What is the New Law on Child Maintenance in South Africa?

Child maintenance in South Africa is governed primarily by the Maintenance Act 99 of 1998, which sets out every parent’s duty to support their child and the powers of the maintenance courts to enforce that duty. The most significant set of changes to this framework came with the Maintenance Amendment Act 9 of 2015, which expanded the definition of a “child in need of care,” strengthened the default-order mechanism against non-paying parents, and brought in automatic credit-bureau blacklisting of maintenance defaulters as an enforcement tool. Further administrative changes since then — including the rollout of the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development’s e-Maintenance system — have continued to modernise how maintenance claims are filed, tracked, and enforced.

The Legal Framework: The Maintenance Act 99 of 1998 and the Duty of Support

The Maintenance Act 99 of 1998 is the primary statute governing child maintenance in South Africa, and it applies uniformly across all provinces and all courts of the Republic. It sits at the centre of a small cluster of family-law statutes, and reading it in isolation — without the supporting statutes — gives an incomplete picture.

• Section 6 of the Maintenance Act imposes a statutory duty on parents to maintain their children. That duty exists regardless of whether the parents are married, divorced, or never lived together, and it applies to children born inside and outside of marriage, including adopted children.
• The duty continues for as long as the child is in need of support — including beyond the age of 18 where the child is still dependent, typically because they are studying or are otherwise unable to support themselves.
• Children’s Act 38 of 2005 sets out parental responsibilities and rights, including the responsibility to contribute to a child’s maintenance. The Children’s Act and the Maintenance Act are read together.
• Divorce Act 70 of 1979 gives divorce courts the power to make maintenance orders as part of a settlement, including orders for the maintenance of children of the marriage.

What the Maintenance Amendment Act 9 of 2015 Actually Changed

The 2015 Amendment Act is the piece of legislation most people mean when they ask about the “new” child maintenance law in South Africa. It did not replace the underlying duty of support — it sharpened the machinery around it. The substantive changes fall into five categories.

Key changes introduced by the Maintenance Amendment Act 9 of 2015

Change	What it does in practice
Expanded definition of “child in need of care”	Clarifies that maintenance may be claimed on behalf of a child against any person legally liable to support that child, broadening the pool of potential respondents.
Strengthened default-order mechanism	Allows a maintenance order to be obtained without the respondent appearing, based on properly served supporting evidence, where the respondent fails to respond or appear.
Automatic credit-bureau blacklisting	A parent who falls into arrears on a registered maintenance order may be reported to credit bureaus, with consequent effects on their ability to obtain credit.
Stronger powers for investigators and officers	Maintenance investigators and officers gained improved abilities to trace non-paying parents and to attach funds.
Wider enforcement toolkit for maintenance courts	Includes garnishee orders, the suspension of driver’s licences, and — in serious cases — the suspension of professional licences.

Many of these provisions came into effect on a phased basis following the Amendment Act’s assent, which is why some enforcement mechanisms — credit-bureau blacklisting and e-Maintenance in particular — are still better-known by name than by daily operational experience. The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development’s maintenance portal remains the authoritative reference for which mechanisms are currently live at any given court.

The Other “New” Developments Worth Knowing About

The 2015 Amendment Act is the headline reform, but it does not stand alone. Two further developments have reshaped the landscape.

• The e-Maintenance system. The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development has rolled out a digital filing and tracking platform intended to streamline how maintenance applications are lodged and how progress is monitored at maintenance courts. The system is being phased in across magistrate’s court districts — applicants in Gauteng increasingly encounter it as the default intake route.
• Cross-border enforcement. The 2015 Amendment Act also created the mechanism for cross-border enforcement under international maintenance treaties South Africa has acceded to, which is relevant where one party lives in another country.

The combined effect is that the enforcement side of maintenance has materially strengthened over the past decade, even though the underlying duty of support itself has not changed.

Who Can Claim, Against Whom, and For Which Children

The duty of support in South Africa is broadly drawn, and the modern framework reflects that breadth.

• The duty lies primarily on parents — both the mother and the father of a child — in proportion to their means.
• Where a parent cannot be located or has died, the duty may fall on other relatives in terms of the common law and the Act’s expanded definition.
• A child born from a non-marital relationship has the same entitlement to maintenance as a child born to married parents — the duty is not contingent on marital status.
• The duty runs to a child regardless of whether the parent has formal “contact” or “care” rights under the Children’s Act. A parent cannot withhold maintenance because the other parent has limited their access to the child.
• Adoptive parents stand in the same position as biological parents after an adoption order has been granted.

Burger Huyser Attorneys’ Family Law practice, led at director level by Anna-Mi Nel (Director and Head of Family Law, co-Director of the Sandton branch), routinely acts for parents on both sides of a maintenance claim — applicants and respondents — and across the marriage/non-marriage spectrum.

How Maintenance Is Quantified — The Needs of the Child vs. the Means of the Parent

Maintenance in South Africa is not a fixed table of amounts. The court works through a balancing exercise between the reasonable needs of the child and the actual means of the paying parent.

How a maintenance court typically weighs a claim

Factor	What the court looks at
Needs of the child	Food, clothing, shelter, and basic living costs proportionate to the household in which the child resides.
Education	Primary, secondary, and tertiary costs where reasonable and affordable.
Medical and dental care	Medical aid contributions where these are already in place, plus out-of-pocket medical costs.
Extramural and transport	Reasonable extramural activities, transport, and school-related costs.
Means of the paying parent	Verified income, assets, and lifestyle — the Act does not require a parent to contribute beyond what they can reasonably afford, but courts draw inferences where the declared means are inconsistent with the observed lifestyle.
Self-employed or irregular earners	Where a paying parent is self-employed, draws income irregularly, or structures a business to minimise taxable income, the maintenance court may draw inferences from the lifestyle observed.

Where and How to Claim Maintenance

A maintenance application is lodged at the maintenance court in the district where the child resides, or in the district where the respondent (the parent being claimed against) resides — whichever is more convenient for the applicant. The procedure has four working steps.

1. Lodge the application at the maintenance court. The application is supported by an affidavit setting out the child’s needs, the respondent’s means, and a breakdown of expenses. Documentary evidence — school fee statements, medical bills, grocery lists, rental statements — is attached.
2. Referral to a maintenance officer. The matter is referred to a maintenance officer for investigation. The officer prepares a report for the maintenance court with recommendations on the appropriate order.
3. Hearing and order. The maintenance court holds a hearing and makes an order. The order may be agreed between the parties or determined by the court after hearing evidence.
4. Service of the order. Once granted, the order is served on the respondent and registered. From that point on, it is enforceable like any other court order.

What Happens if a Parent Doesn’t Pay (Enforcement)

Once a maintenance order is granted and registered, it is enforceable like any other court order. The post-2015 framework significantly expanded the enforcement toolkit available to maintenance courts.

Enforcement mechanisms available to a maintenance court

Mechanism	How it works
Garnishee / emoluments attachment order	Instructs the paying parent’s employer to deduct maintenance directly from salary.
Attachment of funds	Funds held in the paying parent’s bank accounts can be attached.
Credit-bureau blacklisting	A defaulter whose arrears have accumulated can be reported to the credit bureaus, making it harder to obtain new credit, mortgages, or finance.
Suspension of driver’s licence	Available in cases of persistent default.
Suspension of professional licence	Available in serious cases, where the defaulter holds a professional licence that can be suspended.
Warrant of arrest	Available in serious cases of non-compliance; the defaulter can be arrested and brought before the court.

A parent who falls into arrears can apply to the maintenance court for a variation of the order, but they cannot simply stop paying pending that variation — arrears continue to accrue in the meantime and remain enforceable. The Family Law Department at Burger Huyser Attorneys acts in both variation and enforcement applications across its Gauteng branches.

Maintenance for Children Over 18

The duty of support can continue past the age of 18 if the child remains dependent. The most common extension is tertiary education, but the law is not limited to that scenario.

• Tertiary study. The duty typically continues while the child is studying towards a first degree or tertiary qualification, but the court will look at the child’s actual academic progress and the reasonableness of the chosen course of study.
• Disability or chronic illness. The child is unable to support themselves because of a physical or mental condition. Medical evidence will normally be required.
• Unfinished schooling. The child is still completing secondary education past the age of 18, for example where they started school late or repeated a year.

A child over 18 can lodge the maintenance application themselves, or a parent on their behalf; the application is still made to a maintenance court. The ongoing duty typically ends when the child completes their qualification, fails to make reasonable academic progress without justification, or becomes self-supporting.

Frequently Asked Questions

When did the new child maintenance law in South Africa come into effect?

The major set of changes came with the Maintenance Amendment Act 9 of 2015, which expanded the definition of children in need of support, introduced the automatic credit-bureau blacklisting of defaulters, and strengthened the default-order mechanism. Subsequent administrative reforms — including the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development’s e-Maintenance system — have continued to modernise the framework, but the 2015 Amendment Act remains the most significant recent reform to South African child maintenance law.

Does a parent have to pay maintenance if they have no contact with the child?

Yes — the duty of support under section 6 of the Maintenance Act 99 of 1998 is independent of the relationship between the parent and the child. A parent who has lost contact, has no care rights, or even actively avoids the child, is still legally liable to contribute to that child’s maintenance. The duty runs to the child, not contingently on the parent’s relationship with them.

Can a mother claim maintenance from the father before the child is born?

Yes — a maintenance claim for pregnancy and confinement costs can be lodged during the pregnancy, and the obligation crystallises once the child is born. The maintenance court can also make orders to cover medical costs associated with the birth.

How long does a maintenance application take?

Simple matters with cooperation from both parties can be resolved in a single court appearance within weeks. Contested matters — where the paying parent disputes the amount or denies parentage — can take several months as the maintenance officer investigates and the court hears evidence. Default orders where the respondent fails to appear can be obtained faster, but only where the supporting evidence has been properly served.

Can a maintenance order be changed after it is granted?

Yes — either parent can apply to the maintenance court for a variation of the order if their circumstances have changed materially (a job loss, a change in the child’s needs, the birth of new dependents, and similar). The variation is not automatic — the court must be satisfied that the change is genuine and material — but the order does not have to remain at the same level for the duration of the dependency.

What is the credit-bureau blacklisting that comes up under the new maintenance law?

Under the post-2015 framework, a maintenance defaulter whose arrears have accumulated can be reported by the maintenance court to the credit bureaus. The defaulter will then have an adverse credit listing, which makes it difficult for them to obtain new credit, mortgages, or finance — sometimes a more powerful enforcement lever than garnishee orders because it directly affects the defaulter’s ability to live normally.

If you are applying for, varying, or defending a child maintenance claim, Burger Huyser Attorneys’ Family Law team can guide you through the process — from drafting the supporting affidavit and lodging it at the correct maintenance court, to varying or enforcing an existing order. The firm serves clients across Gauteng, with branches in Johannesburg (Linden, Randburg — 011 888 0246), Centurion (012 644 4990), and surrounding areas. Call the branch nearest to where the child or the other parent lives to book a first consultation, or reach the head office on 011 888 0246 for a general conversation about your situation. Recognised as Best Family Law Firm 2024 — South Africa (Lawyers Monthly Legal Awards) and Most Client Focused Family Law Firm 2022 — South Africa (Acquisition International Legal Awards), the firm holds a 4.8/5 average across 250+ Google reviews, Trustindex verified.