Child Support
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      Child Support Deductions

      Child support deductions are managed from the employee's Employee Profile. This article shows you how to add and manage these deductions, as well as summarises useful things to remember.

      Updated: May 2024

      If so directed by IRD, an employer must make child support deductions from an employee's pay. Let's investigate how to add this to the Employee Profile.

      In this article:

      Things to Remember about Child Support Deductions

      • Employers are legally obligated to
        • deduct child support payments from an employee's salary or wages when so directed by the IRD.
        • continue to make the deductions under instruction from IRD. The employee can arrange with IRD, not with the employer, regarding reassessing the terms of the deduction.
        • ensure the employee's privacy and protection from discrimination regarding paying child support.
      • The employer must act on the latest child support notice received (CS08), from the date stated in the notice.
        • There can be some variation on child support notices, so be sure to read them carefully. They could say 'on the pay day' or 'on the pay period ending' for the starting date of the deduction.
        • If you have received the notice after the start date of the deduction, add this deduction to the next pay your employee will receive. You can't backdate child support deductions to previous pays, so simply start these deductions from now onwards.
      • In some cases IRD may ask you to deduct child support payments from a contractor or commission agent and you are required to make those deductions.
      • Protected net earnings applies to calculating max child support payments.
        • Up to 40% of the employee's net earnings (Gross-tax) can be taken for child support. This does not mean that 40% has to be used. It is the maximum amount that can be taken for child support in a pay.
        • The employee must still have their other deductions (such as student loan and KiwiSaver) made from the remainder of their earnings. Protected net only applies to child support payments.
      • After PAYE, child support deductions have priority over any other deductions.

      Managing Child Support Payments in Thankyou Payroll

      Info - Blue Block (1)

       

      		 Child support deductions are entered and updated in the Employee's Profile. They are not added manually to timesheets.


      Where do I add or update child support deductions?

      GlobalNav_Path_KS_ChildSupport

      Under 'Employees' select 'KiwiSaver + Child Support' from the dropdown menu. Be sure to select the applicable employee from the employee list if you did not land in their profile.

      Scroll down to find the 'Contribution Rate for Child Support' section below the KiwiSaver field:

      ChildSupport_EmployeeProfile

      1. Enter the amount stated in the letter to be deducted for each pay.
        1. Do not enter the dollar sign $.
        2. Use a full stop for cents e.g 210.50
      2. Press the "Save" or "Save and Next" button at the bottom of this tab. 
      Info - Blue Block (1) Please note that this entry is the amount per pay. IRD usually advises a weekly amount in their letter, so you must adjust this amount if your pay cycle is more than a week.

      E.g. if the child support notice states to deduct $240 per week and the employee is paid fortnightly, enter 480 in this field (240 per week x 2 weeks per pay).


      What will I see in the employee's timesheet?

      ChildSupport_Timesheet (1)-1

      1. The amount deducted for child support is displayed in this box.
        1. The system is programmed to take the 40% protected net into account, so this amount could be different from the amount you entered in the employee's profile.
      2. Select the type of adjustment applicable to this child support payment, only required if this is a non-standard pay. There is nothing you need to do.
        1. For a regular child support payment, the system will default to 'Default CS deduction'.
        2. If you are making a correction pay or the employee has already paid child support from this pay, select from one of the options in the dropdown box and adjust the child support deduction amount accordingly. 
      3. The child support deduction is shown in the Pay Summary report of this pay. 
      Info - Blue Block (1)

       

      		 Thankyou Payroll is programmed to calculate the child support deduction amount by taking pay types included and the 40% protected net earnings for each pay into account.

      E.g. for a pay with the lump sum pay type added, the amount will be included in calculating the Net for child support - whereas payments for non-taxable allowances will be excluded from this calculation by our system.


      What will show on the employee's payslip?

      ChildSupport_Payslip (1)

      The amount deducted for child support is displayed in the pay summary area of the employee payslip.

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