How to Prove That Your Ex Has Higher Income Than They Claim

Divorce and child support often turn into a “guess the salary” game. On paper — twenty thousand roubles, but in real life — a new car, regular trips abroad, expensive clothes and dinners in premium restaurants. Officially — a “poor working man”, in reality — a financially secure individual trying to minimize payments for his own children.

The good news is that it is possible to prove the real level of income. And to do so completely lawfully.

1. Check the Official Income

The first step is to collect everything related to official sources of earnings:

• information from the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation regarding tax payments;

• data from the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation regarding insurance contributions;

• bank statements showing salary deposits.

It is useful to compare whether the salary “magically” decreased just a few months before the divorce. The court will certainly take notice of such timing.

2. Gather Evidence of Expenses

Here everything is useful: airline tickets, hotel reservations, restaurant receipts, taxi expenses, online purchases, fitness memberships.

Special attention should be paid to large transactions. The State Traffic Safety Inspectorate will show which cars are registered in the person’s name, the Federal Service for State Registration, Cadastre and Cartography will show real estate, and banks will show loans and leasing agreements.

Often expenses are routed through the cards of relatives or friends. But if men’s loafers, size 43, bought at a luxury department store, are paid for by a seventy-two-year-old mother from a small town, the court will have no difficulty connecting the dots.

The main logic is simple: demonstrate that the standard of living does not match the declared income.

3. Request a Financial and Economic Expert Examination

An expert report is always an undeniable argument. A financial and economic examination will confirm that the expenses do not correspond to the “official” salary.

4. Apply to the Court With All the Collected Evidence

Once the materials are collected, the procedural part begins. Applications are filed with the court requesting information from state authorities and banks. The collected evidence and the expert report are submitted.

The goal is to obtain child support based not on the nominal salary, but in a fixed monetary amount derived from the actual standard of living of the payer.

Conclusion

In the modern world, it is almost impossible to hide income. All expenses leave a digital footprint, and comparing them with a “modest salary” is easier than it may seem.

In such cases there may even be a certain competitive interest in holding such non-payers accountable (especially when you know the reason for the divorce).

And if handling all this paperwork on your own is difficult, the lawyers of KDpartners will help you develop a strategy, prepare evidence and structure everything so that the court has no doubts.