Dad Pays $350,000 Fine to Fly!
A dad who owed $350,000 in child support repaid the entire bill on the spot when he was prevented from boarding a flight overseas. The father was stopped with a departure prohibition order (DPO) from the Child Support Agency in December as he tried to leave the county and avoid paying the claimed child support arrears.
The payment was the single biggest amount paid by a parent with outstanding child support seeking to depart an airport. Anyone who has an unpaid child support debt can be placed on a DPO, which gives welfare authorities far-reaching powers, including travel bans.
In another case a wealthy mining magnate was forced to repay $22,000 – six months of child support payments before boarding a first class flight out of Sydney last year. The overdue child support bill owed to ex-partners and their children is a staggering $1.5 billion.
In the last half of 2017 the Federal Government recouped $6 million from 700 Australians trying to leave the country who had defaulted on payments.
The joint operation between the CSA and the Department of Immigration claims to be on track to surpass the $10 million recovered in the 2016-2017 financial year from 1800 Aussies facing flight bans.
Human Services Minister, Michael Keenan said “These results are another example of how this Government’s sharing of data across agencies is improving the lives of everyday Australian’s”
If you have you might be at risk of having a DPO issued or if you have child support owed to you, you must obtain legal advice as soon as possible.
We offer fixed-fee initial consultation to our clients. Please call (07) 3221 4300 to arrange time to meet with one of our experienced family lawyers for you personalised advice.
(Original Article Source: Sunday Times)