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EspañolWho can file for child support? How long will child support last?
The judge may require one or both parents to provide child support until:
- the child turns 18 or graduates from high school, whichever comes later;
- the child is emancipated (released from custodial care); or
- the death of the child.1
If the child is disabled, child support payments could last for an indefinite period of time.1
Parents will also be required to pay medical support for their children.2 For additional information about child support in Texas, you can go to the Texas Attorney General’s website.
1 Tex. Fam. Code § 154.001
2 Tex. Fam. Code § 154.008
How will the judge calculate child support?
The amount of the child support payments will depend on many factors, such as the number of children, the parents’ income and resources, etc.1 The judge will use specific Texas child support guidelines as a guide to figure out the amount. However, it is possible that the judge could stray from the guidelines if using them would be unfair or inappropriate in a particular case.2
The Texas Attorney General’s Office has provided a child support calculator that estimates the amount of child support that may be ordered.
1Tex. Fam. Code §§ 154.061; 154.062(b)
2Tex. Fam. Code § 154.122(b)
Can my child support order be changed?
Either parent can ask the court to change (modify) payments for child support or medical support of a child, as long as one of the following is true:
- there has been a substantial change in circumstances since your order was entered; or
- it has been at least three years since your order was entered, and the amount currently being paid is at least 20 percent or $100 different than the amount that the current guidelines would order.1
If the other parent is asking to change the child support order because s/he lost a job or has only found part-time employment, the judge can order the unemployed or underemployed parent to:
- enroll and participate fully in a program that provides employment assistance, skills training, or job placement services; or
- work, have a plan to pay child support, or participate in work activities appropriate to pay the support obligation.2
Only the court can modify the order; it cannot be changed by agreement of the parties. For more information, visit TexasLawHelp.org.
1 Tex. Fam. Code § 156.401(a)
2 Tex. Fam. Code § 154.017(a)
Can child support be ordered retroactively in Texas?
The court can order retroactive child support to be paid for the four years leading up to the date the support case was filed. The judge will consider the following factors in making his/her decision:
- what the paying parent’s net resources were during the time period in question;
- if the father would be paying support, whether the father knew that it was at least possible that he was the father of your child, and whether or not you tried to tell him;
- whether ordering back payments will cause an undue hardship on the parent being ordered to pay or on that parent’s family; and
- whether or not the parent had been supporting the child in some way before the court case was started.1
The court will assume that four years of retroactive payments are in the best interest of the child. However, if you are filing against the child’s father, you can ask for more if you can prove that the father knew or should have known that he was the father of your child, and if he actively tried to avoid a child support case.2
You can ask for retroactive child support at any time until your child turns 22.3
1 Tex. Fam. Code § 154.131(b), (c)
2 Tex. Fam. Code § 154.131(c), (d)
3 Tex. Fam. Code § 154.131(f); see also Tex. Fam. Code § 154.009
What can I do if the other parent is not paying the ordered child support?
In Texas, the Office of the Attorney General Child Support Division (OAG) is the agency in charge of enforcing court-ordered child support. You can contact them for more information on what steps to take next.
If you’d prefer to try to enforce your order yourself, you can file an enforcement petition with the court. You may want to talk to an attorney before you file to help you decide what to do. You can find an attorney on our Finding a Lawyer page.
If you want to proceed on your own without hiring a lawyer, TexasLawHelp has an article with some suggestions about how to do that.
