Getting What Is Rightfully Yours

It's An Order: Complying With Child Support Provisions

8 November 2017

Estelle Mathieu

When the parents of a minor child divorce, it's only natural to expect that one parent will owe money for the care and upbringing of the child of the marriage. Normally, it is the non-custodial parent who pays child support. The laws that surround child support provisions are very strict, so if you are being charged with this responsibility you would do well to take it seriously and know what you are agreeing to. To learn more about child support, read on.

Deadbeat Parents Punishment Act

Know the punishment

The protection of vulnerable children is at the forefront of all decisions, laws and provisions when it comes to minor children. The law makes every effort to avoid jailing those who fail to comply with child support orders, since being incarcerated makes it difficult to comply with the order. That being said, the threat of being jailed for owing back child support should not be dismissed. Other common punishments include:

• Contempt of court charges, resulting in fines.
• Wage garnishment, where the court orders your employer to debit a certain amount of back child support from your pay before you ever get it.
• Liens on property and bank accounts. Once a lien is in place, you have no control over the property and cannot sell it.
• Arrest, fines, possible jail time.
• Being denied government aid, such as food stamps.
• Withholding of federal income tax refunds.
• Suspension of driver's license.
• Inability to use government-backed loan programs, such as the Veterans Administration, FHA and USDA mortgage loan programs and student loan programs.

If you know you cannot pay your child support obligation

It may be tempting to ignore the child support debt that is piling up, perhaps thinking that you will get it caught up in time. When this happens, it can only make matters worse. You best course of action is to contact the child support enforcement agency and let them know that you want to pay what you owe but are experiencing issues. See if some sort of payment plan can be worked out that will help you get caught up and keep you out of trouble with the law.

Make a permanent change

Since child support amounts are based on your income, you might need to make a more permanent change in the order if your income has dropped. Request a hearing to explain why you can no longer meet your obligation. Speak with a divorce or family law business such as Eschbacher Law as soon as possible; the longer you let the debt linger the worse it will be for you. 

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