Along with child custody questions, child support is one of the most disputed issues when couples separate. It is important to understand your responsibilities if you have to pay child support. You also should know your rights if you are owed child support. Fortunately for Kentucky residents, Kentucky Child Support can answer questions and help resolve child support issues.
Some common child support issues and disputes may involve:
- Disputes over payment amounts and schedules
- Issues with collecting child support payments
- Late or missed child support payments
- Using child support payments for non-authorized uses (not for the child)
- Withholding visitation if child support is not paid
- Adjusting or modifying child support payments.
- Changes that might affect child support payments, such as the birth of another child, remarrying, relocating to another place, and a loss or gain of employment
The court uses the following standard in considering any child support issue: what is in the child’s best interests?
Kentucky Family Law: Who Needs to Pay Child Support?
The parent that does not have custody (the “non-custodial parent”) is typically obligated to pay the custodial parent child support. Whichever parent that the child lives with most of the time is the custodial parent. Usually, the custodial parent will have more responsibilities and child-rearing costs, so courts require payment from the noncustodial parent to the custodial parent.
Kentucky has a child support calculator that helps establish how much child support you must pay. The calculation of child support is based on an analysis of several different factors. These can include:
- The number of children involved
- The income level of the custodial parent and the noncustodial parent
- Any special needs that the child requires, such as physical, medical, healthcare, academic, and social needs
- Cost of living in the area where the child resides
- History of payments and support amounts
Note that if the parties both have custody, the one who spends the most amount of time with the child is the one who receives child support. The courts are fair: if the child support payer spends 3 days a week with the child, they will not have to pay full child support. It will be adjusted to account for the payer’s expenses for caring for the child. For example, if the mother has the child all week and the father has visitation, the child support amount might be $ 1,000 a month. If the mother has the child for 4 days and the father has them for 3 days, the child support amount will be reduced to $571.00 – four-sevenths of $1000.
Kentucky Family Law: How Can I Apply for Child Support?
Child support is most often decided as part of a divorce. If that is not your case, you can apply online through the Kentucky Child Support Interactive website. Another option is filing through the court system. The more information you can provide, the faster and easier it will be to process your child support case.
Some factors that can make the case more complicated are how difficult it can be to track down the other parent, establish paternity, or if the noncustodial parent lives in a different county or state. If the non-custodial parent is in jail or otherwise unavailable, the court will consider this in connection with their ability to make child support payments.
Kentucky Family Law: What If I Do Not Want to Pay Child Support?
There are several serious consequences for not paying child support. The most common consequence is wage garnishment, where money is automatically removed from your paycheck.
Other potential consequences:
- The state can seize your bank accounts
- The state can seize your tax refunds
- Liens can be put up against your property
- Your property can be seized and sold to pay the child support debt
- You can lose your passport
- You can lose your driver’s license
- You can lose any professional license you may have
- You are at risk of going to jail for contempt of court
Can Nonpayment Stop My Visitation?
A noncustodial parent has visitation rights that cannot be affected by nonpayment. If you have court-ordered your child support, you can return to court to ask that the visitation order be enforced. Even if you are behind on child support payments, you still have the right to visit your children. If this becomes a problem, you can file a petition asking the court to enforce the visitation schedule
However, there is a difference between being behind on child support payments and refusing to pay child support. Not paying child support only hurts your child. Refusing to pay child support to spite the other parent will ultimately impact your rights to visitation since it reflects on your willingness to provide for your child.
Kentucky Family Law: How Can I Stop Paying Child Support?
If you feel you should not be paying child support, you must speak to a lawyer. Do not just stop making payments alone because you could suffer legal consequences for doing that.
The easiest way to stop paying child support is to reach an agreement with the other parent. If this happens, the agreement does need to be formally approved by the court so that proper records can be kept of the changes. If there are any further violations or child support issues, the court will be informed of the current situation between the parents. Note that this only works, though if the other parent is not on any type of government welfare. If that is true, you and the other parent cannot agree to stop child support.
The most common reason for ending child support is if the noncustodial parent shows they are not the biological parent. This typically happens when a couple is married, and the husband is the presumed father, but the wife became pregnant by another man. You can ask for a paternity test if you think you are not the father.
Kentucky Family Law: If I Filed for Bankruptcy, Will it Affect My Child Support Requirements?
While bankruptcy can place a person in a difficult financial situation, filing for bankruptcy will not stop child support obligations in Kentucky. Child support is a “nondischargeable” debt in bankruptcy, meaning it does not end when someone becomes bankrupt.
However, if the paying parent files for bankruptcy, it may provide a short-term hold on some . Filing for bankruptcy might help the paying parent reduce their debt amounts in other areas. This might free up some resources that can then be used for paying missed child support amounts.
Where Can I Find the Right Kentucky Child Support Lawyer?
Since child support is such a complicated aspect of family law and can have consequences that last for years, it is very important to find the right lawyer. You should find a Kentucky child support lawyer that can assist you in asserting your rights. Your attorney can provide legal advice and guidance for your child support situation.
One of the key advantages of using an attorney for child support issues is that the attorney will not get caught up in emotional issues surrounding the issue. The other parent might want to fight with you, but might be willing to concede some points if they are dealing with your lawyer instead.
