Child Support Arrears FAQ

Under Family Code Section 17400, child support arrears accrue automatically whenever the obligor (the parent ordered to pay support) fails to pay the full amount of child support ordered by the court on or before the date it is due. Each missed or partial payment immediately creates an arrear—a past-due amount—that becomes a judgment by operation of law without requiring any additional court action. This means arrears are not discretionary or subject to interpretation; they are a mathematical certainty calculated by subtracting total payments made from total support that should have been paid according to the court order.

Critically, child support arrears cannot be discharged, waived, or reduced except through actual payment or a formal court order approving compromise. The arrears accrue regardless of whether the obligor has what they consider a valid excuse for nonpayment (such as job loss, illness, or financial hardship), whether the custodial parent verbally agrees to accept less, whether the custodial parent refuses to accept payment, or whether the parties have informal agreements about different payment amounts. Once a support payment is missed, the arrear exists as a legal judgment that can be enforced through all available collection mechanisms. The only way to prevent arrears from accruing when circumstances change is to immediately file a motion to modify the support order; until a court order reduces the support amount, the full original amount continues to be owed each month, and failure to pay it creates arrears that must eventually be paid with interest.

Under Family Code Section 17400(d), child support arrears accrue simple interest at the legal rate of 10% per year from the date each payment became due. This statutory interest rate is mandatory and applies automatically to all arrears without requiring any court action or finding. The 10% rate is substantially higher than typical consumer lending rates, mortgage rates, and investment returns, causing arrears to grow rapidly over time. For example, if an obligor misses a $1,000 monthly support payment, that $1,000 will grow to $1,100 after one year, $1,200 after two years, and $2,000 after 10 years due to simple interest alone (not accounting for compounding effects).

The interest calculation can become complex when multiple payments are missed over time and partial payments are made. Each missed payment begins accruing interest from its due date, so older arrears have accumulated more interest than recent arrears. When payments are made, they are typically applied first to current support, then to principal (the original missed payments), and finally to accrued interest, though the specific application can vary. The 10% interest rate means that obligors who fall significantly behind can face crushing debt loads that grow faster than they can pay them down. For instance, $20,000 in arrears will accrue $2,000 in interest annually, meaning an obligor must pay more than $2,000 per year toward arrears just to prevent the total from increasing, in addition to paying current support. This demonstrates why it is critical to seek modification immediately when unable to pay, rather than allowing arrears to accumulate and compound with interest over years.

Child support arrears generally cannot be reduced or forgiven except in very limited circumstances, and the rules differ dramatically depending on who the arrears are owed to. Under Family Code Section 17402, arrears that are owed directly to the custodial parent (meaning the custodial parent never received public assistance, or received assistance but it has been fully repaid to the state) can potentially be compromised (reduced or forgiven) if the custodial parent agrees and the court approves. The court must make specific findings that the compromise is in the best interests of the child and that the agreement is fair and reasonable. This might occur when the obligor offers a lump sum payment of less than the full arrears, when the parties reach a global settlement of all family law issues, or when the custodial parent concludes that some payment is better than continued conflict and enforcement efforts.

However, arrears that have been assigned to the state because the custodial parent received public assistance (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, CalWORKs, or Medi-Cal) cannot be compromised by the parties. When a parent receives public assistance, they must assign their right to child support to the state as reimbursement for the assistance provided. These state-owed arrears can only be released by the state itself, and California rarely agrees to compromise state-owed arrears except in limited circumstances such as federal Compromise of Arrears Programs or when collection costs exceed likely recovery. Neither parent has authority to forgive arrears owed to the state. Additionally, even for parent-owed arrears, courts are often reluctant to approve compromises unless there are compelling reasons, as the arrears represent the child's right to support that was not received when needed. The bottom line is that arrears are extremely difficult to eliminate without paying them, reinforcing the importance of seeking modification rather than allowing arrears to accumulate.

Under Family Code Section 4007, courts and the Department of Child Support Services have authority to establish structured payment plans for child support arrears that allow obligors to pay down past-due amounts over time while maintaining current support payments. A typical payment plan requires the obligor to pay the full current monthly support amount plus an additional amount toward arrears each month. The additional arrears payment is often set at 20% of the current support obligation as a starting point, though it can be adjusted higher or lower depending on the total arrears amount, how long they've been accumulating, the obligor's current financial ability to pay, and whether the case involves public assistance reimbursement requiring faster repayment.

For example, if current support is $1,000 per month and arrears total $12,000, a payment plan might require $1,000 current support plus $200 toward arrears (20%), for a total monthly payment of $1,200. At this rate, the arrears would be paid off in 60 months (5 years), though interest continues accruing on the remaining balance throughout this period. The DCSS can administratively establish payment plans when it provides enforcement services, or parties can request court-ordered payment plans through a Request for Order. Payment plans must balance making meaningful progress toward eliminating arrears while being realistically affordable given the obligor's income and necessary living expenses. Successfully maintaining a payment plan often helps avoid more severe enforcement actions like contempt or license suspension. However, if the obligor fails to make payments as required, the entire arrears balance remains due and all enforcement remedies remain available. Payment plans provide structure and predictability but don't reduce the total amount owed.

Yes, in certain circumstances, child support arrears can be settled through negotiated lump sum payments for less than the full amount owed, but this is only possible for arrears owed directly to the custodial parent, not arrears assigned to the state for public assistance reimbursement. Under Family Code Section 17402, if the arrears are owed to the custodial parent and both parties agree, they can negotiate a compromise where the obligor pays a reduced lump sum in exchange for the custodial parent releasing the remaining arrears. The agreement must be submitted to the court for approval, and the court must find that the compromise is in the child's best interests, voluntary, and fair under the circumstances.

Common scenarios for lump sum settlements include the obligor receiving a windfall (inheritance, personal injury settlement, property sale proceeds) and offering to pay a substantial portion immediately in exchange for forgiveness of the remaining balance; settlement of all family law issues where arrears compromise is part of a global resolution including property division or other considerations; the obligor facing bankruptcy and offering payment before filing; or situations where the custodial parent concludes that accepting less immediately is preferable to years of enforcement efforts with uncertain results. For example, if arrears total $50,000 with interest, the parties might agree that the obligor will pay $35,000 as a lump sum and the custodial parent will release the remaining $15,000. Courts examine these agreements carefully to ensure the custodial parent isn't being coerced, understands the consequences of releasing arrears, and has considered the children's needs. Settlements involving state-owed arrears require state approval and are much more difficult to achieve because the state has strict policies limiting arrears compromise.

No, child support arrears are absolutely not dischargeable in bankruptcy under federal bankruptcy law codified in 11 U.S.C. Section 523(a)(5). This provision specifically exempts "domestic support obligations" from discharge in bankruptcy, and the Bankruptcy Code explicitly defines domestic support obligations to include child support arrears regardless of when they accrued or how old they are. This non-dischargeability applies to both Chapter 7 liquidation bankruptcy and Chapter 13 reorganization bankruptcy. The policy behind this rule is clear: children's needs for support take priority over the obligor parent's need for a fresh financial start, and bankruptcy cannot be used to escape the responsibility to support one's children.

Filing bankruptcy does not stop child support enforcement actions—unlike most debts that are stayed (frozen) during bankruptcy, child support collection can continue uninterrupted. Wage garnishment continues, liens remain in effect, and new enforcement actions can be initiated even while the bankruptcy case is pending. After bankruptcy is complete and other debts are discharged, the child support arrears remain fully enforceable with all enforcement mechanisms available. While bankruptcy may provide relief from credit card debt, medical bills, and other obligations, freeing up income that could be used to pay child support, the support obligation itself survives bankruptcy completely intact. Some obligors mistakenly believe bankruptcy will eliminate support arrears or give them leverage to negotiate reduction—this is incorrect. Even if arrears are decades old and the children are now adults, the debt persists after bankruptcy and can be enforced indefinitely. The only way to eliminate child support arrears is to pay them or obtain a court-approved compromise under Family Code Section 17402.

There is no statute of limitations for collecting child support arrears in California—they can be enforced indefinitely until paid in full. Under Family Code Section 291, enforcement of child support orders and the judgments they create continues without time limitation. Unlike most civil judgments which expire after 10 years unless renewed under Code of Civil Procedure Section 683.020, child support judgments never expire. This means arrears can be collected decades after they originally accrued, even after the child reaches adulthood, graduates from college, marries, or has children of their own. The debt continues until paid, regardless of the passage of time.

This perpetual enforceability has significant practical consequences. An obligor who accumulated $30,000 in arrears when their child was young cannot escape this debt by waiting until the child turns 18 or by moving to another state. The custodial parent or DCSS can pursue collection 20, 30, or even 40 years after the arrears accrued. Interest continues accruing at 10% per year throughout this entire period, so $30,000 in arrears will grow to over $200,000 after 20 years if left unpaid. Enforcement mechanisms remain available indefinitely including wage garnishment, tax refund intercepts, liens on property, bank levies, and contempt proceedings. Even if the obligor retires, their retirement income (Social Security, pensions, etc.) can be garnished for arrears. The permanent nature of child support debt distinguishes it from virtually all other financial obligations and underscores why it is critical to either pay support as ordered or immediately seek modification when circumstances change, rather than allowing arrears to accumulate and become a permanent financial burden.

Child support arrears do not disappear, terminate, or become unenforceable when the child reaches age 18 or is otherwise emancipated. Under Family Code Section 17400, arrears that accrued before the child reached majority remain fully enforceable judgments that must be paid regardless of the child's current age. The distinction is critical: the obligation to pay current, ongoing support terminates when the child turns 18 and graduates from high school (or reaches age 19 if still in high school as a full-time student), but arrears that accumulated during the child's minority continue as a permanent debt owed by the obligor to whomever holds the right to those arrears (the custodial parent or the state).

For example, if an obligor accumulated $40,000 in arrears during the child's first 18 years, that $40,000 remains fully owed even after the child turns 18, graduates from college, gets married, and has children of their own. The custodial parent or DCSS can continue enforcing these arrears indefinitely using all available enforcement mechanisms including wage garnishment, liens, bank levies, tax refund intercepts, and contempt proceedings. The arrears continue accruing interest at 10% per year even after the child reaches adulthood. Many obligors mistakenly believe their support obligations completely end when the child turns 18, but this only applies to prospective support—past-due support remains a permanent debt. Similarly, if the obligor dies, the arrears become a debt of the estate that must be paid from estate assets before distribution to heirs. The only ways arrears terminate are through payment in full or court-approved compromise under Family Code Section 17402. The permanent nature of arrears emphasizes the importance of paying support as ordered or seeking modification rather than allowing arrears to accumulate.

The custodial parent's ability to waive or forgive child support arrears depends entirely on who the arrears are legally owed to, and this distinction is critical. Under Family Code Section 17402, if the arrears are owed directly to the custodial parent—meaning the custodial parent never received public assistance (CalWORKs, TANF, or Medi-Cal) or received assistance but it has been fully reimbursed to the state—then the custodial parent can agree to forgive some or all of the arrears, subject to court approval. The court must find that the forgiveness (compromise) is in the child's best interests, that the custodial parent understands the consequences and is not being coerced, and that the agreement is fair and reasonable under the circumstances.

However, if the custodial parent ever received public assistance and assigned their right to child support to the state as reimbursement for that assistance, then the arrears (up to the amount of assistance provided) are owed to the state, not to the custodial parent. Neither parent has authority to waive or forgive state-owed arrears—only the state itself can release these arrears, and California's Department of Child Support Services rarely agrees to do so except in very limited circumstances such as federal Compromise of Arrears Programs or when collection costs clearly exceed potential recovery. This means that even if the custodial parent wants to forgive arrears to help the obligor, they cannot do so if the arrears are assigned to the state. The state will continue pursuing collection regardless of both parents' wishes. This creates difficult situations where obligor parents may have repaired relationships with custodial parents and their children, but remain burdened by enormous state-owed arrears that cannot be forgiven. The lesson is that arrears assignment to the state has permanent consequences that cannot be undone by the parties.

To obtain an official calculation of child support arrears and a complete payment history, you should contact the entity that is enforcing or tracking the support order. If the case is being handled by the Department of Child Support Services (DCSS)—which is common if the custodial parent ever received public assistance or requested DCSS services—contact your local DCSS office (you can find it through the DCSS website or by calling the statewide hotline) and request a complete payment history and current arrears calculation. DCSS maintains detailed records of all payments received through the State Disbursement Unit (SDU), which processes most child support payments in California. They can provide a comprehensive accounting showing each payment date, amount paid, how each payment was applied (to current support versus arrears versus interest), and the current total arrears including principal and accrued interest.

If DCSS is not involved in your case, you can request payment records from the court that issued the support order. Many courts have online case management systems where you can view payment information, or you can contact the Family Law Facilitator's office or court clerk for assistance. Either parent can also file a Request for Order (FL-300) asking the court to calculate and determine the exact amount of arrears, particularly if there is a dispute about the amount owed. This might be necessary when payments were made informally without going through official channels, when there are questions about whether payments were credited properly, or when modification orders may have affected the support obligation retroactively. It's important to obtain official documentation of arrears rather than relying on informal calculations, because enforcement actions, payment plans, and compromise agreements all require accurate, verified arrears amounts. If you disagree with the arrears amount shown in official records, you should promptly contest it by filing appropriate court papers and providing evidence of payments made, as delay in disputing arrears can make it harder to correct errors later.