After a Khula or divorce, most conversations focus on the wife’s maintenance and Mehr — but children’s maintenance (Nafaqa) is a separate, ongoing legal obligation that many fathers underestimate, and many mothers don’t fully enforce.

⚖️ The Legal Framework

A father’s duty to maintain his children is rooted in Islamic law and enforced in Pakistan through the Muslim Family Laws Ordinance, 1961 and the Guardian and Wards Act, 1890, with maintenance claims adjudicated by the Family Court under the Family Courts Act, 1964. This obligation exists regardless of who has physical custody of the child.

🚩 Who Is Entitled to Maintenance?

• All minor children, regardless of which parent has custody
• Unmarried daughters, until marriage, even past the age of majority in many cases recognised by Family Courts
• Sons until they reach an age of financial independence, subject to the Court’s assessment
• Children with disabilities, for as long as they remain dependent

📋 What Does Maintenance Cover?

1. Food, clothing, and shelter appropriate to the family’s standard of living
2. Educational expenses, including school/college fees
3. Medical expenses and healthcare needs
4. Reasonable other expenses necessary for the child’s upbringing

✅ Practical example: A Family Court determines the maintenance amount based on the father’s income and the child’s reasonable needs — it is not a fixed statutory number, and courts commonly revise the amount upward over time as the child grows and expenses increase, or as the father’s income improves.

⚡ How to Claim or Enforce Maintenance

1. File a maintenance suit before the Family Court having jurisdiction over the child’s residence.
2. Provide evidence of the father’s income and the child’s expenses (school fees, medical bills, etc.).
3. The Court can pass an interim maintenance order during the pendency of the case, so the child is not left without support while litigation continues.
4. If the father fails to comply with a maintenance decree, the mother can seek execution of the decree, including attachment of the father’s salary or assets.

💡 Practical Tips

• Keep records of the child’s actual expenses — school fee receipts, medical bills — to support the claimed amount.
• Request interim maintenance at the outset of the case rather than waiting for the final decree.
• A maintenance order can be revised later if the father’s income or the child’s needs change significantly.
• Non-payment of a maintenance decree can be enforced through the Family Court’s execution proceedings — you do not have to accept non-compliance.

Need Legal Assistance?

HSJ Legal, led by Advocate Hina Saleem Jessani, High Court Advocate in Karachi, represents mothers and fathers in child maintenance claims before Family Courts across Pakistan. Contact us at https://hsjlegal.co/contact/.