While the best interests of the child may have been served when child support was originally ordered, it may no longer be fair. Perhaps support payments were sufficient before, but it is no longer enough for what your child needs. Or maybe you have lost your job, and you cannot afford the support payments anymore. Whether you are the custodial or the non-custodial parent, you may be able to change these orders through the modification process. You and the other parent cannot reach this agreement on your own, however, because only a court has the authority to change child support.
Ultimately, whatever modification you request has to be in the child's best interests. This is what you will have to prove, whether you are asking for an increase or a reduction of child support. The process can be simple, or it can be contested trial. In most parts of the country, you should just be able to fill out documents, pay a fee, and then a judge can decide whether or not the change is in the child's best interests—without a hearing. Consulting an attorney could still be a good idea though. If the other parent fights against this modification, however, then there would have to be a hearing. In this case you would need a legal advocate to represent you. When a modification is contested, judges are less open to the idea of changing the support order. You would have to provide a good case in order to achieve a modification.
In order to request a modification, there has to have been a "substantial" change. It also cannot have been a purposeful one, either, usually speaking. What this means is that a parent cannot ask for changed support orders because they asked for reduced wages, for example. The custodial parent cannot ask for more child support if they quit their job either.
What are some reasons a custodial parent could ask for increased child support? You could ask for a temporary modification if your child has a medical emergency, or if you have a serious condition or injury that will temporarily keep you from work. You can request a permanently modified court order if you lost a job, or had to take a pay cut. Perhaps the other parent is making about 10 percent more at work, or maybe they remarried, in which case a court is likely to feel the child's best interests mean raising child support payments. If your child will require medical treatment for a long time to come, has higher school costs, or the cost of living has gone up, these are further reasons you may be able to modify child support.
When can the non-custodial parent ask for reduced child support payments? You also could request a temporary change if you will be forced off work for a limited time because of illness or injury. Permanently modified orders could be granted if the other parent remarries, meaning that their household income has spiked up. You might be able to ask for reduced payments if you lost your job. Similarly, if your salary has gone down, or the cost of living has gone up substantially, you might be able to seek child support modification. If you are the parent making payments, then you cannot wait to ask for a modification. Any payments you miss will accrue, and you will have to pay them. Not even a judge or bankruptcy can remove this debt.
There may be other reasons to obtain child support modification. Talk to a family law attorney to learn whether your situation qualifies for this process, and learn how you can fight for your family's rights.