How To File For Child Support in Kenya: Child support, also known as child maintenance, is court-ordered payments that go towards the upkeep of a child. Child support is usually paid by the non-custodial parent. Here is a look at some of the principles behind getting child support in Kenya.
According to the Kenyan constitution, Article 53, a child has the right to receive parental care and protection. This includes equal responsibility for the father and mother to provide for their child regardless of whether they are married or not. Some of the organizations that can help you file for child support include the National Legal Aid Programme (NALEAP), The Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), and CLEAR, an initiative of the Kenya Christian Lawyers Fellowship.
Any parent, custodian, or guardian of a child can file for child support. The following are some of the considerations that the court will make before granting an order for child support:
- The financial needs, responsibilities, or obligations of each party
- The earning capacity or income, property, or financial resources of each party
- The child’s circumstances and their financial needs
- The child’s training or education
- Any mental or physical disabilities, medical conditions, or illnesses of the child
- The religion, custom, and practices of the parties
- The liability of other persons to support the child e.g. the liability of the stepparent or guardian
The process of filing for child support starts with hiring a lawyer. A lawyer will draft a letter to the party who is meant to pay child support. This approach is used to avoid the long court process. Both parents will then sit down, in the presence of their lawyers, to draft a parental responsibility agreement. This agreement is binding on both parties. After all the issues on child maintenance have been settled, the lawyer will register the agreement in court and it will act as a court order.
Alternatively, if the party who is required to pay child support resists a parental responsibility agreement, you could move to court and file a case for child support. The court will consider what is in the best interest of the child and look at all the above-mentioned factors before granting an order for child maintenance.
Important: Child support cost or maintenance fee in Kenya is determined by considering the income and expenditure of the parent required to pay. The Children Act provides more details about maintenance of children.
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I’m amother of two girls I’m away from my kids and the father don’t want to take care of them i want to sue him
Am lavas from west pokot want to sue my baby dady has neglected his son 8yrs now he is a lawyer he threatened me to sue me. Am in west pokot
please help me i cant afford a lawyer
Hey am jecinta a mother of one and eight month I would like to sue the dad for neglecting her since I was pg
Am Esther, from Nairobi i would like to sue my baby daddy for neglecting my son, how do i do it cause i don’t know
Hi. Am Susan based in nakuru. I would like to sue my baby daddy for neglecting our daughter. He used to provide ikafika point akasema he’ll stop caring like other men. Hes in South Africa. And I can’t afford a lawyer since I don’t work . please help.
Am Sheryl I would like to sue my baby daddy yaani all de responsibilities alikataa tangu tulipopata mtoto….kindly I need some help please cause I really don’t know how
respect your baby daddy first and stop treating him like trash.
Would like to sue my baby daddy he is not taking care of the child we have and he knew the baby is his
Where is the FIDA office in NAIROBI?
Am Mary i would like to sue. Ma baby daddy 4 child support where can i get a lawyer????
Hey, I really need help, my kid needs a surgery and the baby daddy is talking rude that “nimeona ameeka hospitali yake ndo nimwambie mtoto ni msick…. then nilikosa rent my kakajob kakaisha nilipe jifungua juu sikuwa na any other mean of income ndo inisupport so nikaenda kwetu nyumbani.. sasa my father and elder brothers are chasing me that me ni malaya niende huku kwa baba mtoto.. sometimes I even sleep out side juu I have been going to my neighbour now she is tired of me Na mtoto… napitia mangumu aki…. my baby daddy is a KDF… he lied that he will come for us bt at the End he switched off his phn.. please help.
Hi….
I have one kid n would like to file for child support.,the daddy’s kid is in dubai…. Pls let me know how I can proceed
For those who don’t know how to go about suing their other partner for child maintenance, start by visiting the children’s office. Children’s offices are found mainly hapo kwa chief or where National ID cards are registered or collected. Ask for the Children’s Office. Services are FREE. They’ll advise you on way forward. Note that the children’s office you’ll go to is the one near where the child is living. For example, if your child lives in Harambee estate in Nairobi, the child’s father lives in Marsabit, and the mother lives in Kitui, you will go to the children’s office that is in Makadara, Nairobi; not Kasarani, Nairobi. The children’s courts follow the child.
Wishing you all the best in searching for justice for your children.
What if I can’t afford to pay for a lawyer
But some offices do ask someone to pay a lawyer 25k of which ata pesa enye unafikia ya upkeep haifiki that.please help I can’t afford to pay a lawyer but I need my kid to get the rights
Hi, am kakenya i would like to sue my nephew dad on behalf of my late diz, she died 2014 . The guy has been neglecting his son. I don’t have a lawyer, i need some help.
Thanks
I need a lawyer for child support. I have 2 kids. Am from kisii county
Hi my name is Mary,I would like to sue my baby daddy,,I can’t afford a lawyer,,,what am I supposed to do for him to support the baby….pls help
Contact The Federation of Women Lawyers, they can help
Hello am Joan and I would like to sue my baby daddy I can’t afford to pay a lawyer, what should I do and where can I get help.from Eldoret.
Hi, my name is Carrol Alwando, I would like to file for a child support from my baby daddy, hw do I do it because I don’t know hw,
where can I get help because I cant even afford a lawyer yet I what to sue my baby dady for child support
Am Larry I would like to sue my father for child neglect .can i get some help because i dont know how
Am Ken I want to sue baby mama for walking away with my child, child is now 5 months