Senate to question Cabinet on persistent failures in alimony enforcement

In 2024, 8,833 individuals were held accountable for failing to pay child support – a 35% increase compared to the previous year. Despite this, issues persist in the enforcement system. While the Alimony Payment Fund disbursed 40.6 billion UZS to recipients, only 2% of that amount has been recovered from debtors. The Senate has decided to submit an official inquiry to the Cabinet of Ministers.

On June 26, the Senate of the Oliy Majlis, during a plenary session, resolved to send a parliamentary inquiry to the Cabinet of Ministers regarding the enforcement of alimony payments, according to the upper house’s press service.

Under the law, failure to pay alimony carries administrative and criminal liability. Debtors may also face temporary travel restrictions.

In 2023, 5,697 individuals were subjected to administrative penalties for evading financial support obligations. This figure rose by 35% in 2024, with 8,833 individuals held administratively liable. Courts issued 1,109 criminal convictions last year for non-payment of alimony.

To address enforcement issues, the Bureau of Compulsory Enforcement (BCE) established an Alimony Payment Fund, which was allocated 50 billion UZS. The fund covers alimony payments that cannot be collected from debtors within three months. The BCE is then responsible for recovering those funds from the debtors.

In 2024, the BCE recovered 2.1 trillion UZS in alimony, including 46.3 billion UZS in advance payments.

As of January 2025, the Alimony Payment Fund has paid out 40.6 billion UZS to 1,723 recipients. In addition, over 25,000 unemployed debtors were placed in jobs last year.

However, senators highlighted that problems and shortcomings remain in the system of alimony collection and payments.

They specifically criticized the delays in implementing measures to join the Hague Convention on the International Recovery of Child Support and Other Forms of Family Maintenance, the lack of expansion in funding sources for the Alimony Payment Fund, and the failure to integrate alimony enforcement and monitoring systems with the Treasury’s electronic system under the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

Furthermore, only 2% of the amount paid out by the Alimony Fund—849.2 million UZS—has been recovered from debtors.

The session also noted that there are still no established regulations for opening bank accounts in the names of minors. As a result, alimony payments are being transferred to other accounts. According to Article 107 of the Family Code, when a child is removed from parental custody by court order and placed in a child welfare institution, both parents are required to pay alimony. These payments must be deposited into a bank account in the child’s name and made available to them upon reaching adulthood.

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