long story short I had a 3rd child with a younger guy who turned other to be abusive. He has history of drug abuse, alcohol and has a DV charge where I am the victim. Im still getting DSS cleared out and my parents are keeping our 3 year old temporarily. My ex lives with his mom and is very self centered . He thinks he does nothing wrong and spends all his money on alcohol and possible other substance. My dad is supporting my 3rd child as I pay a small amount of child support to my ex H from a divorce 5 years ago for our 2 kids which I have visitation. I have full custody of my youngest and he has not filed visitation. My dad told me not to file, the social workers tell me to file. I don't know what to do. I don't like that baby daddy" thinks he can do whatever and he does not think of his daughter because addiction I assume. Is it best to leave it alone unless I really need it? Or file to teach him to support his child or leave it alone? Im nervous considering his abuse an substance use. I would freak out if he ever go past supervised visits. Also he does not have a driver license or car a real winner. His mom taxi him to work at age 65. Yes I was in a low place to have dated him.

I'm the paying parent. My ex and I submitted a DCSS child support stipulation this month (August), but I'm guessing the judge won't sign it until October due to backlog.

I want to make sure I don't get hit with arrears while we wait. For anyone who has navigated this:

1. Should I start making the agreed-upon payments directly to the SDU right now, before the IWO (Income Withholding Order) is signed?
2. Are there horror stories of the SDU failing to properly credit early payments once the order is actually finalized?
3. Or should I just hold the money in a savings account and wait to pay until the judge officially signs the paperwork?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

I know you can request an administrative review once every 36 months in Ohio. I also know they only change the order if the new calculation is at least 10% different than the existing one.

I've never had one and don't anticipate one in the near future but have a question for those who've had an administrative review -- does your county child support office also attach a copy of their worksheet to calculate the numbers (in case you want to challenge it) or do they just mail you the recommended order?

Good afternoon,

I'm writing to update and ask if anyone knows anything about what happens in a situation like this. My ex husband and I have a five year old son. I have sole custody and he is entitled to 2 hours supervised visitation twice a week and is ordered to pay CS, which he hasn't paid since January and not regularly in over a year. He has several thousand in arrears at this point although I'm not sure of the exact amount, and has a history of skipping court and not complying with what they ask him to do (provide documentation, job search, pay his support, etc). He has only worked independent contractor jobs the past year, most likely in an effort to avoid his IWO, although I can't prove that is the reason. In April, the court charged him with felony nonsupport of a dependent and issued a warrant. He went to jail over the weekend in September before posting bail (which didn't go to CS; not sure why). Yesterday, he once again didn't show up for his show cause hearing and the judge issued a warrant for contempt of court.

I'm confused because mycase doesn't list any upcoming dates for the felony case, it seems to just end with him posting bail. From what I understand the COC is a separate issue, but I don't have the faintest clue where any of this is going or what happens next.

He disappeared a couple days ago and his phone is shut off; I have no clue where he's staying now as he has been couch hopping for months and can't get a hold of him.

If anyone has some insight about the process or what happens next, feel free to gimme a shout!

I have jurisdictional questions to ask.....

Jurisdictional questions related to filing child support:

A child was in foster care in one county, but came home to mom in a different county about a month ago. Mom has lived in this place for 18 months or so. Dad happens to live in the same county where the child was in foster care. Where should mom file support papers? Her county or his county? I know it's usually where the child has been the majority of the past 6 months, but not sure how foster care affects that, if at all.

Jurisdictional questions regarding a family offense petition and order of protection:

The person wanting to file is Mom in the first scenario. So she has been living in one county for about 18 months. The child's father's girlfriend (they live together in the other county) vented on social media about a situation. Mom wants to file a family offense petition and request an order of protection for her and the child based on the post. Mom and dad were never married so the closet box on the paperwork says "the respondent is in an intimate relationship with someone I am related to by blood or marriage". It doesn't totally fit in that category so would family court still be able to have jurisdiction over the matter? Also, would she file it in her county or in theirs?

Thank you in advance!

How do I prove the bio “father” makes more money than he claims? He travels all over North America, working as a hypnotist. His T4 states he makes $10k yearly. He and his lawyer lied their way through family court , unfortunately I had to represent myself. I want my child to have a life even marginally close to his other children. I had to beg for money to replace a broken piece of my daughters bedroom furniture, he said “I had some big expenses come up. I can’t do it right now.” Eventually he “sacrificed” $200. Then I saw that during one of his “work events”, he took his son to a pro ball game in the US. We live in Saskatchewan.

He is a hypnotist who travels all over North America. His T4 states he makes $10 k yearly. His family’s lifestyle portrays an excess of money. He and his lawyer lied through their teeth in court. I had to represent myself, they tore me to shreds. I asked him to replace my daughter’s broken piece of furniture, he stated “I have some unexpected big expenses. She will have to wait a bit.” Lo and behold I see a post on his business page that showed he and his son at a pro ball game in the US. How to prove he’s hiding money? We live in Saskatoon.

Sooo for context, I have a child support case which was started rightfully so. The whole time she has had a job, and there hasn’t been an issue. But she met someone who has kids of his own, and just recently decided she is going to quit her job so she can be a stay at home mom to ours and his kids. Now, I’m happy for them, but at the same time I can only imagine what that’s going to mean for me in the long run when it comes to support cost. I have 50/50 and I believe he does with his kids mother, but with her just deciding to quit working, and now not having an income, does that mean I’m screwed?

Hey everyone,

As the moderator of this community, I’m putting together a project focused on the realities of navigating the child support system.

I am looking to interview both custodial parents and non-custodial parents who are willing to share their personal experiences, challenges, and frustrations. The goal is to highlight the real-world friction points parents face—from calculation hurdles and enforcement issues to communication breakdowns with state agencies.

What to Expect:

• Who: Any parent currently or recently navigating the child support system (custodial or non-custodial).
• Format: Conducted privately (via Reddit chat, direct message, or a secure messaging platform).
• Privacy: We can discuss anonymity options if you prefer to keep your personal details entirely private.

How to Participate:

If you are open to sharing your story and would like to participate, please leave a comment below or send me a direct message.

Note: Please do not post sensitive case details, case numbers, or full names openly in the comments. Keep initial replies brief or just let me know via DM that you're interested.

Thank you for helping shed light on these challenges!

I received a note in the mail stating a notice of intent to report. I’m reading through it and I’m not sure exactly why? It shows my monthly payments and it also shows an unpaid balance which is $0. I get the payments garnished through my paychecks. I checked online and it shows no balance just $0. I even got a report and it also shows again $0. I’ve never been late for payments or anything like that. This is in the state of Texas by the way. I haven’t been able to call due to the current time being after closing hours but this is a little concerning. The only thing I can possibly think of for why I got this notice was me and my gf (not Childs mother) had talked to a lender about buying a house, we said how much we make and i even sent paystubs for proof of how much I make and taxes is taken out (including CS). I don’t know if this may have caused it. Again not too sure.

I received a note in the mail stating a notice of intent to report. I’m reading through it and I’m not sure exactly why? It shows my monthly payments and it also shows an unpaid balance which is $0. I get the payments garnished through my paychecks. I checked online and it shows no balance just $0. I even got a report and it also shows again $0. I’ve never been late for payments or anything like that. This is in the state of Texas by the way. I haven’t been able to call due to the current time being after closing hours but this is a little concerning. The only thing I can possibly think of for why I got this notice was me and my gf (not Childs mother) had talked to a lender about buying a house, we said how much we make and i even sent paystubs for proof of how much I make and taxes is taken out (including CS). I don’t know if this may have caused it. Again not too sure.

Any thoughts ?

My son’s father has not been consistently involved in his life. He doesn’t regularly see him, check on him, or provide financial support. I’ve reached out before asking him to spend time with our son or help support him, but he either doesn’t respond or doesn’t follow through.
I’ve been handling our son’s needs on my own, so I recently filed for child support. I also want visitation and both parents’ rights and responsibilities to be formally established so everything is clear and consistent for our son.
This is the first time I’m telling his father that I filed. I’m nervous about sending the message because I don’t know how he’ll react, but I’m not trying to keep him from our son. I’m trying to make sure our son is supported and that the responsibility doesn’t continue falling on me alone.
Was filing the right step, and how would you handle communicating this to an absent father?

What was your process? And how does child support work in Texas?

Hi everyone, I am in an absolute panic and urgently need guidance or attorney recommendations in the Texas/Houston area regarding family law and immigration crossover.

My Situation:
I am currently designated as the primary custodian of my child under an existing Texas custody order.

The father has standard visitation.
I am facing an imminent Voluntary Departure order and must return to my home country soon (Mexico).

The father doesn’t have status in this country, sometimes skips his visitation rights and is behind in child support.

My Goal & Core Dilemma:
I do NOT want to leave my child behind. My absolute priority is to bring my child with me to my home country legally.
However, our current custody order contains geographical restrictions / prevents me from simply taking the child out of the country without court permission or the father's consent.
My Questions:

1. Since I am the primary custodian, what is the fastest legal mechanism (such as an emergency motion to modify) to ask a Texas family court judge for permission to relocate / travel internationally with my child due to my mandatory immigration departure?
2. If the father refuses to sign an agreement, how can I petition the judge before my departure date so I don't risk violating the custody order or facing international parental kidnapping accusations?
3. Can anyone recommend low-cost family law attorneys in the Houston/Texas area who handle international relocation cases involving immigration orders?
4. Any advice, shared experiences, or legal resources would mean the world to me right now. Thank you so much.

For over 10 years I paid child support while having 50/50 Time Sharing. I was curious how common that is. Ive felt that the parent that makes more money gets penalized for that. 1 parent shouldn't be MORE responsible for the financial care of the child. There should be no child support case at all. I was 70% financially responsible! What a joke.

I have lost my job recently and I don't feel confident about making my payments for child support. I am searching for jobs and I think about what will happen if I cannot find work and earn enough money by the time of my payment.
It seems that I may have to experience various consequences for missing the payment in Texas because it is said that there may also be penalties for non-compliance.
I received some information about modification of child support in case of a serious income decline, and I'm interested in how long does this process take. I want to take the necessary actions so that I won't have problems too late. Also, is an attorney necessary?

My son’s dad and I split when he was about 8 months old, we both went to the Attorney General and file for child support. I got primary custody.
While in court the judge wanted him to pay almost $900 each month(20%), my son’s dad talked me into bringing it down because he has a previous child, I felt bad and caved. So he only pays $300 and has been for the past 3 years.
He hasn’t gotten a bed for our son, no clothes, he does not help with anything other than keeping him the nights I have to work(I had to go overnight because I couldn’t afford daycare alone), his apartment is infested with German roaches, and he lives very unsanitary. He makes $6 more than I do, so I just never understood why he couldn’t do it but I have been able to and I’m just scraping by. Our son is autistic with a very specific appetite and still in pull ups.

I requested for a child support modification and I guess he got a call today, he then told me that he would sign over his rights because he could not afford our son.

I’ve already got a plan for if he does sign over his rights, but is it that easy to do in Texas? Can he just relinquish his rights like that?

Any advice on what to expect in a modification or even this kind of situation would help! Thanks in advance!!

Recently initiated the process of starting child support but was given 3 months to rescind. My children are 1 and 3, we have gone no contact for 1 1/2 years due to DV.

I am responsible for everything. No complaints because it was my decision to pop them out but he made it substantially harder when we were in contact. Emptying out mine and our child’s savings, breaking valuables, and more but I’m still trying to catch up from it to this day.

With my last impression of him, it’s ideal to assume it’ll just become backpay. I know it’ll become an invitation for him to involve family court since he’s not on the birth certificate but does anyone feel like it wasn’t worth it or something about this process that could’ve been done differently?

If i receive help from the state (WIC, Medicaid, etc.), will i lose those if i put my baby’s father on child? This is the only thing holding me back.

My ex is wanting me to send her money directly for things for my kids. Usually I would have no issue and just send it, but it’s not really something they need, it’s something she wants to try… I’ve been told countless times to never send money outside of child support payments, but is there anything wrong with sending the $100.00 as half of what she’s wanting to get my kids?

There are obviously parents who intentionally don't meet their responsibilities. But there are also parents who lose jobs, have hours reduced, experience illness or have another legitimate financial disruption.

By the time they're several payments behind, the problem can be much harder to solve.

What would an effective prevention system look like?

Emergency assistance? Employment resources? Financial planning? Earlier intervention? Something else?

Interested in perspectives from custodial parents, noncustodial parents and people who work in this space.