Funding to stem child-support system abuses welcomed
Australia has taken one of its most significant steps in recent history to curb the abuse and weaponization of its child support system, lawyers say.
The 2026/27 federal budget announced on Tuesday night included almost $183 million to address abuse in the child support system and help children get the financial support they are owed.
Fund allocation comes next Shocking findings from Commonwealth Ombudsman In June, it reported that the child support system was being weaponized and strategically exploited by perpetrators of domestic violence to continue to coerce, control and harm after a separation.
The funding will go towards system-wide reforms and include measures to improve assessment, payment and compliance processes.
Changes are promised to make it easier for parents to receive maintenance from 1 July 2027 and reduce the risk of coercion, coercion or forced conflict between former partners.
The tax office will also receive funds to sue parents who repeatedly fail to file tax returns to distort the amount of child support they are due.
The government will also strengthen enforcement of child support payments and prevent people with large debts from traveling abroad until they pay off their debts.
Australian Women’s Legal Services described the proposed changes as one of the most significant actions taken against abuse of systems in the country’s recent history.
“When households are under financial stress and fuel and inflation costs rise, the risk of violence in the home also increases,” said Executive Director Adrianne Walters.
“Investing in making the child support system safer and tackling shocking levels of financial abuse is both the right thing to do and the smart economic decision.”
But the service said the budget missed an opportunity to provide targeted investments in legal services for women to meet the demands of those fleeing violence.
Ms Walters said around 1,000 women a week were being turned away from services due to inadequate resources.
“Every woman who is turned away is more exposed to violence (and) more likely to face long-term economic difficulties,” she said.
Phillip Ripper, chief executive of No Violence, said reforms to systems needed to be matched with other investments in legal aid and frontline supports.
“We know that 16 per cent of Australian women, approximately 1.6 million, have experienced economic abuse at the hands of their partners (and we also know that the vast majority of parents who owe child support are women and their children,” he said).
“But reforms also need to be aligned with investments in domestic violence services and frontline supports, as disrupting the abuse of systems can trigger backlash and escalation by violent men.”
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