He's asking mento claim benefits and let him know how much I get?

[whycantitbecalm]

Ok, so i have filed for divorce and we're at the financial stage.
We are going to start mediation, but he is pushing me to start claiming benefits and to let him know how much i'm getting so he can put it on the finances as part of my income.

Now he is a convincing liar and manipulator and i really need to know if what he's saying is true.

Anyone know? Before i fork out £300 to see the solicitor?

Many thanks

You have to declare all your income and assets yes.

My ex tried this, to see how much less he could pay for his own kids, despite earning a six figure salary.

You are not obliged to give him any information until you both complete financial disclosure forms. I would keep it that way and give away as little as possible until you have to. Esp if he is manipulative.

You don't have to claim benefits if you don't want to or need to.

You will have to say how much income you get but I wouldn't be disclosing anything until he had his numbers ready eg pension valuation

I suspect he's going to argue that you should get less maintenance or payout because of benefit income.

Tbh, why wouldn’t you claim benefits if you are entitled. Separation and then divorce creates additional financial pressures. In most cases you have to pay for two homes. If you aren’t living together then this makes it affordable.

It won’t change your CMS entitlement at any time.

In terms of settlements, he just has to show you could increase your income quite easily and it’s your choice not to. You have to declare it anyway so why not tell him as and when. Surely you also want to know how much income he is receiving?

Why is this a problem.

Well if you have no income you need to either

work
claim benefits

You then need to declare any income and assets

note that settlement will be based on earning potential not what you earn right now, and if you are asking for spousal that would impact uc so you wouldn’t be any better off ( even if it was awarded which is usually unlikely)

A full financial disclosure is a normal step in a divorce so it doesn’t sound unreasonable for him to ask for that. It should be disclosure from both sides though, and usually with support from solicitors.

If you or he have any assets or likely to have it's actually quite hard to fill in and claim prior to disclosure on his side because the assets may mean you are over limit to claim . Obviously if you don't have an owned home, pensions etc- it's more clear cut

You don't have to claim benefits but you will need to provide for yourself somehow. Food and electric cost money.

You only need to declare income on the official financial disclosure form so he can find out what/how much then.

Either you get a job or claim benefits if you can't work for whatever reason. The judge will expect you to maximise your income.

If you aren't currently claiming them then I presume that you have other income . He cannot make you claim benefits.

you can't declare what you are not claiming. So just fill the form in honestly as per your current circumstances.

@Chowtime Thank You

@NotNowMartha yep thats what i'm thinking too thank you

@PeekAtYou i'm suspecting the same, that he's going to claim i'll be fine with him providing less as part of negotiations.

@LemonTT I absolutely would of course wish him to fully disclose everything too, but having spent over 20 yrs being manipulated by him, i also know he could be lying about needing to know this and thats why i asked.

@millymollymoomoo thanks hun

Although you will have to declare all your income and assets, it’s dome by completing a form which your solicitor will give you. Often this is dome at a later stage in the process when assets etc have been valued and after some mediation sessions, if you have them.

You do not just hand the info to your ex for him to add to a form! I suspect he wants to know so he can manipulate his disclosures.

In order to negotiate, the stage before going to court, you need to put the facts on the table. Income, actual and potential income are facts of the negotiation. If you withhold this information they can make estimates using the information they know about you. The Number of kids, current income, and where you live will provide them with an estimate of the benefits you are entitled to.

Plus you actually have some additional income

The way to stop being manipulated is to do things that are in you own interest. Not doing something in your own interests because he asked you to is being manipulated.

A settlement, negotiated or court ordered, will be based on the income you could earn, not the one you do earn. Your benefit entitlement will be taken into account whether you claim it or not or disclose it or not.

There is an expectation in divorce that both parties will maximise their income. This includes claiming and receiving any benefits that are available to you. You can either do so or he can reasonably estimate what you are entitled to. Either way, if you are eligible for benefits, guidance to the judiciary is that it should be considered as part of your income.

This is quite wrong. Receipt of benefits makes no difference to the child maintenance someone should pay as it is based on a formula that takes no account of what income the receiving parent has themselves.

It only becomes relevant in negotiations around spousal (i.e. for the ex-spouse, not the children) maintenance and recipients are expected to maximise their income and also work (i.e. mitigate their own circumstances). If a parent has to claim benefits, that is a matter between them and the state and blaming the ex-spouse for their situation is a bit out of order (and absolutely nothing to do with providing for the children).

Owning a home that you live in or having a pension has no impact on universal credit claimed.