Many things keep parents of young children awake at night, but few worries are more stressful than the fear of being unable to financially provide. Unfortunately, many parents are worried about money because their child’s other parent refuses to make court-ordered child support payments. If you are in this situation, you know how frustrating it can be; fortunately, there are strategies that can help you recover unpaid child support and get future payments back on track.
Make Sure Your Child Support Order is Enforceable
Many parents who have never been married set up an unofficial arrangement for child support payments. Although this may seem easier than going to court, it actually can result in more complex challenges later on if a parent decides to stop paying. Before you can take measures to get unpaid child support, you have to have a legally enforceable court order. This involves establishing paternity if you have not already done so, and then going to an Illinois family court to petition for child support based on state guidelines.
Get the State Involved
If you have a legally enforceable court order for child support, you can ask the state and federal government to help you get paid. Illinois can restrict a non-paying parent’s driver’s license, suspend professional licenses, submit the failure to pay child support to credit reporting agencies, and even bring criminal charges. Both the Illinois Department of Revenue and the federal Internal Revenue Service allow money to be withheld from tax returns when child support is unpaid.
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