Please Pay Daddy

In New York, child support enforcement is entrusted on The New York City Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE). Financial support is needed for the child in the case of a divorce or when an unwed woman gives birth. In both cases, the parent who looks after the child, known as the custodial parent, can seek financial aid from the parent staying away, known as non-custodial parent. The New York law has set extensive and lucid guidelines for enforcing support orders.

As per the Child Support Standards Act, the child should get a fixed percentage of the monthly income of the non-custodial parent. Parents with custody who are not getting money for child support can approach the OCSE for getting a legally fixed monthly amount as child support. In the case of unwed mothers, the paternity or the fatherhood of the alleged biological father must be proved both legally and scientifically. The federal law of the United States holds the view that both parents are equally responsible for the expenses for bringing up the child.

The custodial parent approaching the OCSE for child support enforcement should ideally have the basic details like name, address and social security number of the non-custodial parent, even though the OCSE will certainly help to find the other parent through a computerized search if these details are not available. If a parent is not paying the child support amount, the OCSE can take several stringent actions. Deducting the amount from the income of the offender is the most common and most effective enforcement action.

The OCSE is authorized to deduct the child support amount from the salary, commissions, bonuses, pensions or non-employment benefits of the non-custodial parent immediately in the case of default in payment. The OCSE also has the authority to credit the offender’s tax refund amount toward the unpaid support under certain circumstances. Other enforcement actions undertaken by the OCSE are intercepting the lottery prize, suspension of driving license and other professional licenses, denial of passports and reporting to credit agencies.

The OCSE can and will approach the court if the above-mentioned actions fail to enforce compliance with the support order. Once the matter comes into court, the non-paying parent can get a jail term of up to six months if found guilty. Also the court may order the non-custodial parent to deposit an additional amount for paying child support for three years. Under the New York law, the non-custodial parent has to provide child support until the child attains the age of 21. If the child becomes self-supporting or financially self-sufficient before the age of 21, the non-custodial parent can approach the court for reviewing the previous order.