There are a number of ways in which a person can end child support in Missouri. Missouri’s Family Support Division (FSD)is a state agency that helps residents of the state with all aspects of child support, from getting a child support order to ending the obligation to pay child support. In addition, a person can always follow more traditional processes of filing a petition in a family law court.
In the majority of cases, the obligation to pay support continues until the child reaches the age when it comes to an end by court order. That time is the day when the child turns 18.
If the child is in high school, the support obligation would end when the child graduates from high school. If the child continues their education past high school, then a person’s child support obligation would end when the child turns 21.
For most court orders, the date when support payments may stop is specified in the order at the time the order is made. However, the noncustodial parent still needs to file a petition with the court to report that the child is going to reach the age of 18 or 21.
There is an exception in the case of special needs children who cannot support themselves because of a disability and who need more time at home with the financial support of their parents. A local attorney in Missouri would be able to provide more information.
When Is Child Support Ordered?
In some cases, the duty to pay child support arises from a Missouri divorce, as noted above. Or it may arise from a legal separation. A court may issue a child support order at the end of a paternity suit when the father of a child who is not married to the child’s mother seeks custody or visitation. Or a mother who is not married to her child’s father may ask a court to order the father to pay child support.
Whatever the type of case in which a child support order is made, as noted above a child support order is legally binding on the parent who is ordered to pay support. There are negative consequences and penalties for failing to pay child support when a court in Missouri orders it.
In Missouri, child support payments are made by a parent who does not have custody to the parent who does have custody. In calculating child support, a Missouri court refers to the Missouri support guidelines, as noted above. A custodial parent does not pay support because it is assumed that they pay financial support for their child as a natural consequence of the fact that the child lives with them.
In making decisions about child support, a Missouri court considers the following factors:
- The child’s best interest standard and what would serve the best interest of the child
- The type of custody arrangement that the parents have, e.g., whether it is joint or sole
- The age of the child or children on whose behalf the support is paid
- The total number of children each of the parents has
- The income of both parents after deductions
- Additional childcare expenses.
In some circumstances, a noncustodial parent may also have to pay retroactive child support in Missouri. For example, the child might have lived with one parent while their divorce was in progress, and the parent who did not have custody did not pay any support. If that is the case, a court might order the noncustodial parent to pay child support for this past period of time when the divorce is finalized.
How Is a Child Support Award Enforced?
As noted above, the Missouri FSD provides services to parents and caretakers who receive child support as well as parents who pay child support. Some of the services include obtaining a child support order, collecting child, medical, and spousal support from parents who are under a court order, and helping unwed parents establish paternity for their child.
Some of the ways in which the FSD enforces unpaid child support obligations are as follows:
- Withholding a portion of a person’s paycheck, unemployment benefits or workers’ compensation benefits
- Holding court hearings for enforcement
- Arrest warrants
- Suspending the driver’s license, occupational license, or recreational license of a person who does not pay court-ordered child support
- Seizing cash or cash-equivalent assets in bank accounts
- Seizing federal or state tax refunds
- Reporting unpaid child support debt to credit reporting agencies
- Placing liens on real and personal property
- Denying a passport application
- Intercepting a person’s lottery winnings.
The FSD offers other aid to parents in connection with child support as follows:
- Locates parents who have been ordered to pay child support and whose whereabouts may not be known
- Establishes the paternity of a child
- Establishes and enforces child support and medical orders
- Collects support payments for parents to whom support is owed.
How Can I Avoid a Child Support Increase?
If a person is curious as to whether the law entitles them to a change in their child support award, they may want to talk to a Missouri family law attorney to determine what their potential obligation could be.
It is important to note that the Missouri child support guidelines do not automatically adjust an award of child support. A parent who wants an increase or a decrease would have to petition the court to modify their support order. Another possible approach for the two parents is to negotiate an increase or decrease.
A parent who pays child support might benefit from talking about Missouri child support law with a Missouri family law attorney.
How Can I Stop Paying Child Support?
There are some situations in which a person might be able to end their child support obligation. For example, if the child in question should start living with the noncustodial parent, that parent should go to court and ask for a change. They would no longer need to pay child support to the parent who has become the noncustodial parent. This is one of several reasons to close a child support case.
One thing a person does not want to do is to just stop paying child support unless they are confident that, legally, their obligation to pay it has come to an end. They want to go to court and have the court modify the amount of child support they pay or order it to end.
Generally, in Missouri, a child support obligation terminates if any of the following events take place:
- The child dies.
- The child gets married.
- The child begins active military duty.
- The child becomes self-supporting and the custodial parent relinquishes parental control.
- The child reaches the age of 18 and does not attend education after high school.
- If the child attends vocational or higher education, then child support may continue until the child turns 21.
The unemployment of the parent who pays child support might justify ending the support obligation under some circumstances. If a person should lose their job and it is beyond their power to land other employment, then they would need to petition the court to modify the child support immediately.
The job loss would have to be significant and lasting. For example, the person may have been injured or now suffers from a disability that has a significant effect on their earning capacity. The person would want to seek modification of their child support obligation in this case.
It would be important to act promptly if a change in circumstances makes a person believe that their child support obligation should be modified or ended. If a person delays, the child support obligation would continue and a court might not be able to excuse any debt for past due support payments after the debt is incurred.
Do Child Support Payments End Automatically?
As noted above, even when child support should come to an end because the child in question reaches the age of 18, the parent who pays the support should submit a letter to the FSD. They should do this sometime within a few months of the date on which the person believes the support should come to an end.
They may submit a letter to the local county FSD office, which can be located through the Missouri Child Support County Offices website. The letter should include the following information:
- The names of the parents and the child or children involved in the case.
- The case or IV-D number. If a person does not have this number, they may use their Social Security number.
- A statement of why the person believes child support obligation should end.
- The letter should also include a statement that any further child support payments rendered by the party should be considered to be made under protest and are NOT to be considered as gifts or volunteer payments.
- A current phone number and address.
- Sign and print the name and date of the request.
The FSD then reviews the case and determines if termination of support is appropriate. Both parents are notified of the FSD decision, and either parent may ask for an administrative hearing on the issue if they are not satisfied with the result.
The hearing must be requested within thirty days of receiving the notice, or the right to a hearing is considered waived. At the hearing, a hearing officer reviews the case and issues a written decision as to whether or not the current child support obligation should come to an end.
How to Get Child Support Arrears Dismissed
Sometimes, a person may fall behind on their basic child support obligations. If a noncustodial parent who pays child support owes unpaid support when child support ends, they remain responsible for paying off the arrears. The order for the unpaid amount may still be enforced. The debt for past unpaid support is not eliminated.
Under certain limited circumstances, a court might relieve a person of their obligation to pay past-due child support. A person would have to go to court and make a motion to dismiss child support arrears. However, it can be difficult to escape a debt for past due child support.
Do I Need a Lawyer for Help with Terminating Child Support?
You may have reached the date on which your child support payment should end, or you may want to change the amount because of a change in circumstances. LegalMatch.com can put you in touch with a Missouri child support lawyer who can analyze your case and help you make any changes to your support order that may fit your new life circumstances.
