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Government

Ministry of Justice

How long will it take before I receive my payments?

There is no simple answer to this question.

If the payor is making regular payments now, and you decide to enroll in the FMEP as a simple way to keep track of your maintenance, your first payment should arrive within a month of your enrollment.

If you decide to enroll in the FMEP as a way to make someone who already has a poor payment history begin to make regular payments, it could take longer. It could take longer still if you do not know where the payor now lives or works, and the FMEP needs to search for the payor's address, employer and assets.

Any information you can give the FMEP about the payor's location, job, social insurance number, or assets - such as a car or boat, land or bank accounts - can help in collecting your family support.

Please note:

Once your maintenance order or agreement is enrolled with the FMEP, the FMEP will do its best to collect your payments. However, you should know that some payors make it very difficult to collect - even going to the extent of leaving the country to avoid paying maintenance. Others may have no income or assets, or may be a BC Employment and Assistance Client, which means it may take a long time to collect what is owed to you. (If BC Employment and Assistance - income assistance - is the payor's sole source of income, the FMEP cannot by law attach that income and will need to look for other assets or resources.) The FMEP will, however, continue to pursue any money owed to you as long as your maintenance order or agreement is enrolled with the program.