Women’s Charter 1961 · 2020 Revised Edition · Part 9 · Enforcement of Maintenance Orders
83. Arrears report to designated credit bureau
Feedback & supportLast amended by an amending law of 2023.
If the court has declared under section 81(2)(a) the amount of maintenance arrears under a maintenance order, and any of that amount remains in arrears, any of the following persons may lodge a report with a designated credit bureau, stating the amount that remains in arrears as at the date of the report (called in this section an arrears report):
maintenance arrears
“maintenance arrears” means payments due and payable under a maintenance order, whether secured or unsecured;
the person to whom or for whose benefit the maintenance is payable;
the caregiver of a person mentioned in paragraph (a);
an authorised representative of a person mentioned in paragraph (a);
an MEO.
Subject to subsection (3), the designated credit bureau may provide to a member of the designated credit bureau information in an arrears report in relation to a respondent, either on its own or consolidated with other information pertaining to the credit payment history of the respondent.
respondent
“respondent”, in relation to a maintenance order or a maintenance enforcement application in respect of a maintenance order, means the person liable to make payments under the maintenance order;
Where, subsequent to the lodging of an arrears report, the designated credit bureau has received any report updating the amount that remains in arrears in relation to a respondent (called in this section an updating report), any information that the designated credit bureau may provide to its member under subsection (2) may be consolidated with the information in the updating report.
Regulations may provide for the following matters:
the information to be submitted in or with an arrears report or updating report;
the procedure for the lodging of an arrears report or updating report, including any requirement to file a declaration as to the accuracy of the information in the arrears report or updating report;
the persons who may apply for a copy of an arrears report or updating report;
the procedure for a respondent who is the subject of an arrears report or updating report to challenge the accuracy of any information in an arrears report or updating report.
In this section, “designated credit bureau” means an entity that —
collects and maintains information about the credit payment history of a person and provides the information to its members for the purpose of enabling its members to assess the creditworthiness of a person; and
has been designated by the Minister as a credit bureau for the purposes of receiving an arrears report under subsection (1).