A Comparative Study of Child Support in Fifteen Countries

Abstract

This article reports on a study of the child support package in all countries of the Euro pean Community, Australia, Norway and the United States of America. The package is defined as consisting of all social security ben efits, child support (maintenance) arrange ments where they are guaranteed, benefits for lone parents and equivalent help kind such as Food Stamps; it also includes fiscal arrange ments and benefits that mitigate the impact of housing costs or reduce the costs of health care, schooling and pre-school child care.