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Often, a child support order is put in place after a divorce where there are children involved, although it can be put in place under other circumstances as well. Regardless of whether parents are married, separated, divorced, or were never married in the first place, both parents remain financially obligated to provide for their child. If you have been ordered to pay child support by a court, you may have questions about how you can make your child support payments. How and when to make your court order child support payments is critical to your compliance with the order and is, therefore, to get straight right away.
Can My Ex Pay Cash for Child Support?
First, you should review the child support order which either establishes or modifies child support and it may very well state how the judge has ordered you to pay your child support obligation. In the absence of such a directive, the parties are often able to determine how child support payments should be made. Both parents could decide that cash, check, money order, or direct deposit works as far as making child support payments is concerned, if they have agreed that a direct payment should be made to the supported parent.
Direct payments have the advantage of being faster. Without a middleman or third party, the supported parent receives the payment right away. That being said, however, the lack of third-party oversight means that the supported parent will need to handle things like late payments and other payment issues on his or her own. This can not only be stressful, but also put a strain on the co-parenting relationship.
If you and your co-parent have determined that direct payment works best for you both, then consider keeping a record of child support payments. This kind of documentation could prove very useful in the event of a child support dispute. You may even be able to go back to court to request payment through a third party if direct payment does not end up working out.
If the court order has established that child support payments should be paid via a third party, the payments will be handled by the State Disbursement Unit, a branch of the Florida Department of Revenue. To make a payment through the State Disbursement Unit, the obligor parent can pay with a credit card or bank account. Alternatively, payments can be made through the mail by cash, check, or money order. Sometimes, payments may be made via income deduction from the obligor parent’s employer.
Florida Family Law Attorneys
Whether you are to receive payments via cash, check, or money order, and receive either direct payments or payments made through the State Disbursement Unit, you should be receiving child support payments in a timely manner and that are paid in full. If child support payments are becoming an issue, there are enforcement options at a court’s disposal. If you are struggling to make child support payments, you should consider pursuing a modification of a child support order right away. Talk to the knowledgeable team at Orlando Family Team about your options. Contact us today.
