Maintenance & How To Apply

When parents are not married to each other, the party who has custody of the child is entitled to make an application for maintenance on behalf of the dependent child.

Maintenance is a weekly sum paid by the non-custodial parent to the custodial parent on behalf of the child.

Married persons are also entitled to make an application for maintenance to be paid for themselves together with any dependent children.

In a maintenance application, the Court will assess each party’s income and their expenditure. Each party will complete a Statement of Means which will be sworn as true and accurate before the Judge. It is also important to bring proof of your income and expenditure with you to Court.

The District Court can make orders up to €500 per week for a husband/wife and €150 per week for a child. The District Court can also be used by married people however if there are significant assets and income in the case the application should be made in the Circuit Court.

An application to the District Court for a maintenance order is initiated by either attending with us or attending directly with your local District Court Office. A summons will then issue to the other party and you will be allocated a date for hearing in the Court. We represent clients in Swords District Court, Balbriggan District Court and also Dolphin House which is Dublin Family Law District Court for these applications.