Families Change
Parent Guide to Separation & Divorce

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What if child support isn’t getting paid?

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If you are the parent who should be getting child support and the other parent doesn’t pay, call 800-228-5437 to get help collecting the support you’re owed. Someone from Support Enforcement Services (SES) can help you collect support in different ways, including by taking money from the other parent’s paycheck, tax refund, or bank account.

SES can also

  • bring the other parent to court for contempt,
  • file a legal claim on the other parent’s property,
  • report the other parent to credit bureaus, and
  • stop the other parent from getting a passport.

Important: Keep records of any payments you get. If you haven’t been keeping track of child support payments, start now.

If you are the parent is supposed to be collecting child support, see the legal aid booklet, Questions and Answers for the Parent who Gets Child Support. And be sure to visit www.ctlawhelp.org for more self-help information.

If you are the parent who is supposed to be paying child support and you are behind on payments or you need to have the payments lowered, pay as much as you can and try to make up any payments you missed. Keep making payments, even if you can’t pay the full amount.

  • Call Connecticut Child Support at 888-233-7223 to get information about your payments.
  • Call 800-228-KIDS to ask for the amount to be lowered.

If you disobeyed a court order that you knew about and you had the ability to pay, the court could find you in contempt and order you to

  • make lump sum payments,
  • look for work, and/or
  • go back to court.

You could lose your driver’s license or be sent to jail if you disobey a court order about child support. The judge will appoint a lawyer for you if your income is very low and you are facing jail time.

Important: Keep records of any payments you make. If you haven’t been keeping track of child support payments, start now.

If you are the parent who is supposed to be paying child support, see the legal aid booklet, Questions and Answers for the Parent who Pays Child Support. And be sure to visit www.ctlawhelp.org for more self-help information.