Seeking a divorce with a child can be complex. Custody and guardianship arrangements depend on the legal framework applicable to the family. In some cases, custody and guardianship functions may be divided between the parents, while the civil personal status regime for non-Muslims generally provides for joint custody after divorce. Under UAE Personal Status Law, the father is generally responsible for financially maintaining his children. In specified circumstances, such as where the father is absent without property or unable to provide maintenance, responsibility may fall on the solvent mother. Child maintenance ensures the child’s education, living standard, well-being, and financial needs are met by the responsible parent.

Child maintenance is also known as Nafaqa. A child support lawyer in Dubai works on your case whether you must provide child support or claim child maintenance. Our legal experts may also help clients with changes in child custody orders, whether it concerns enforcing payments or changing responsibilities.

How Is Child Support Governed in the UAE?

Child support in the UAE depends on the spouses’ nationality and religion. Expatriates may insist on applying their country’s law, depending on the circumstances of the case and the UAE rules governing applicable law. For non-UAE citizens, the applicable law requires a case-specific assessment. Our lawyers would therefore consult with the client to determine which law governs the case. Federal Decree-Law No. 41 of 2024 on the Issuance of the Personal Status Law applies according to the scope specified in the law, including UAE citizens where one or both parties are Muslim and, in certain circumstances, non-UAE citizens. In this case, the father must provide financial support. However, the mother may spend money on the child if the father is unable to pay. Later, the mother may claim those funds from the father.

For non-Muslim families, the Civil Personal Status Law applies. Under Federal Decree-Law No. 41 of 2022 and Cabinet Resolution No. 122 of 2023, the father is generally responsible for financially supporting the children after divorce, subject to the applicable legal provisions and any valid agreement between the spouses. Under the civil personal status regime, the court may reduce or exempt the father from paying an accommodation allowance where the mother is financially able to provide suitable accommodation for the children during the joint custody period.

Custody ends at 18, whereas the father must support his daughter until she is married or starts working, and he must support his son until he can earn a living or pursues higher studies. The UAE legal framework for family law ensures child protection; therefore, an adult son who cannot earn a living because of disability or another recognised reason may remain entitled to maintenance from his father if he has no sufficient property. A daughter who is divorced or widowed may also become entitled to maintenance from her father where she has insufficient means and no other person is legally responsible for her maintenance.

How Is Child Support Governed in the UAE?

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Our Child Support Services in the UAE

We provide legal consultation for post-divorce matters for both parents, such as child support.

Child Support Claims

Child support claims are filed with legal evidence of the child’s needs and the income of the parent who must support the child. For temporary maintenance, our lawyers will present the legal argument in court to enforce immediate financial responsibility.

Modification in Child Support

We understand that child support changes with the parents’ income. Our child support lawyers are experts in documentation. Under Article 97 of Federal Decree-Law No. 41 of 2024, a claim to increase or decrease maintenance generally cannot be heard until one year has passed from the date the maintenance judgment becomes final, unless exceptional circumstances are recognised by the court. If an increase is granted, it may be given retrospective effect for a period not exceeding six months.

Seeking Payment of Unpaid Child Support

If the child support remains unpaid, our experienced lawyers can assist you with its recovery. Under Article 111 of Federal Decree-Law No. 41 of 2024, a claim for a child’s maintenance against the father generally cannot be heard for a period exceeding one year before the date the judicial claim is filed. Depending on the circumstances of the case, a mother who has paid expenses legally due from the father may seek reimbursement through the court. Under the civil personal status framework, the competent court may impose financial penalties on the father for failure to provide child maintenance, where justified by the circumstances of the case.

Manage Child Support Internationally

International families can provide child support to a child who is living in the UAE, even if the parents are not living with them. For international families, jurisdiction and the applicable law must be assessed case by case. For non-UAE citizens and international families, the applicable law and jurisdiction must be assessed according to the circumstances of the case and the relevant UAE legal rules.

Steps to Claim Child Support in Dubai

  • Consult a Child Support Lawyer in Dubai: The assessment helps our lawyers determine the laws to be applied and whether the claims are backdated by one year.

  • Collect evidence: The child support case must have evidence of the parents’ income to see what and how much of the child’s expenses can be covered financially.

  • Family Guidance, where referred: The Family Guidance Department or relevant family guidance mechanism may help in making a better settlement. Urgent or temporary requests can avoid this stage of consultation.

  • File the claim: Our lawyers will help clients file the child support case in the Personal Status Court. The competent UAE court is determined according to the applicable territorial and international jurisdiction rules, including relevant factors such as the domicile, residence, or workplace of the parties and the circumstances of the child.

  • Hearings and evidence: The parents will need to provide financial evidence to settle a fair child support amount. For cases governed by the Civil Personal Status framework, the competent court may rely on an accounting expert’s report when determining the appropriate amount of child maintenance.

  • Judgment and appeal: The court will decide the amount and ensure the way it should be paid. A party may appeal the judgment within the applicable statutory period. The general appeal period is 30 days, although different or shorter periods may apply in certain proceedings.

  • If child support remains unpaid, always keep evidence of payments to challenge it in the UAE.

Documents Required for a Child Support Case

Several documents are required for a child support case. However, some of them are really specific, including family records, certificates of marriage and divorce, the child’s expenses, and income proofs for both parents. Additional documents are required, depending on the case. The important thing is to get those documents translated into Arabic.

Why Choose ASK THE LAW for Child Support Matters?

We are an Emirati-owned law firm. Our experienced child support lawyers have in-depth knowledge of family law. They know how to handle intricate child support in accordance with the Personal Status Law for Muslims and non-Muslims.

FAQs

In most cases, mothers are relieved of child support. Under the Personal Status Law, the father is generally responsible for the child’s maintenance. A solvent mother may become responsible where the father is missing and has no property, or where he is unable to provide maintenance. In certain circumstances, she may later recover what she spent from the father if he becomes solvent.

Yes, an amicable settlement can be made with the help of a child support lawyer in Dubai.

Yes. The educational expenses of the child are included in child maintenance.

Child support ends when the child can earn a living. The duration of child maintenance depends on the child’s circumstances and the legal rules applicable to sons and daughters, including factors such as education, employment, marriage, and ability to earn. However, the daughters can receive child support till they get married or after being divorced or widowed.

It depends on the means and obligations of the father based on his financial status. The court considers the father’s financial capacity, the needs of the persons entitled to maintenance, his existing legal obligations, and the circumstances of the case. A subsequent marriage does not automatically terminate or reduce an existing child-maintenance obligation.

Speak With aChild Support Lawyer in Dubai

We provide you with a range of legal services for child support in Dubai. Whether you have to make changes to the child support or respond to the claim, our child support lawyer in Dubai can assist you.