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If a parent lives overseas
The Child Support Act 1991 looks after child support arrangements for:
- families living in New Zealand
- families where one of the parents lives in Australia.
You may be able to get child support even if you or the other parent lives outside of New Zealand and Australia. For you to get child support, the country needs to be:
- part of the Commonwealth or a designated country or
- part of the 1956 United Nations Convention for the Recovery Abroad of Maintenance (UNCRAM)
On this page:
Commonwealth countries and designated countries
This group of countries includes:
- the 53 member states of the Commonwealth(external link)
- the Republic of Ireland, the Cook Islands, Niue and Tokelau
- South Africa, the state of California, and the Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions of the People’s Republic of China.
If you live in New Zealand and the other parent lives in a Commonwealth or designated country
If you live in New Zealand and the other parent lives in a Commonwealth or designated country, you can apply for child support through the Ministry of Justice or the Family Court.
If you live in a Commonwealth or designated country and the other parent lives in New Zealand
Contact the agency in your country that’s in charge of child support if you live in a Commonwealth or designated country and the other parent lives in New Zealand. You can also contact a lawyer in your country.
UNCRAM countries
If you live in New Zealand and the other parent lives in an UNCRAM country
If you live in New Zealand and the other parent lives in an UNCRAM country, you can apply to that country for child support.
Find out more about applying for child support if the other parent lives in an UNCRAM country
If you live in an UNCRAM country and the other parent lives in New Zealand
Contact the agency in your country that’s in charge of child support if you live in an UNCRAM country and the other parent lives in New Zealand. You can also contact a lawyer in your country.
