Maintenance: how the amount is determined

Under the binding case law applied by the Supreme Court of Cassation, including Supreme Court Plenum Decrees No. 5 of 16.11.1970 and No. 5 of 1981 (the Bulgarian text gives the latter date as 31.11.1981, an apparent misprint), the needs of people entitled to maintenance are assessed in light of their usual living conditions. Age, education and other circumstances relevant to the individual case are taken into account. A person’s ability to provide maintenance is assessed by reference to their income, assets and qualifications.

Both parents must support their children under the age of majority, each according to their own means. The care provided by the parent with whom the child lives must also be taken into account. The amount should support the child’s development, upbringing and day-to-day care, meeting the child’s needs as they would be met if the parents lived together.

The courts assess the paying parent’s means objectively, considering income, qualifications, assets and whether the parent has other children to support. The duty to maintain a minor child is unconditional, and each parent contributes according to their own means. Who provides the children’s direct care also matters. Their interests must be taken fully into account so that they can live as they would with both parents. In fixing the amount payable, the court must consider the means of the person liable. The parents have primary responsibility, within their abilities and financial means, for providing the living conditions necessary for their children’s development. Accordingly, the court bases its maintenance decision on the individual child’s actual needs and the parents’ means, without making its assessment subject to additional conditions.

If you have questions about divorce, child maintenance or arrangements for contact with a child, consult a lawyer practising in family and inheritance law and in property relations between spouses.