Maintenance obligations with New Zealand
(1) This section has effect despite anything in Part VII. (2) A court must not determine an application for payment of child or spousal maintenance (whether under this Act or the regulations) if: (a) the person seeking payment is habitually resident in New Zealand; and (b) determining the application would require the court to make a decision mentioned in Article 1.2 of the Australia‑New Zealand Agreement. Note: Article 1.2 of the Agreement is as follows: For the purposes of this Agreement a decision shall include: (a) a child support assessment issued by an administrative authority; (b) an agreement to make payments for the maintenance of a child or spouse which has been registered with an administrative authority; (c) an assessment, order or agreement suspending, modifying or revoking a decision of the kind referred to in (a) or (b); (d) an order for child maintenance made by a judicial authority; (e) an order for spousal maintenance made by a judicial authority; (f) an agreement to make payments for the maintenance of a child or spouse which has been registered with a judicial authority; (g) an order or agreement suspending, modifying or revoking a decision of the kind referred to in (d), (e) or (f); (h) a liability to pay an amount to an administrative authority for the maintenance of a child or as contribution to the cost of government benefits paid to a payee for the maintenance of a child. (3) In this section: Australia‑New Zealand Agreement means the Agreement between the Government of Australia and the Government of New Zealand on Child and Spousal Maintenance signed at Canberra on 12 April 2000.
Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 May 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au. Verify the current text against the official source before relying on it.
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