Getting child support established during a separation or divorce is important because both parents have a responsibility to support their children. Unfortunately, this is a sore point for many parents who pay support. But they need to realize that the main purpose of child support is to maintain their children’s standard of living after a divorce or separation.
It is not a form of punishment for the paying parent, nor is it a free ride for the receiving parent. It’s about doing what’s best for the children.
Getting A Child Support Order
If child support orders aren’t established in your divorce or separation papers, problems can occur if the non-custodial parent fails to live up to a verbal agreement. To make support payments enforceable, you need a child support order that is filed with the court. This is a document which states when, how often, and how much support will be paid.
How Child Support Is Calculated
The fair amount of child support that a parent should pay is determined by the individual support guidelines of your state. These guidelines are based on the needs of the child, the number of children who must be supported, and the ability of the parent to pay. In most states, each parent’s income is figured into the equation for determining support.
Since each state uses a different child support formula, your lawyer can determine the amount of support that would be ordered in your situation.
How Child Support Payments Are Made
A wage withholding order is usually the best way to guarantee that support payments are made. The Family Support Act of 1988 requires that child support payments be withheld from an obligated parent’s paycheck from the time support is ordered.
To be effective, the wage assignment order must be served on the non-custodial parent’s employer before payments can start. This order will direct your ex’s employer to deduct the child support from his earnings and make payments to you or to the child support enforcement division.
Support payments may either be paid directly to the custodial parent or indirectly through a court ordered program. It is becoming more common for payments to be made to court ordered programs for ease of enforcement, as it provides proof of payments that have been received and any arrearages that have occurred.
Enforcing Child Support
So what can you do if you aren’t getting child support payments from your ex? If support was to be paid directly to you, you will need to go back to the court that established the order and file papers for enforcement of the order. If the payments were to be made to your state child support collection agency, you need to talk to the agency.
To begin the enforcement process, the child support enforcement agency will need a copy of your support order, your ex’s name, home and work addresses, and his social security number. They can then enforce the child support orders through various means such as:
• wage withholding,
• intercepting tax refunds,
• reporting delinquencies to the credit bureaus,
• suspending or revoking driver’s, professional, or occupational licenses,
• filing liens against bank accounts, property, or settlements,
• passport denial,
• court fines or jail time.
1 separation or divorce
2 child support orders
3 settlements


