Child Support Enforcement in Washington

If you're a custodial parent who's not receiving all of the child support that you're owed, you should know about the different options you have to collect the money. And if you're the one who owes back support, you should know what can happen to you, and what you can do to avoid the worst of those consequences. Here's how child support enforcement works in Washington—and how to get help.

Getting Help From Washington's Child Support Enforcement Agency

Once you have a child support order in Washington State, you can request collection assistance from the Division of Child Support (DCS) in the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services. Unless you already have a case with DCS, you'll need to enroll for child support services. There's a $25 application fee, as well as a $35 annual fee once the agency has collected at least $550 for you. (If you're receiving public assistance, you don't need to pay a fee or enroll before the agency enforces child support in your case.)

DCS has a number of different enforcement tools to collect the money or at least impose restrictions on the delinquent parents until they pay up. The most important of these tools is an income withholding order, which requires the noncustodial parent's employer to take the support payments out of the parent's paychecks. DCS may also have child support payments withheld from unemployment benefits, as well as some other forms of income that noncustodial parents receive. Income withholding can be used to collect current support payments as well as arrears. (Wash. Rev. Code §§ 26.23.060, 50.24.110

Depending on how much a parent owes in overdue support ("arrears"), other enforcement tools include:

• reporting the debt to credit agencies, which can hurt the delinquent parent's credit rating
• have authorities suspend or not renew the delinquent parent's driver's, professional, and recreational licenses
• seize the delinquent parent's bank accounts
• intercept the parent's income tax returns
• file liens on the parent's property (including cars and real estate), so that the parent can't sell or borrow money on the property before paying off the debt
• assign the debt to a private collection agency, and
• refer the case for contempt proceedings or criminal prosecution (more on those proceedings below).

If your child's other parent lives in another state, Washington's DCS will ask the other state to take over the collection and enforcement actions. If the other parent lives outside of the U.S., check with DCS to see if it has an agreement with that country to enforce child support.

Enforcing Child Support in Court

If the collection efforts taken by DCS haven't worked, you may need to go to court to enforce your child support order. Court enforcement of child support is generally through contempt proceedings, but some cases may lead to federal criminal prosecution.

Contempt of Court for Failing to Pay Child Support

You may file a motion in court to have your child's other parent found in contempt for willfully failing to obey the child support order. To win your case, you'll need to prove that:

• you have a valid court order requiring the other parent to pay you child support, and the other parent has received notice of that order
• the other parent has clearly violated the order and doesn't have a valid excuse, and
• the other parent has received notice of the contempt motion and the opportunity to appear at the court hearing.

In contempt proceedings, parents who claim that they can't afford to pay the court-ordered child support will have to prove that they've diligently tried to find work or another way to make the payments. (Wash. Rev. Code §§ 26.18.040, 26.18.050 (2024).)

If a judge finds that a parent is in contempt of court, the judge will often order that parent to pay the overdue support at risk of further sanctions. If that doesn't work, the judge may require the delinquent parent to pay fines or even serve time in jail until the support arrears are paid. (Wash. Rev. Code § 7.21.030 (2024).)

When Can Parents Be Charged With a Crime for Not Paying Child Support

Parents who owe child support arrears may be charged with a federal crime if they:

• live in a different state than the child or travel to another state to avoid paying support, and
• owe at least $5,000 in arrears or haven't paid support in more than a year.

Conviction can result in a fine, imprisonment, or both—as well as a requirement to pay all of the support arrears. (18 U.S.C. § 228 (2024).)

Federal prosecutors typically won't file these criminal charges unless all other collection efforts have failed.

Getting Help Collecting or Paying Child Support

If you're having trouble collecting child support, your first step should be to seek help from Washington's DCS (as discussed above). But if you need to enforce your support order in court, you should at least speak with a lawyer. You could try to go it alone, using the family court forms for contempt proceedings. But it can be difficult for lay people to follow all of the legal procedures. An experienced family law attorney can help you gather the kind of evidence you'll need to win your case, as well as explain other options for collecting a judgment for child support. And if you win your case, the judge may order the other parent to pay at least part of your attorney's fees.

If you owe child support but are having trouble paying, you should also contact DCS as soon as possible. Through its "Alternative Solutions" program, the agency can work with you to help you find job, come up with a payment plan, or lower your payments if you qualify for a child support modification in Washington. Don't wait to get help. Even if a judge lowers your child support payments, the modification won't apply to payments that were due before you filed your request. (Wash. Rev. Code § 26.09.170(1) (2024).