Divorce Georgia Child Support

Divorce Papers > Divorce Child Support > Georgia

In Georgia, the following rule is effective from 1st July 1999. As per the state and federal law, all the employers in this state should subtract the child support amounts on the basis of IDO's (Income Deduction Orders) dated 1st January 1994 or later. These employers need to forward all these payments to FSR (Family Support Registry) for processing and distribution.

Divorce Georgia Child Support Process

The OCSS (Office of Child Support Services) adheres to the below mentioned steps.

Initiating a case

• If a parent is a recipient of some Medicaid benefits or of the TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) program, then he/she can get assistance from the OCSS without any application
• Other parents have to schedule an appointment with the OCSS. They have to fill out an application form and disburse some amount of fee

• OCSS must have data regarding where the NCP (non custodial parent) resides and works. This is essential to procure a support order, enforce it and/or establish paternity
• If the address of the NCP is outside Georgia or the CP (custodial parent) does not know this address, then many months may be required to get child support
• If the CP can disclose the Social Security Number and date of birth of the NCP, this step is sped up

• The meaning of 'paternity' is 'legal fatherhood'
• Let us assume that a couple was not married when the child was born. Then, by a court or administrative order, the biological father can be given the status of legal father
• Paternity testing can be done by means of a blood sample or by buccal swabbing (saliva). Such a test is more than 99 percent precise

• The Georgia Child Support Guidelines gives due regard to the number of children and income of both parents while dealing with a child support case
• If any one parent can procure medical insurance for the child at some reasonable expense, the court takes into account this fact while handling the case

• Income withholding is done. The support amount is subtracted from the paycheck of the NCP
• Irrespective of whether the above method is used or some other (if the court has ordered so), the vital point is that a record of the payments must be maintained

This is dealt separately below.

Review

Both the father and mother may request the OCSS to review the child support order if the following conditions are fulfilled.

• 3 years have elapsed since the previous order became effective
• 3 years have not passed by, but there has been a considerable alteration in circumstances

The following methods may be used.

• If a parent owes more than 5,000 USD, then his/her passport may be revoked, suspended or denied
• Liens may be filed to seize personal property, real property, lump sum worker's compensation settlements and matched bank accounts
• Filing an action for contempt of court that might result in imprisonment of the NCP
• Interception of lottery winnings that are more than 5,000 USD
• Review and modification of child support orders intermittently
• If the parent has occupational, professional and/or driver's licenses, then these might be revoked or suspended
• If a parent owes 7,500 USD or more, then a report of this parent is forwarded to credit bureaus
• Interception of state and/or federal income tax refunds
• Withholding weekly worker's or unemployment compensation benefits and paychecks

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