How to terminate a maintenance obligation and where to file the petition

Proceedings for the determination / termination of a maintenance obligation are a specific type of non-adversary proceedings, which are regulated by Section 111 et seq. and Section 154 et seq. of Act No. 161/2015 Coll. the Civil Non-Dispute Procedure Code, as amended (hereinafter referred to as the “CMP”). In the sense of the provisions of the CMP, it is not excluded to make a submission orally into the record directly at the registry of the given court; however, such a procedure is not carried out in practice. We recommend writing a written petition for the termination of the maintenance obligation.

However, we draw your attention to the different local jurisdiction of the court (this is the court to which the written petition must be addressed) depending on whether you want to terminate maintenance for a minor child or an adult child.

1. Termination of maintenance for a minor child

If you are requesting the termination of the maintenance obligation for a minor child, the petition is submitted to the court pursuant to Section 112 of the CMP:

“For proceedings in matters of court care for minors, the court in whose district the minor has their residence at the time of the initiation of the proceedings, determined by agreement of the parents or in another legal manner, has local jurisdiction.”

“If the circumstances according to which local jurisdiction is assessed change in a legal manner, the court may transfer its jurisdiction to another court if the interest of the minor requires it. If this court does not agree with the transfer of jurisdiction, its superior court shall decide; a change in the minor’s residence due to placement of the minor in a facility based on a court decision pursuant to Section 111 letters l) to n) is not a reason for a change in the court’s local jurisdiction.”

“If it concerns a minor who does not have a residence in the Slovak Republic determined according to paragraph 1, and the court has jurisdiction over proceedings in matters of court care for minors under a specific regulation, the court that is suitable for hearing the matter with regard to the interest of the minor and the circumstances of the case has local jurisdiction.”

2. Termination of maintenance for an adult child

If you are requesting the termination of the maintenance obligation for an adult child, the petition is submitted to the court pursuant to Section 154 et seq. of the CMP:

“For proceedings in matters of maintenance for adult persons and other similar claims, the general court of the person entitled to maintenance has local jurisdiction [i.e., the court where the adult child has their permanent residence].”

What is the amount of the court fee?

According to Section 4 (1) (g) of Act No. 71/1992 Coll. on Court Fees and on the Fee for an Extract from the Criminal Record (ZSP), “court proceedings in matters of mutual maintenance obligations between parents and children are exempt from the fee.”

As a side note, we draw attention to the fact that in the sense of Item 8 letter b) of the Schedule of Court Fees, which forms Annex No. 1 to the ZSP, a court fee in the amount of 2% of the value of the subject matter of the proceedings, at least 25 euros, is levied on a petition for the reduction or termination of maintenance between spouses, a maintenance allowance for a divorced spouse, and maintenance obligations between other relatives.