GERMANY Law and Practice Contributed by: Marie Baronin von Maydell, Sophie Beckers, Sarah Schreinemachers and Rebecca Mohr, MAYDELL FamilyLaw
Calculation of Child Maintenance In principle, both parents are responsible for child maintenance. If the child is a minor, the parent with whom the child primarily lives usually fulfils his/her maintenance obligation through care and upbringing, while the other parent must provide financial mainte ‑ nance. The amount payable is calculated based on the paying parent’s adjusted net income or the living standard of the parents. After considering half of the child benefit ( Kindergeld ), the final amount is deter ‑ mined. In high net worth cases, the maintenance is calculated according to the individual need of the child. However, according to the Supreme Court’s case law, children should not participate in their par ‑ ents’ luxury. Once the child is of age, both parents are generally required to contribute financially. Agreements, Court Orders and Duration of Child Maintenance Parents can generally agree on child maintenance arrangements without court involvement, including the amount and payment terms. Such agreements may be formalised either by obtaining a child sup ‑ port certificate ( Jugendamtsurkunde ) from the Youth Welfare Office or by having the agreement notarised, both of which make the obligation enforceable. If no agreement is reached, the court may issue child main ‑ tenance orders. A distinction must be made between interim and final decisions, as this determines their duration. Interim maintenance orders may be issued, for example, to secure the child’s ongoing living needs. These orders are time-limited and apply only until a decision is made in the main proceedings or until they are revoked or amended; they do not have permanent binding effect. By contrast, final maintenance orders are not subject to a fixed time limit: they remain in force as long as the child is in need of maintenance and the statutory requirements are met. Maintenance decisions may be modified if there is a substantial change in circumstances, such as chang ‑ es in a parent’s income, a change in the care arrange ‑ ment, or the child reaching the age of majority. In principle, the obligation to provide child maintenance
continues until the completion of an appropriate edu ‑ cation. However, once the child is of age, the legal basis of the claim and the parents’ respective shares of liability change. In child maintenance proceedings, proper representa ‑ tion of minor children is required. If one parent exer ‑ cises sole parental custody or has been granted deci ‑ sion-making authority by the Family Court, that parent represents the child alone. In many cases, however, separated parents share parental custody. In such situations, the parent with whom the child primarily resides represents the child when asserting mainte ‑ nance claims against the other parent. Once the child reaches the age of majority, the child must assert the maintenance claim independently. 3.3 Other Matters If parents cannot agree on specific aspects of the child’s upbringing, such as education, religious issues, medical treatment or holiday arrangements, each par ‑ ent may apply to the Family Court. The court has the authority to make a binding decision on the disputed issue, provided this is necessary to safeguard the child’s best interests. However, the court will generally limit its intervention to the specific matter in dispute and will not issue comprehensive orders on the child’s upbringing unless the child’s welfare is at risk. Before making a decision, the judge must hear the child (irrespective of the child’s age) in order to gain a personal impression of the child and to better assess the child’s wishes, needs and level of maturity. The older and more mature the child is, the greater the weight that must be attached to the child’s expressed wishes. However, the court must carefully examine the reasons underlying those wishes and assess whether they are stable or subject to potential change. Accord ‑ ingly, the child’s views cannot be adopted automati ‑ cally. Schematic or formulaic solutions are impermis ‑ sible – rather, each case requires an individualised assessment of all relevant circumstances. Parental Alienation There is no legal definition of parental alienation in German law. Such cases, however, present particular challenges and can be relevant in both custody and access proceedings.
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