Family · Supreme Court of Pakistan
The children live with their mother. Does the father still have to pay?
The myth: “If the children live with their mother, the father pays nothing.”Wrong
The short answer
Yes. In July 2025 the Supreme Court said a father's duty to maintain his children is a continuing one, and it is not lessened because the child is in the mother's custody (hizanat). A wife's maintenance ends with the marriage; a child's does not.
Muhammad Imran Baqir v. Mst. Zarnain Arzoo · Supreme Court of Pakistan · PLD 2026 SC 170 · decided 10 July 2025
By the FAI Legal editorial desk · 10 October 2026 · 4 min read
After a divorce the children often stay with their mother. Many fathers, and many families, then believe the father owes nothing, because he does not have the children with him.
This matters to every mother raising children after a divorce or separation, and to every father who wants to know what the law expects of him.
Key points
- The Supreme Court in PLD 2026 SC 170: a father bears a "solemn and continuous obligation" to maintain his children, a son until puberty and a daughter until her marriage (paragraph 5).
- That obligation "is not lessened by the child being in the hizanat (custody) of the mother" (paragraph 5).
- A wife's maintenance ends when the marriage ends. The children's maintenance does not.
- A father who says he earns little must prove it. Here there was no salary slip and no income statement, and the petition was dismissed (paragraphs 7 and 8).
The rule in one line
Where the children live does not decide who pays for them. The father must maintain his children, a son until he comes of age and a daughter until her marriage, and that duty stays the same when the children are in their mother's custody.
What happened in this case
The marriage was dissolved and the son stayed with his mother. The trial court fixed maintenance for the son at twenty five thousand rupees a month, with a ten percent increase every year until he comes of age (paragraphs 2 and 4).
The father appealed. The appellate court kept the order, and so did the High Court.
What the father argued
In the Supreme Court the father said he earned only one hundred thousand rupees a month, that he had remarried and that he supported another family (paragraph 7).
The Court noted that he had produced no documentary evidence of his income, such as a salary slip or an income statement (paragraph 7).
What the Supreme Court said
The Supreme Court decided the petition on 10 July 2025. It described the father's duty as a "solemn and continuous obligation": a son is maintained until puberty and a daughter until her marriage, and "the father's obligation is not lessened by the child being in the hizanat (custody) of the mother" (paragraph 5).
It added that "the mere fact that the father is not working, in the absence of any serious mental or physical challenges, cannot be admitted as a valid justification" (paragraph 6).
Leave to appeal was declined and the petition dismissed. Twenty five thousand rupees a month, rising ten percent a year, stands (paragraph 8).
The case at a glance
- Facts
- After the marriage was dissolved the son lived with his mother. The trial court fixed his maintenance at Rs. 25,000 a month with a 10% annual increase until majority; the appellate court and the High Court kept it. The father said he earned only Rs. 100,000 a month, had remarried and supported another family, but produced no salary slip or income statement.
- The question
- Whether the father could avoid or reduce the child's maintenance because the child lived with the mother and because of his claimed income and second family.
- What the Court held
- No. Leave declined and the petition dismissed; Rs. 25,000 a month with a 10% annual increase stands.
- Why
- A father's duty to maintain his children is solemn and continuous, a son until puberty and a daughter until marriage, and it is not lessened by the mother's custody. A claim of low income needs proof, and simply not working, without serious mental or physical challenges, is not a valid justification.
- Limits
- This decision kept an amount fixed by the courts below on the facts of one case. It does not set a standard figure for every child. The figure in any case depends on the evidence before the court.
The law it relies on
What this does not mean
- It does not mean every child gets twenty five thousand rupees a month. That figure was fixed on the facts of this case.
- It does not mean a father's real inability to pay is ignored. The Court spoke of a father who is not working without serious mental or physical challenges, and of a claim of low income made without proof.
- It does not decide who has custody. Custody (hizanat) and maintenance are separate questions; this case was about maintenance.
Questions people ask
My children live with me, their mother. Does their father still have to pay?
Yes. The Supreme Court said in PLD 2026 SC 170 that a father's obligation to maintain his children is not lessened by the child being in the custody of the mother.
Until when must a father maintain his children?
The Supreme Court described the duty as lasting for a son until puberty and for a daughter until her marriage (PLD 2026 SC 170, paragraph 5).
Can a father say he has remarried or earns little?
He can say it, but he must prove it. In this case he produced no salary slip and no income statement, and the Supreme Court dismissed his petition. The Court also said that simply not working, without serious mental or physical challenges, is no valid justification.
Check yourself
True or false? “If the children live with their mother, the father pays nothing.”
Wrong. Yes. In July 2025 the Supreme Court said a father's duty to maintain his children is a continuing one, and it is not lessened because the child is in the mother's custody (hizanat). A wife's maintenance ends with the marriage; a child's does not.
Next one: true or false? “If a mother remarries, she loses custody of her children.”
Sources
- Muhammad Imran Baqir v. Mst. Zarnain Arzoo, PLD 2026 SC 170 (Supreme Court of Pakistan, 10 July 2025), paras 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
A father's obligation to maintain his children is solemn and continuous and is not lessened by the mother's custody; unproved claim of low income rejected; maintenance with 10% annual increase upheld. verified against full text Supreme Court of Pakistan (judgment PDF)
Every quote and section above is traced to the full judgment or statute text by an automatic check that runs on every update.
What the reel says
Read the words of the reel
Heard this one? "After a divorce, if the children live with their mother, the father pays nothing." Wrong.
The Supreme Court: a father bears a "solemn and continuous obligation" to maintain his children, a son until puberty and a daughter until her marriage, and that obligation "is not lessened by the child being in the hizanat (custody) of the mother". A wife's maintenance ends with the marriage; a child's does not.
After the marriage ended, the trial court set Rs. 25,000 a month for the son, rising 10% a year. The appellate court and the High Court kept it.
The father went to the Supreme Court: he earns only Rs. 1 lakh a month, has remarried and supports another family. But there was no salary slip and no income statement.
The Supreme Court (July 2025): petition dismissed; Rs. 25,000 plus 10% a year stands. And, the Court said, absent serious physical or mental challenges, simply not working is no valid excuse (PLD 2026 SC 170).
Educational legal information, not legal advice. Every case turns on its own facts. Speak to a qualified lawyer about your situation. Reading this page does not create a lawyer and client relationship. Review status: Pending advocate review. How we check.
