Commentary on provisions of Act Section 4: Collection of maintenance in Northern Ireland: cases involving domestic abuse
Section 4 amends article 7 of the Child Support (Northern Ireland) Order 1991 to make provision for the collection of maintenance in Northern Ireland in cases involving domestic abuse.
	Subsection (2) inserts a new paragraph (3A) into Article 7 which expands the circumstances in which arrangements may be made to collect maintenance. It gives the Department the power to place a child maintenance case onto the collect and pay service when the Person with Care or the Non-Resident Parent applies and the Department is satisfied on the basis of evidence of a prescribed kind relating to relevant domestic abuse that it is appropriate for such arrangements to be made. It inserts a second new paragraph (3B) into Article 7 which defines relevant domestic abuse for the purposes of the first paragraph.
	Subsection (2)(b) amends Article 7(4) which expands the power to make regulations about the provision of information to cover applications on the basis of domestic abuse.
	Subsection (3) sets out minor and consequential amendments. It amends Article 29 and Article 48 of the Child Support (Northern Ireland) Order 1991.