Do I need to claim benefits?

[ctm2342]

My XH says he has been voluntarily paying me effective spousal maintenance, on top of child maintenance - and that he cannot sustain this any longer. He says he has run my details through a benefit calculator and that I'm entitled to substantial benefits, which would total slightly more than he is voluntarily paying me at present.

We don't have any formal financial agreements. However, if he started off some process to resolve this, I understand there's a form (D81) and he says I would be required to apply for benefits in order to show the potential (or actual new) income, available to me, on the form.

Having read around this online, I'm confused if it has to be a court that would order me to claim benefits, or if I am indeed required to apply for them (or receive them?) in the first instance, before requesting that his finances are reviewed to see if he can maintain the payments without me needing to claim benefits. Sorry, bit of a mouthful.

Anyone have any thoughts on which comes first?

Work hours for UC depend on pay. It's earn 30 x minimum hourly wage not necessarily do 30 hours work. Unless it's changed again.

@DrCoconut you are correct. UC are interested in what you earn.

I agree that if you're entitled to benefits then you should claim them.

However that will bring in the minimum earnings requirement, which is just over £300 pw so unless your PT job is quite well paid, you'll need to up your hours substantially.

But you'll be entitled to help with the cost of childcare so shouldn't be worse off financially than you are now but obviously will lose quite a bit of free time but unfortunately being able to work very part time is a luxury that few can afford unless they're being supported by someone else or have a passive income.

Are you not getting it OP? He is not responsible for you only your child.

And this is why I drummed into my sons to please pick brains over looks and never ever get caught up with someone like the OP

Claim the benefits you can !

I'm not sure why you're thinking solicitors and courts OP. They won't be interested. Maintenance doesn't affect benefits. He just doesn't want to or can't pay the extra coin he's been paying

Tell him that's fine, claim what you're entitled to and focus on getting more hours. It doesn't have to be more complicated than that.

I think you’re maybe confused, and the question has been answered.

to answer very clearly though. No court will be involved unless you start legal proceedings for spousal maintenance. He doesn’t and wouldn’t do this, he just stops paying, you are not legally entitled to his money, you are not married any more.

if you did commence legal proceedings a court would tell you to claim benefits and get a job, if they felt you were too old or incapable of work due to things like disability and your benefits would still leave you in poverty they may order him to pay some over and above the benefits/

the burden on the state is you. Not him. When your marriage is over you are responsible for you. Not him.

Exactly ! The OP just wants to screw as much as she can from the bloke as a form of punishment / revenge
how very sad

Basically, it's nice he's continued to give you money for yourself.

He doesn't want to any more.

Court won't make him.

You can apply for benefits to replace that income. Or you can be poorer.

Choose your path.

Also op he doesn’t need to house you , he can’t force the home to be sold and split the equity.

for some reason you seem to think even though your marriage is over he’s financially responsible for you for ever. He is not, and judges want clean breaks now to allow each to move on. But no court will be involved unless you take legal action and a judge will expect you to support yourself

If it came to it - would a court need to review both our financial situation as it stands, and they determine first if he has the ability to pay, before putting a burden on the state?

there is no court involvement. You are rhe burden on the state. Not him, you are nor entitled to his money.

Or I'm required to apply for benefits first, and then for the court to assess both our situation afterwards to see if it would be better for him to pay or me to continue with benefits

he doesn’t have to pay. You are expected to work and support yourself.

as said, marriage is not a meal ticket for life. It’s done. Over. You’re on your own. He doesn’t need to pay.

Spousal maintenance is a thing of the past. My mum got it for a time after my dad left but that was in the seventies. Like others I can’t understand why you think your ex husband should completely support two households on one wage, that’s bonkers! You sound very naive OP. It’s time to stand on your own two feet.

OK, having re-read this several times: "We don't have any formal financial agreements. However, if he started off some process to resolve this, I understand there's a form (D81)"

Did you get a decree absolute, @ctm2342? D81 is a financial disclosure form. Couples usually complete these on divorce; it leads to a consent order, which is the court's ruling on your financial agreements.

It sounds as if XH wants to either get a consent order for the first time, or vary the terms of one you already have. This why the D81 would be needed.

Your question isn't really about benefits. You seem to have a bit of a shaky grasp of what the benefits system is - you should apply for anything Entitled To says you should, both before and after any changes to your situation.

People will be better able to advise if you say whether you have a financial order, if it included spousal maintenance, and what legal advice you've had.

The questions you're asking are the wrong ones. It doesn't matter what you can claim from benefits or if he can afford to pay, he doesn't have to and you would have to go to court and unless he earns a very high salary all you'd end up with is a big legal bill. He doesn't owe you anything above the legally required amount of CM, unless in the vanishingly small chance a court orders differently, and if he talks to a lawyer about this they will tell him he can simply stop paying. For your own sake you really need to apply for UC so you're not caught short when he gets fed up or wises up and realises he doesn't owe you a penny of SM.

If it came to it - would a court need to review both our financial situation as it stands, and they determine first if he has the ability to pay, before putting a burden on the state? Or I'm required to apply for benefits first, and then for the court to assess both our situation afterwards to see if it would be better for him to pay or me to continue with benefits. the court will expect you to support yourself through work or claiming benefits if you are unable to work. That's not to say that thsy will force you to claim benefits, but they can and likely will refuse to grant spousal maintenance then it's up to you to look for work or apply for benefits or starve. If you're a competent adult the court will expect you to act like one and support yourself.

My XH says he has been voluntarily paying me effective spousal maintenance

so as its voluntery- he can stop next week, no need for it to go to court and you have no redress if he stops paying this voluntary money to you

Therefore it would be sensible for you to claim benefits - the link above will help you on what you are entitled to. As your dd is 6.5 it maybe the case that UC require you to look for more hours to work each week.

hopefully that answers your question and gives other information

I’m really stunned the op genuinely seems to think that to prevent her being a burden to the state he has to pay for her even though they are not in a relationship and the marriage is over. That she’s no responsibility to finance herself.

im afraid she’s a horrible shock coming, as it looks like her ex is finalising the divorce, any judge if it goes to court for the final settlement hearinf, is going to tell her to get a job or claim benefits, and when she claims benefits she will be expected to be job hunting or increasing her hours, her benefits will rely on it, the judge is also likely to order the op houses herself and the family home is sold.

im really stunned she actually thinks he’d be ordered to keep her financially rather than claim benefits or work more.

Start by getting yourself a proper job. Then look at claiming universal credit if need be to top up.
12 hours a week really isn't enough. My 16 year olds did more hours than that in their part time jobs.

Well, I get that the overwhelming majority of you seem to think I should just claim benefits.

To answer a few questions, we divorced last xmas but didn't get a financial order. I think we ticked a box to say we reserved the right to get one down the line. But things seemed to be ticking over financially so there didn't seem any need.

With regards to working extra hours for benefits, my daughter needs me for school pickup, clubs etc. I've had a read on the UC website and it seems they knock off a few hundred each month if you don't meet the terms and conditions. And yet there seems to be apparently plenty of people about doing no work and still getting by on benefits.

As for the D81 form, that would be if either of us do want to start creating a financial order - and he might - though I'm not sure of the pros/cons yet. But I understand if the form wants to know both our incomes, and that's why I ask if it would be requiring me to claim benefits first, then fill the form out, or just go with the status quo (no benefits) and fill it out. And how that would look to the court. But then I suppose he could leave a note somewhere in the proceedings or on that form, to say that I am entitled to benefits and what I would get, according to that calculator. Hence the confusion.

You have a choice. Get a full time job and support yourself or claim UC. You have a child like millions of the rest of us who work. You figure it out.

It’s not remotely confusing. Is there a back story here, no one could find this confusing, you’re either separated or divorced. You’re not entitled to his money, the marriage is over. The court will tell you to work or claim benefits before they ask him to pay.

surely you cannot really think what you’re posting, you’re not that confused?

You can work more than 12 hours. I don't blame him.

Do you know a lot of people "doing no work and still getting by on benefits"? Pretty damn clever of them, if so. The system's all geared up to chivvy claimants into working more. Unless they genuinely can't - and that doesn't include finding it awkward or inconvenient.

Anyway, that's irrelevant - it was just an odd remark. The court will obviously look at your earnings, the amount of childcare that you do, and your probable benefit entitlements. It's important that you understand the court will NOT award you spousal maintenance, unless he's filthy rich - and even then it would more likely be a lump sum than any sort of stipend.

I imagine that, were he very rich, neither of you would've delayed the financial settlement. So the fact is that his payments to you are ending. Division of assets and CHILD maintenance will be determined on a balance of the CHILD'S needs, not yours, what's available from whom, and how much childcare each of you is doing.

It will NOT be affected in any way by benefits, whether you claim them or not.

You have a child in school so you can easily work more than 12 hours a week.

The simple fact is that unless he is on an absolutely massive salary (footballer, movie star etc) and the disparity between your and his lifestyles would be immense, you are not going to get spousal support in a financial settlement.

So you will get child maintenance only.

If that is not enough for you to live off of (do the online calculator) then you'll either need to work more or claim universal credit. You will be expected to look for work that earns you the equivalent of 30hrs min wage salary.

On the form you write down what you're currently getting. Your Ex can add a note about benefits or ask that the financial settlement includes your capacity to earn working full time in your current or similar job. This is for division of assets not for working out who should support you. The court will expect you to support yourself, child care and child's after school activities don't matter. Millions of parents deal with these issues and work and you will be expected to do the same and get on with earning your living.

You are extremely financially vulnerable. You are relying on your Ex for the roof over your head and the the money to feed yourself and your child. How are you not getting that this is a really foolish and risky position to be in? Sooner or later the money will stop and he'll want to sell the house to access his share of the equity. You should be using this time while he's paying spousal maintenance to sort your finances, find a job with longer hours, apply for benefits, whichever or both and sort the financial seperation. You'll regret not doing this when he gets fed up and simply stops paying.