I don't often participate in child support discussions as the bitter is strong, but a quick idea on why so many divorced fathers in Australia commit/consider suicide.

I was a six-figure earner, and so I paid 48 cents in the dollar in tax. My child support obligation (as with every other paying father, yet not on the infinitesimally small number of paying mothers) was assessed on pre-tax income, meaning my ex then got around 40 cents in the the dollar - leaving me 12 cents in the dollar. My ex moved away with the children, and part of the CSA obligation was that I had to pay visitation costs - thousands of dollars in airfares annually.

When shared parenting was introduced (which is a lie, it was never truly introduced) and one child opted to live with Mrs Stroppy and I, and the other child elected to stay with her mother, we imagined the costs of raising each child would cancel each other out. We were wrong. Nothing (in terms of financial assessment) changed as the government preferred that we beggar ourselves to keep the ex in the manner to which she had become accustomed, rather than having her totally reliant on welfare.

A (male) officer at the child support agency switched off the recording device one day and spent a lot of time with me on the phone patiently and kindly telling me that it would be easier on me to accept that the system is completely and fraudulently rigged in favour of the mother (after all - his words - all fathers need to be punished, right?), there is nothing that can be done about it, and to accept that was my lot until the youngest child turned 18. The turning-18 rule was new at that point, and the only glimmer of light in a dark world - as until then mothers encouraged their kids to remain unemployed so as to continue receiving child support indefinitely. He also admitted outright that a separated father who has custody of the children automatically receives no support from the mother, unless he's able to wade through years of legal battle. In contrast, obligation TO mothers with custody is automatic.

Things HAVE changed, but not much.

Well spoken stroppy, The system is all one side and I realized that in my early days after seeing a couple of friends end their lives while going through all the separation shit . It convinced me enough to undergo the knife and never have kids of my own. Have never regretted it cause I'm having a great time in retirement ,raising someone else's kids. When you are young there is too much pressure in a relationship with jobs, money, saving for a house to have kids. When you are retired, that's the best time to do it.

Life's great.

A condom is $0.25

dron wrote: ↑Mon Jun 11, 2018 8:48 pm A condom is $0.25

Tell that to the wife or girlfriend that wants your baby so she can get your financial support for the next 18 years.

women don't tell me what to do. i make my own decisions.

Duncan wrote:

dron wrote: ↑Mon Jun 11, 2018 8:48 pm A condom is $0.25

Tell that to the wife or girlfriend that wants your baby so she can get your financial support for the next 18 years.

No glove, no love.
It’s that simple.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

StroppyChops wrote: ↑Mon Jun 11, 2018 4:22 pm I don't often participate in child support discussions as the bitter is strong, but a quick idea on why so many divorced fathers in Australia commit/consider suicide.

I was a six-figure earner, and so I paid 48 cents in the dollar in tax. My child support obligation (as with every other paying father, yet not on the infinitesimally small number of paying mothers) was assessed on pre-tax income, meaning my ex then got around 40 cents in the the dollar - leaving me 12 cents in the dollar. My ex moved away with the children, and part of the CSA obligation was that I had to pay visitation costs - thousands of dollars in airfares annually.

I know this is an older thread, but first time I read it.......


You do know don't you that if you become a resident of Cambodia or Vietnam, which are two countries that are NOT in the global treaty on Family Court and Spousal Maintenance and Child support, and that your sole income and cash assets are wholly and solely in Vietnam or Cambodia, then you are not required to pay anything? (Although I understand Australia and New Zealand have a minimum monthly payment of something like $35 a month, but can't be enforced if you are a foreign resident in a non-reciprocal country)
I have encountered numerous US guys in Vietnam who skipped over there to stay to avoid paying Alimony and Child Support for kids they never see.

Artful Dodger wrote: ↑Tue Jul 31, 2018 12:39 pm

StroppyChops wrote: ↑Mon Jun 11, 2018 4:22 pm I don't often participate in child support discussions as the bitter is strong, but a quick idea on why so many divorced fathers in Australia commit/consider suicide.

I was a six-figure earner, and so I paid 48 cents in the dollar in tax. My child support obligation (as with every other paying father, yet not on the infinitesimally small number of paying mothers) was assessed on pre-tax income, meaning my ex then got around 40 cents in the the dollar - leaving me 12 cents in the dollar. My ex moved away with the children, and part of the CSA obligation was that I had to pay visitation costs - thousands of dollars in airfares annually.

I know this is an older thread, but first time I read it.......


You do know don't you that if you become a resident of Cambodia or Vietnam, which are two countries that are NOT in the global treaty on Family Court and Spousal Maintenance and Child support, and that your sole income and cash assets are wholly and solely in Vietnam or Cambodia, then you are not required to pay anything? (Although I understand Australia and New Zealand have a minimum monthly payment of something like $35 a month, but can't be enforced if you are a foreign resident in a non-reciprocal country)
I have encountered numerous US guys in Vietnam who skipped over there to stay to avoid paying Alimony and Child Support for kids they never see.

I didn't know that, no - but my former tax lawyer was arguing for me to move my income through the Cayman Islands for the same benefits. I couldn't and wouldn't do it - it's possibly stupid and naive, but if the laws of my country state I must pay x for the welfare of my children, then I pay x. The grind was that they did not benefit from the payment of x other than in terms of KFC until the money ran out, and then ramen noodles. School bills went unpaid, they lived in welfare housing, and now have a welfare mentality. Their mother frequently told them I did not pay child support, which I still deeply resent, as I paid over and above. As stated, the bitter is strong, so I'll stop now.

I know this an old thread, but I’m curious...

Stroppy, you paid child support direct to the ex? How does the system work there? Isn’t there a paper trail - cashed checks, garnishment on pay stubs to clearly showed you’ve paid?

Sounds like Aussie land is ripe for ex rape.

Jonathan Swift had a solution to this.

charlie