Unfortunately, it's quite common for custodial parents to not receive the full child support payments they are entitled to. In fact, according to the US Census Bureau, less than half of custodial parents received full payments in 2013. These numbers are only based on the cases that have already been calculated by domestic relations officials. There are still an unknown number of people who are not receiving the child support they should receive based on the payee's income.
Sometimes, payees do not disclose their full income in attempts to avoid paying more child support. If you believe your children's noncustodial parent has a higher income than they have reported, here are several things you can do.
Is he or she employed by the government?
If the payee is employed by the federal government, you can find their income information online. The income of government employees is considered public record as they are paid by taxpayers. This can give you an idea of whether or not your government employee child support payee has had a pay increase since the initial calculation of the child support. You can search what their income has been every year since they started working as a government employee.
If the payee works for the state or county, you may be able to find a similar search on websites for your office of state controller or county controller. If the payee is in the military, you won't be able to look up their information by name, but you can look up what their pay would be based on their rank and their time in service.
Has their lifestyle changed drastically?
Another way to tell if the payee has had an increase in their income is if their lifestyle has changed, especially if there has been a drastic change. If they are spending far more than they did before, it's a good sign that they've had a change in their income. However, if they are employed by a private company, you'll need the help of a child support lawyer to determine whether or not there really has been a change and to request a modification if that is the case.
In most states, the parent requesting a modification to the child support arrangement has to prove that there has been a substantial change in the circumstances of the child support order, which a significant increase in pay would be. In order to provide this proof, a child support lawyer can investigate further into the payee's income.
Share7 June 2017
