nights more with me each year than with her mother.

My ex wife works and also claims Child Tax Credits and Child Benefit. We both looked after our daughter and paid the associated costs whilst at our respective houses, in addition I paid for all school clothes, school meals and after school activities.
About 6 months ago my ex made a claim to the CSA.

I was able to prove to the CSA that my daughter spent more time with me both in the day time and in overnight stays. She was also registered to the Dentist, the Doctors and the School at my address.

But what it came down to was that because my ex received the child benefit this made her the PWC and me the NRP. I was told the only way to overturn the CSA award was to apply for the Child Benefit which I did.

After a 6 month process of making a Rival Claim they decided that both my ex wife and I were eligible to claim CB but they had no facility to spilt the payment so the payments would remain with my Ex meaning that she stayed as the PWC.

The point of the above is we both look after our daughter, we both have associated costs in doing so, but my Ex now gets Child tax credits, Child Benefit and on top of that I have to pay Her CSA payments!

Does this seem fair?

And if fair doesn’t come into it is there anything else I can do?

Many Thanks

No and no. Child support is a blunt instrument and Government has made it clear that administratively splitting Child Benefit is too difficult and expensive so we are stuck with the system.

without the Child Benefit and Tax Credits, how do your incomes compare?

If they are roughly the same and she has considerably extra as a result of the benefits plus the CSA, I think you simply have to refuse to pay for extras such as school uniforms and after school clubs.

If they're roughly the same with the extras on top then on a 50/50 basis, that's reasonable?

With her receiving the Tax Credits and Child benefit our incomes are close and I had no desire to make her position any worse by applying for the Child Benefit, this was only applied for so that I may have become the PWC and stop paying CSA to her.

If I had been awarded the CB I would have transferred that money in full to her each month.

When she started to receive the CSA payments I told her it was down to het to pay for school dinners and uniforms. First week back in September to school she changed from the cooked school dinners to sandwiches which meant that each week she was back with me I still had to provide school meals. She bought some school uniform but I ended up having to buy extra and pay for a new PE kit and Guides, school trips etc. If my daughter only stayed with me occasionally it may be easy to not pay these things but that is not the case.

Hi someone

No advice really but I really sympathise with you on the lack of fairness. I've heard enough to know that getting CB and CTC are the key to being the PWC, so when my stbx just claimed them from me without even telling me during our separation I knew my hopes of 50/50 benefits for 50/50 care were toast. I asked them too but to no avail - she didn't even have to get my permission to change them.
Totally unfair. and that ripples down to strengthening her case for keeping the FMH, doing the majority of the childcare, and a bigger part of the assets too - as she is now the PWC.

supers