To ask about changing a child support order, contact your state child support agency or court for the applicable review process. For orders enforced through a state child support program, 45 CFR 303.8(b) explains federal review and adjustment requirements. A review does not guarantee that the order will change. Calculator results are educational estimates only, not legal advice.
Review and modification are two different things
A review is a look at the order to see whether it still matches the state's guidelines. An adjustment, often called a modification, is the actual change to the amount or to how the child's health care is covered. A review can end with no change if the current order still fits the guidelines.
Your right to a review every three years
If your order is enforced by a state child support agency, federal rules give each parent the right to ask for a review. Under 45 CFR 303.8, the state must have a process to review the order within 36 months after it was set or last reviewed, when either parent asks, or sooner if the state chooses a shorter cycle. The state must also tell both parents about this right at least once every three years.
A review requested within that cycle does not require you to prove that your circumstances changed. The state compares the order with what its guidelines would produce and adjusts it if appropriate. Some states use a cost-of-living adjustment or an automated comparison instead. When they do, either parent can contest the adjustment within 30 days of the notice and ask for a full guideline review.
Asking for a change outside the cycle
You do not have to wait three years. If you ask for a review outside the regular cycle, the state must review the order, but it adjusts it only if you show a substantial change in circumstances. Each state decides what counts as a substantial change. Federal rules allow a state to set a fixed dollar amount, a percentage, or both as its standard. That is why you will see different thresholds in different states, and why no single number applies everywhere.
Incarceration
Federal rules also address a parent who is incarcerated. State guidelines must provide that incarceration may not be treated as voluntary unemployment when an order is set or changed. When a state child support agency learns that a noncustodial parent will be incarcerated for more than 180 calendar days, the state must either start a review on its own or notify both parents within 15 business days that they can ask for one. A state that changes support automatically on incarceration under its own law does not have to send that notice.
Why you should file promptly
Federal law says support payments become judgments when they are due and cannot be changed retroactively. A state may allow a change only back to the date the other parent was notified of the request to modify. In practice, that means a drop in income does not lower what you owe for past months unless a request was already pending. If your situation changes, ask for a review as soon as you can, and keep paying the current order while you wait.
Two ways to ask
- Through your state child support agency. If the agency is already enforcing your order, you can ask it for a review. Agencies usually have a request form and will gather income information from both parents.
- Through the court. You can also file a request to modify with the court that issued the order, or with another court that has authority over it. Court forms and filing rules are set by each state.
If the parents now live in different states, the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act decides which state can change the order. Your state agency can tell you which state that is.
What to gather before you ask
- A copy of your current order.
- Recent pay stubs, tax returns, or other proof of income, such as a Leave and Earnings Statement for service members.
- Records of child care and health insurance costs for the child.
- A record of the parenting schedule, if your state's guideline uses overnights.
Using an estimate
An estimate can help you see whether a review is likely to make a difference. Run your current numbers in our calculator for your state, then run them again with the new figures. The difference is not a promise of what a court or agency will order, but it can help you decide whether to ask and what to bring.
Disclaimer: This article is educational only and is not a substitute for legal advice. Your state's rules decide how and when an order can be changed. Contact your state child support agency or a family law attorney about your case. Any calculator result on this site is an educational estimate only.
Sources
- 45 CFR 303.8, Review and adjustment of child support orders: ecfr.gov
- 45 CFR 302.56(c)(3), Guidelines for setting child support orders (incarceration): ecfr.gov
- 42 U.S.C. § 666(a)(9), no retroactive modification of support: law.cornell.edu
- Office of Child Support Services, Changing a Child Support Order: acf.gov
- Office of Child Support Services, Interstate child support policy (UIFSA): acf.gov