Parents that are divorced or separated even if they were never married, have a legal obligation to support their children. unfortunately, too many kids grow up without the financial support they need when parents fail to pay court-ordered child support. Now in modern times, it's becoming harder for parents to skip out on child support; strict laws have been enacted to establish child support enforcement. Lutz parents need to be aware of federal, state and local agencies that have powerful child-support collection tools at their disposal.

To start enforcing child support, you must first get a court order. there are several ways to do this.Typically, you and your child's other parent can agree on an appropriate amount usually set by your state's guidelines for child support enforcement. Lutz residents will have a judge approve your agreement and turn it into an official court order. If you and your child's other parent can't agree, you'll have to ask a Judge or local agency to set the amount. You can always hire an experienced attorney in your area to file a request for a child support order.

Once an order has been established, the child support order must be obeyed. If not, custodial parents may ask an attorney or their local Office of Child Support Services (OCSS) (also called the Department of Child Support Services (DCSS) in some states) for help. A delinquent parent may be subject to any, or all, of the following enforcement tools:

-Contempt of court
-Passport restrictions
-License suspensions or revocations
-Wage deductions
-Federal income tax intercepts

The U.S. Office of the Inspector General (OIG) can intervene in child-support cases where the non-custodial (paying) parent lives in a state other than where the child lives. When someone refuses to pay child support enforcement, Lutz residents are not safe if for over 1 year where the amount owing is more than $5000, or where the non-custodial parent travels to another state or country to avoid paying child support.
The punishment include fines and up to 6 months in prison (or both) for a first offense. For a second offense, or where child support hasn't been paid for more than 2 years, or the amount owing is more than $10,000, the punishment is a fine of up to $250,000 or 2 years in prison, or both.

*Disclaimer: The views expressed here are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of Butash Law Group*