Child support advice for parents with questions

Questioner

With my Polish ex-girlfriend I have a daughter of almost one year now. A few months ago we broke up, my ex and daughter now live in Poland. Since we broke up, I have been voluntarily contributing to my daughter’s living expenses; my ex has not responded to my request to agree on an amount. My ex recently informed me that she has filed a claim for alimony through a lawyer, the amount of which I have no idea yet. Although I am certainly prepared to make a reasonable financial contribution for my daughter, I have also read worrying stories about alimony claims that are far above the average Polish salary. That is why I hope to use this channel to gain information about what I can expect and what I can possibly do myself. Any help with this is very welcome. Below are some points that may be relevant to the situation: - My daughter was born in Poland and spent the first months of her life there. - I officially recognized my daughter before her birth. - I was not married to the mother, nor did we have a registered partnership. - My ex has no substantial income, and has not had one in recent years. I myself have a full-time job in the Netherlands. - My daughter lived with me in the Netherlands for a short period and was also officially registered here. During that same period, she also remained registered as a resident of Poland. My ex was also present in the Netherlands during that time, because it was a period of less than 3 months, she did not register in the Netherlands. Officially, she has always lived in Poland and we have never lived together. - My ex lives with her mother, and has lived like that for the past few years.

Lawyer

The wisest thing to do is to contact me directly. I can then calculate, based on your current income, what contribution you could pay for your daughter. You will then not be faced with any surprises when your ex-partner makes a request.

Questioner

Dear Wilma, Thank you for your quick response. I assume that such a calculation is based on Dutch regulations. Is this useful, since the request is set up in Poland, and there are also significant differences in purchasing power between the two countries?

Lawyer

Unfortunately I can only calculate based on the Dutch rules. Of course I can find out for you how things are arranged in Poland.