Changing A Child Support Order

This page has information about changing a child support order both for parents who pay child support and for parents who get child support.

When can the child support order be changed?

The Child Support Guidelines give four situations when the court can modify a child support order:

1. The existing order is at least three years old.
2. Health insurance that had been available at reasonable cost is no longer available or no longer available at reasonable cost.
3. Health insurance was not previously available at reasonable cost but now is available at reasonable cost.
4. Any other material change in circumstances has occurred.

Under the fourth situation, where the court modifies or changes a child support order because of a "material change in circumstances,"  "change in circumstances" can include things like losing a job or getting a job.  A "material" change is one that is important or or makes a real difference. The change must make a real difference in the amount of child support a parent can pay or a that a parent needs. For a change to be "material," the change should be one that lasts for more than a short time. 

If you lose your job and you have less money coming in, you can ask the court to change the child support order. Payors can also ask the judge to "suspend" the child support order. When judges are deciding if the order should be changed, they look at the reasons you lost your job and why you have less income.  

For example, you might have been fired but you might be able to get another job very soon. The court might not lower the child support order in that situation.

If it looks as though it will be a while before you can get another job, it is more likely that the court will change the child support order.  If you lose your job because you were laid off or got seriously reduced hours, the court might be more likely to change the child support. If you lose your job because you became disabled or got injured so that you will be unemployed for quite a while, the court might be more likely to change the child support.

When child support recipients lose their jobs or when child support payors get better paying jobs or go back to work, the court can look at the situation to decide whether to increase the child support order, just as it does in deciding to reduce a child support order when a payor loses his or her job.

Look at our "Parents Ask About Modification" videos to learn more about what "change in circumstances" means.

What do I do to change my child support order?

If you need to have your child support order changed, you must file a Complaint for Modification to ask the court to modify or change the child support order.

An order changing a child support order cannot go back further than the date on which you "served" the other parent with the Complaint for Modification. The date when the other parent is served is the date when he or she got official notice of the modification case. The order does not date back to the date your job situation or the other parent's job situation changed.

What if the payor parent goes on welfare?

If you go on welfare (public assistance such as TAFDC, EAEDC, SSI), the court will probably reduce your child support payments. The Massachusetts Child Support Guidelines say that the minimum child support order, if your income is less than $100 per week, is $80 per month.  The court should make a minimum order of $80 per month, but it can make a higher or lower order in this situation if it is fair and appropriate to do so.

What can parents do about the child support order if they reconcile (get back together)?

Having a child support order when the parents live together is extremely unusual. When the parents have lived apart and there is a child support order in effect, if the parents and children then live together, a complaint to modify the child support order by terminating it should be successful, particularly if both parents agree that they are reconciled and that the child support order should end.

Reconciliation is likely to be viewed by the court as the sort of  “material change in circumstances” where a modification is appropriate. The Child Support Guidelines do not apply to situations where the parents and children all live together. An order terminating a child support order cannot go back further than the date on which you gave notice to the other parent of the Complaint for Modification.

The order does not date back to the date you and the other parent reconciled. Child support arrears that add up during the period between the reconciliation and the date of service (giving notice of the Complaint for Modification) would continue to be collectable by the Department of Revenue Child Support Enforcement Division.

If you want the Department of Revenue Child Support Enforcement Division to help you change your child support order, read Modify Your Court Order. The DOR website has forms for you to fill out and tells you what information to send them. You can also get this information by calling DOR/CSED's Customer Service line, 1-800-332-2733.

Parents can file a Joint Petition for Modification of a Child Support Judgment.The Probate and Family Court website also has instructions for filling out this form.