Most of us will experience ups and downs in our careers. If your co-parenting and your income take a hit due to job loss, your salary being reduced, or your hours being reduced, you have the right to ask the court to lower your child support payments.
You must not start making lower payments on your own. Instead, you will need to ask the court to modify your current child support payments through a court hearing or the Child Support Review Process (CSRP). Generally, the CSRP process is faster than a court hearing, especially when parents agree that the child support payment should be reduced.
Will the Court Reduce My Child Support Payments?
According to Texas child support laws, the parents seeking a reduction in child support will be eligible for a modification only if at least one of the following is true:
- The previous child support child custody order the court established has been in effect for at least three years, and
- The monthly child support amount varies by either 20% or $100 from the amount stated in Texas’s child support guidelines
Or, when a parent can show that circumstances have changed materially and substantially since the last child support order, they can successfully petition the court for a reduction in the child support payment.
What if My Co-Parent and I Agree About a Reduction in Payment?
What if your co-parent understands that your income has been reduced or you have lost your job and agrees to allow you to reduce your child support payments? Even if you have an informal agreement with your co-parent, this will not be enough to change your court order child support obligation.
Instead, you will need a new court order. At the same time, when both parents agree to lower the non-custodial parent’s child support obligation, they can submit an agreed-upon order to the court to be approved. They may not have to undergo a hearing in which both parties argue about child support.
However, child support obligations are not subject to contract laws. A couple can only decide on how much the non-custodial parent will pay; a court always needs to enforce the agreed-upon payment, and they sometimes do so. Ultimately, the judge overseeing your case must find that reducing the child support amount is in your best interest. The parent pursuing a lower child support payment will always need to provide the court with evidence and justification, significantly if the amount deviates from the statutory standards outlined in Texas’s family code.
What Constitutes a Material and Substantial Change in Circumstances?
If your child custody order has not been in effect for at least three years, or your lower income does not deviate from the statutory amount enough to qualify, you could still successfully petition the court to reduce your payment. However, you must provide evidence that you have undergone a material and substantial change in circumstances. Qualifying changes in circumstances generally involve the following:
- A job layoff
- A demotion
- A change in employer
- A non-custodial parent becoming legally responsible for additional minor children
- Unemployment for legitimate Health reasons, including illness
- The minor child’s medical insurance coverage lapsed or is changing
- The child custody arrangement is changing
Additionally, Texas Family Courts have ruled that when a parent is incarcerated, deployed through the military, or has incurred a justifiable increase in living expenses, they have experienced a material and substantial change.
Providing the Court Evidence of Your Reduced Income
You will need to provide the court with evidence that your income has been reduced. Courts do not like to lower child support payments unless they know for sure that the non-custodial parent’s income has really been reduced. Evidence of a loss of income can include W-2 forms, tax returns, pay stubs, and bank statements.
How Much Will My Child Support Payment Be?
When you petition the court to modify your child support payment and provide them with evidence that your income has been reduced for a qualifying reason, they will usually lower your child support payment. Texas Courts will consider many factors when deciding how much to reduce your payments. They will consider your employment history, your current ability to earn an income and work, and the federal minimum wage when calculating your new child support payment.
Courts will not reduce child support payments for parents they discover voluntarily unemployed or underemployed. In other words, if you chose to have your hours reduced or enter into a job in which she did not make as much money, a court will unlikely reduce your payment.
If you are unemployed and still receiving benefits, your monthly child support obligation could be taken from your benefits by having your wages garnished. The Texas Workforce Commission will determine how much your wages should be garnished based on your child’s needs. The agency can withhold up to half of your unemployment benefits to pay your monthly child support obligations.
When the custodial parent rejects the non-custodial parent’s claim that their income has been reduced, the process can quickly become contentious. Hiring an attorney can help you protect your best interests.
Even when the parties agree to minimize the child support amount, you may have to provide evidence, with the help of an attorney, that shows the reduction is justifiable and that it is in the child’s best interest. If you cannot pay the current child support obligation, you should still pay as much as you can because, of course, you can charge 6% interest on unpaid child support.
Contact a Child Support Attorney in Texas
Attorney Vonda Covington of Covington Law Firm, PLLC, understands how difficult it can be for parents to navigate modifications to child support payments. If you have questions about how to reduce your child support obligations because you have experienced a change in employment, she is here to help. Do not hesitate to contact Covington Law Firm, PLLC, to learn more about how she can help determine whether you are eligible for a child support reduction in Texas. We will respond within 24 hours.
