The emergency that the country is experiencing due to COVID-19 has affected the entire country, not only due to the health crisis, but also in the labor and economic part. Undoubtedly, this affects those people who are obliged to pay alimony during Covid 19 and child support , in the event that their work day is reduced, they are suspended or even fired from their job.

The representative of the Republican Party, Dragos Dolanescu, sent a letter addressed to the Superior Council of the Court of the Supreme Court of Justice so that, until April 30 2020, the requests for apprehension against the people obliged to pay child support are suspended, for economic reasons and problems derived from the closing of businesses and dismissals; however, the Superior Council has not yet responded to the request of the Republican representative.

For this reason, it is important to indicate that, due to COVID-19, the Judicial Power has not yet communicated any specific measure for those obliged to pay alimony or child support, so the mechanisms that already exist in our legal system must be used in order to be able to face this emergency.

To initiate any procedure before the Pension Courts, it is extremely important to have the appropriate evidence, which supports any decrease in income, suspension or dismissal; since it with the analysis of this proof that the Judges will be able to approve or deny any requests, be it a decrease in the amount of the alimony or child support, or an authorization to look for work, as explained below.
In these cases, the ideal would be that both parties (beneficiary and obligated) can reach an out-of-court agreement, so that it can later be approved by a judge; and in case this is not a possibility due to the relationship between the parties, the only possible alternative is to request an authorization to look for work.

Article 31 of the Alimony Law expressly states the following:

“If the alimony or child support debtor proves satisfactorily, in the opinion of the competent authority, the he/she lacks of a job and financial resources to fulfill his duty, the judge may grant him a reasonable period of time to seek paid employment. This period may not exceed one month, extendable in exceptional cases, for an equal term.”

This authorization, as indicated in the regulation, is granted for a period of one month, with the possibility of being extended for an additional month, at the request of the party and at the discretion of the judge. However, this does not mean that exemption is paid from the alimony for that period, since, together with the authorization to look for work, payment must be requested in tracts, which allows the obligated person to cancel the months left to pay in tracts, which will be added to the ordinary monthly alimony or child support amount.

The obliged person must demonstrate that they are out of job and that they do not have the financial means to face the alimony or child support obligation, either with a letter of dismissal or a record of suspension of the employment contract.

If you require advice on alimony, child support or Family Law in general, ERP Lawyers puts at your disposal a specialized team; do not hesitate to contact us.