This is one of the most frustrating situations a parent can face. You are showing up, paying the bills, handling school pickups, attending doctor’s appointments, and managing the countless other responsibilities that come with raising a child. Meanwhile, your ex is living in another state as the unpaid child support continues to accumulate.
The situation may feel impossible, but it is not. Moving across state lines does not eliminate a parent’s child support obligation, and there are legal mechanisms for enforcing an order against a parent who lives elsewhere.
The Law Is on Your Side
The first thing to understand is that moving to another state does not allow someone to escape a child support order.
Every state has enacted a version of the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act, commonly known as UIFSA. New Hampshire’s version is found in RSA chapter 546-B. UIFSA establishes rules governing which state has authority over a child support order and provides procedures through which states can cooperate in enforcing it.
In practical terms, this means that your ex cannot simply relocate to Massachusetts, Florida, or another state and make the obligation disappear.
Interstate enforcement can take longer and require more coordination than a case involving two parents who live in the same state. Nevertheless, there is an established legal system for pursuing unpaid support across state lines.
Start With New Hampshire Child Support Services
If you have not already done so, consider contacting the New Hampshire Division of Child Support Services, or DCSS.
DCSS helps parents establish, collect, and enforce child support. Its services are available even when the other parent lives in another state. Once a case is opened, DCSS may be able to work with the child support enforcement agency in the state where your ex lives.
The agencies can exchange information and coordinate enforcement efforts. Depending on the case, this may involve locating the other parent, identifying employment or assets, initiating income withholding, intercepting eligible payments, or asking the other state to take enforcement action.
Working with DCSS does not necessarily prevent you from consulting or retaining a private attorney. The two approaches are not always mutually exclusive.
Enforcement Looks Like
Several enforcement tools may be available, depending on the amount owed, the location of the parties, the terms of the order, and the other parent’s financial circumstances.
Income Withholding
Income withholding is often one of the most effective enforcement methods. A child support agency or court may direct the other parent’s employer to deduct support from the parent’s wages and send the money through the appropriate child support payment system.
UIFSA also permits an income-withholding order issued in one state to be sent directly to an employer in another state in appropriate circumstances. As a result, it is not always necessary to begin a new court case in the employer’s state before withholding can begin.
License suspension
A parent who becomes seriously delinquent may face suspension or nonrenewal of a driver’s license or certain professional, occupational, or recreational licenses.
The precise requirements and procedures vary by state. Usually, the parent must receive notice and an opportunity to contest the proposed action or enter into an acceptable payment arrangement.
Tax Refund and Other Payment Intercepts
Past-due child support may also be collected through federal or state tax-refund offset programs. Under these programs, an eligible refund may be intercepted and applied toward qualifying child support arrears.
Other federal or state payments may also be subject to offset in some circumstances. Eligibility depends on applicable program requirements, the amount and type of arrears, and whether the case has been properly submitted to the relevant enforcement system.
Passport Restrictions
Federal passport restrictions can apply when a parent owes substantial child support arrears.
Under current federal rules, a person who owes more than $2,500 in child support may be denied a new or renewed United States passport. In some circumstances, an existing passport may also be revoked.
The parent ordinarily must work with the child support agency that submitted the debt—not directly with the State Department—to resolve the arrears and obtain clearance.
Liens and Asset Collection
Depending on the circumstances, enforcement agencies or courts may be able to place liens on property, levy certain financial accounts, or collect money from settlements or other assets.
These remedies are highly fact-specific. Their availability may depend on where the property is located, how it is titled, and what exemptions apply.
Contempt Proceedings
Contempt proceedings may be available when a parent has violated a valid child support order.
A finding of contempt can lead to orders requiring payment, payment plans, attorney’s fees, fines, or other sanctions. In serious cases, incarceration may be possible. However, jail is not automatic merely because support is unpaid. The court must provide due process and consider issues such as whether the parent had the ability to comply with the order.
Registering the Order in the Other State
In some cases, a New Hampshire child support order can be registered in the state where the other parent now lives.
Once properly registered and confirmed, the responding state generally can enforce the order using many of the same remedies it would use to enforce one of its own orders.
Registration is not required for every form of interstate enforcement. For example, direct income withholding or administrative enforcement may sometimes proceed without formal registration. Registration may nevertheless be necessary or useful when court involvement is required, the amount of arrears is disputed, property remedies are being pursued, or the other parent contests enforcement.
Although UIFSA creates a standardized process, interstate registration can involve detailed filing and notice requirements. An attorney can help determine whether registration is necessary and ensure that the correct documents and payment records are submitted.
Don’t Wait on This
Child support arrears don’t disappear. The arrears can continue to accumulate until they are paid, forgiven under legally permissible circumstances, or otherwise resolved by a court or child support agency.
Waiting can make collection more difficult. The other parent may change jobs, relocate again, dispose of assets, or become harder to locate. Taking action promptly can improve the likelihood that income, tax refunds, property, or other sources of payment can be identified.
It also changes the dynamic. Once the other parent sees that formal enforcement measures are underway, voluntary compliance sometimes becomes more likely.
You do not have to accept the situation as it is. Interstate child support cases can be slow and complicated, but the law provides meaningful enforcement tools.
You don’t have to accept the situation as it is. The law gives you real tools to use, and you deserve to use them. If you need help with collecting child support, contact our experienced New Hampshire family law team.