Preparing for Brexit: international recovery of maintenance

Purpose

These Regulations are made in exercise of the powers in section 8(1) of and paragraph 21(b) of Schedule 7 to the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (EU(W)A 2018) in order to address failures of retained EU law to operate effectively, and other deficiencies (in particular under EU(W)A 2018, s 8(2)(e)) arising from the withdrawal of the UK from the EU.

These Regulations are made to:

• make amendments to legislation in the field of private international law, relating to the Hague Convention 2007

• retain the directly effective rights and obligations etc derived from the Hague Convention 2007 in domestic law in the UK, both in relation to maintenance obligations and requests for maintenance which will lose the benefit of the Convention upon exit day, and in relation to maintenance obligations and requests for maintenance to which the Hague Convention 2007 will once again apply when the UK ratifies that Convention in its own right

• identify the rights, powers, liabilities, obligations, restrictions, remedies and procedures which are derived from the Hague Convention 2007 and recognised in domestic law by virtue of EU(W)A 2018, s 4 (the section 4 rights)

• make further provision regarding how the section 4 rights are to apply to maintenance obligations and requests arising before exit day, those arising after exit day but before the Hague Convention 2007 again enters into force for the UK, and to those to which the Hague Convention 2007 will apply in accordance with the provisions of article 56 of that Convention when the Convention again enters into force for the UK

• make modifications in relation to primary and secondary legislation relating to the Hague Convention 2007, applying it to the section 4 rights as they apply to maintenance obligations and requests arising before exit day, and those arising after exit day but before the 2007 Hague Convention again enters into force for the UK

• revoke retained direct EU legislation consisting of two Council Decisions relating to the signature and conclusion of the Hague Convention 2007 by the EU

Resolution procedure

• Negative

Amended UK enactments

• Maintenance Orders Act 1958

• Maintenance and Affiliation Orders Act (Northern Ireland) 1966

• Administration of Justice Act 1970

• Attachment of Earnings Act 1971

• Civil Jurisdiction and Judgments Act 1982

• Debtors (Scotland) Act 1987

• Social Security Administration Act 1992

• Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Act 1992

• Debt Arrangement and Attachment (Scotland) Act 2002

• Bankruptcy and Diligence etc (Scotland) Act 2007

• Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012

• Magistrates’ Courts (Northern Ireland) Order 1981, SI 1981/1675

• Magistrates’ Courts (Civil Jurisdiction and Judgments Act 1982) Rules (Northern Ireland) 1986, SI 1986/359

• Civil Legal Aid (Scotland) Regulations 2002, SSI 2002/494

• Armed Forces (Forfeiture and Deductions) Regulations 2009, SI 2009/1109

• Family Procedure Rules 2010, SI 2010/2955

• International Recovery of Maintenance (Hague Convention 2007 etc) Regulations 2012, SI 2012/2814

• International Recovery of Maintenance (Hague Convention 2007) (Scotland) Regulations 2012, SSI 2012/301

• International Recovery of Maintenance (Hague Convention 2007 etc) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2012, SR 2012/413

• Civil Legal Aid (Financial Resources and Payment for Services) Regulations 2013, SI 2013/480

• Legal Aid (Financial Resources and Payment for Services) (Legal Persons) Regulations 2013, SI 2013/512

Amended EU enactments

• None

Repeals and revocations (whole/partial)

• EU Council Decision of 31 March 2011 on the signing, on behalf of the EU, of the Hague Convention of 23 November 2007 on the International Recovery of Child Support and Other Forms of Family Maintenance ( 2011/220/EU) is revoked

• EU Council Decision of 9 June 2011 on the approval, on behalf of the EU, of the Hague Convention of 23 November 2007 on the International Recovery of Child Support and Other Forms of Family Maintenance ( 2011/432/EU) is revoked

Savings and transitional provisions

• None

Jurisdictional extent

This enactment extends to England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Read the official  version of this legislation and explanatory memorandum. 

Note on retained EU law: unless otherwise stated, references to EU enactments in this summary are references to  direct EU legislation anticipated to form part of the body of  retained EU law incorporated into UK domestic law (as amended) on  exit day under EU(W)A 2018.