Enforcement of Child Support
If you owe unpaid child support, your child's other parent has a number of ways to collect the money from you.
- First, the other parent may go to court and ask a judge to issue a judgment for the amount of the arrears. This is called a judgment for child support. Once the parent has a judgment, a whole host of collection methods become available. (To learn about ways to enforce judgments, see our Creditor Lawsuits area.)
- Even without a judgment for past-due child support, there are other options for collection, such as automatic wage withholding.
- Finally, both the federal and state governments are also involved in enforcing child support orders -- and they can use aggressive tactics to get the money for your kids.
Both the federal and state governments are now aggressively involved in enforcing child support orders.
The most common method of collecting a judgment for overdue child support is wage garnishment.
If you owe back child support, you could face jail time. Learn more.
If you owe child support, the custodial parent can place a lien on your property.
If you owe child support arrears, the IRS might take your tax refund.
I am behind on my child support payments. Will this be reported to the credit reporting agencies?
If you can't work due to disability, ask for a child support modification.
How to deal with custody, support, and other parenting issues when you and your unmarried partner end your relationship.
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