Even if the non-custodial parent lives outside the state of Idaho, the law requires cooperation between states. The non-custodial parent is legally required to make regular child support payments, regardless of where they live.
If a non-custodial parent does not pay child support, he or she is subject to enforcement measures in accordance with Federal and Idaho child support law to collect regular and past-due payments.
The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare is the state-run child support enforcement office for Idaho. The services of Child Support Services (CSS) are required by federal law and funded by the federal government and the State of Idaho.
| IDAHO DHW CHILD SUPPORT SERVICES CASELOAD STATISTICS1 | |
|---|---|
| Full Time Equiv. Staff | 165 |
| Total Caseload | 102,194 |
1 U.S. Office of Child Support Enforcement, Boxscores for FY 2005
The State of Idaho does not charge interest on past due payments or retroactive support. The interest for judgments is set by state legislature.
Idaho's statute of limitations for child support arrears is 5 years from the child's emancipation or reaching the age of majority.
According to Idaho law, paternity must be established before the child reaches 18 years of age.
Age of majority in Idaho is 18 (Idaho Code § 32-706)
Child support is automatically terminated at the age of majority or upon emacipation or at age 19 years if the child is still in high school.
Child support amounts are set using Idaho Child Support Guidelines. The income of both parents, number of children each parent supports, cost of medical insurance premiums, and child tax credit are all considered in determining a child support amount.
Idano child support and visitation rights are separate issues. The court determines both and will usually order the non-custodial parent to pay support and the custodial parent to make the child available for visits.
The custodial parent must obey the court order for visitation, even if the non-custodial parent cannot or will not pay child support. The court can enforce any of its orders against either parent.
It took me 10 years to catch up with my husband to establish a court order for child support. Years had gone by and his debt was in the thousands. I got Human Services involved and they told me that because I was now in a different state I had to close my case and had to open my case there. Weeks after I sent the paperwork to the Child Support Enforcement office, I received a letter saying I needed to attach notarized proof of previous payements made etc, etc, etc. I was tired of going through the process of trying to get child support owed.
After many years of searching through various agencies for my ex-husband, a dear friend told me about the Support Collectors web site. I logged on and requested an application, thinking to myself it won't make a difference. We hadn't found him in 19 years, they won't be able to find him either. To my surprise they did and very quickly. Support Collectors handled everything very professionally and I received my settlement of $60,000 within a few months!
Thank you so much for your help in getting the child support payments my daughter deserves! I only wish I would not have waited so long to contact you for assistance. You succeeded when everyone else had failed.