The Delaware child support program operates as a joint effort between the State of Delaware and the federal government to help families establish and receive appropriate financial support for their children. The Division of Child Support Services (DCSS) administers this program to ensure children have access to the financial resources they need for healthy development.
Child support in Delaware is based on the principle that both parents share equal responsibility for supporting their children financially. This obligation continues regardless of whether parents are married, divorced, separated, or were never married. The system is designed to be fair, consistent, and focused on the best interests of the child.
The Delaware child support program provides comprehensive services, including locating absent parents, establishing paternity, creating support orders, collecting payments, and modifying existing orders when circumstances change. These services are available to all families who need assistance with child support matters.
Delaware Division of Child Support Services
The Division of Child Support Services serves as the primary agency responsible for administering Delaware child support programs throughout the state. DCSS works with custodial parents, non-custodial parents, and putative fathers to establish legal relationships and ensure appropriate financial support for children.
DCSS offers a range of services designed to help families succeed by ensuring children receive financial support from both parents. The agency operates under federal guidelines while implementing state-specific procedures that reflect Delaware's commitment to supporting families and protecting children's welfare.
The division maintains offices throughout Delaware and provides services regardless of the family's financial situation. Both custodial and non-custodial parents can access these services, and the agency works to ensure fair treatment for all parties involved in child support cases.
Establishing Child Support Orders
The process of establishing Delaware child support begins when a custodial parent files a petition with the Family Court requesting that the other parent be ordered to pay child support. This legal process ensures that support obligations are formally established and enforceable.
Before a child support order can be established, paternity must be determined if the parents were not married when the child was born. Delaware law requires a clear establishment of the legal father-child relationship before support obligations can be imposed. This may involve genetic testing if paternity is disputed or unclear.
Once paternity is established, the court uses Delaware's Child Support Formula to calculate the appropriate support amount. This formula considers both parents' incomes, the number of children requiring support, childcare expenses, health insurance costs, and other relevant factors to determine fair support obligations.
Delaware Child Support Calculation Formula
Delaware uses a specific formula to calculate child support amounts that takes into account both parents' financial circumstances and the children's needs. The Child Support Formula is designed to ensure consistency and fairness in support determinations across all cases.
The calculation process considers several key factors, including both parents' gross incomes, tax obligations, existing child support obligations for other children, childcare expenses necessary for employment, and health insurance premiums paid for the children. The formula also accounts for the amount of time children spend with each parent.
The Delaware Child Support Formula is regularly updated to reflect current economic conditions and ensure that support amounts remain appropriate for children's needs. Family Court commissioners and mediators use this formula during support proceedings to determine fair and reasonable support obligations.
Income Considerations for Child Support
Determining income for Delaware child support calculations involves a comprehensive review of all income sources for both parents. This includes wages, salaries, commissions, bonuses, overtime pay, tips, rental income, business profits, unemployment benefits, disability payments, and other forms of regular income.
The court may also consider potential income when a parent is voluntarily unemployed or underemployed. If a parent is capable of earning more income but chooses not to work or accepts lower-paying employment without good reason, the court may base support calculations on earning potential rather than actual income.
Self-employed parents must provide detailed financial records, including tax returns, profit and loss statements, and business records, to establish accurate income for child support purposes. The court may scrutinize these records to ensure that income is not being artificially reduced to avoid support obligations.
Mediation and Administrative Hearings
Delaware's child support process typically includes required mediation unless there is a no-contact order or documented history of domestic violence. During mediation, both parents meet with a Family Court mediator who uses the state's Child Support Formula to calculate support amounts and help parents reach an agreement.
If parents cannot agree during mediation, the case proceeds to an administrative hearing before a Family Court commissioner, often on the same day as the mediation session. The commissioner reviews the case facts and applies the Child Support Formula to determine appropriate support amounts.
Parents who disagree with the commissioner's decision have the right to appeal to a Family Court judge within 30 days. If either parent remains dissatisfied with the judge's decision, they may appeal to the Delaware Supreme Court, though such appeals are typically limited to legal issues rather than factual disputes.
Payment Methods and Collection
The Division of Child Support Services oversees the collection and distribution of Delaware child support payments through various convenient methods. Most commonly, child support is collected through income withholding orders sent directly to the non-custodial parent's employer, ensuring regular and timely payments.
Alternative payment methods include direct payments by check or money order, online payments through the iPayOnline system, and payments made at TouchPay kiosks located in Department of Motor Vehicles and Probation offices throughout Delaware. These options provide flexibility for parents who prefer different payment methods.
Once DCSS receives payments, they are distributed to custodial parents within two business days. Payment options for receiving support include direct deposit to bank accounts, mailed checks, or credits to the First State Family Card, a stored-value Visa card that provides immediate access to funds.
Enforcement of Child Support Orders
When non-custodial parents fail to make the required Delaware child support payments, DCSS has numerous enforcement tools available to collect overdue support. These enforcement mechanisms are designed to ensure that children receive the financial support they are legally entitled to receive.
Enforcement actions may include wage garnishment, seizure of tax refunds, suspension of driver's licenses, suspension of professional licenses, seizure of bank accounts, and placement of liens on real property. In serious cases of non-payment, the court may order incarceration until a designated amount of child support is paid.
DCSS also reports delinquent child support payments to credit bureaus, which can negatively impact the non-custodial parent's credit score and ability to obtain loans or credit. These enforcement measures provide strong incentives for parents to maintain current payments on their support obligations.
Modification of Child Support Orders
Circumstances may change after a Delaware child support order is established, making modification necessary to ensure continued fairness and adequacy of support amounts. Either parent may request modification when substantial changes in circumstances occur.
Common reasons for modification include significant changes in either parent's income, changes in the children's needs such as medical expenses or educational costs, changes in parenting time arrangements, or changes in childcare expenses. The court requires substantial and continuing changes before modifying existing orders.
Parents may request a review of their child support order after two and a half years, or after two years if either parent's income or expenses have changed substantially. DCSS can assist with the modification process and help parents understand whether their circumstances warrant a change in support amounts.
Duration of Child Support Obligations
Delaware child support obligations typically continue until children reach 18 years of age and graduate from high school. However, if a child is over 18 and still enrolled in high school, support continues until the child turns 19 or graduates from high school, whichever occurs first.
In some circumstances, child support may continue beyond the typical termination age. This can occur when children have special needs that require ongoing support, or when parents agree to extended support for purposes such as college education, though such agreements must be specifically included in court orders.
Parents should be aware that child support obligations do not automatically terminate when children reach the age of majority. The paying parent must typically request termination of the order through the court system, and payments should continue until official termination is granted.
Special Circumstances and Considerations
Certain situations require special consideration in Delaware child support cases. When children have special needs or disabilities that require ongoing care and support, the court may order continued support beyond the typical termination age or adjust support amounts to account for additional expenses.
Military families face unique challenges with child support, particularly when deployment or relocation affects income or parenting arrangements. Delaware law provides specific procedures for addressing these situations and ensuring that military service members can meet their support obligations while fulfilling their military duties.
Interstate cases, where parents live in different states, are handled through the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA), which provides procedures for establishing and enforcing child support orders across state lines. DCSS works with other states to ensure that geographic separation doesn't prevent children from receiving support.
Resources and Assistance
The Division of Child Support Services provides comprehensive assistance to families navigating the Delaware child support system. DCSS staff can help with applications for services, answer questions about existing cases, provide information about payment status, and assist with requests for modifications.
Delaware offers online resources, including a customer webpage accessible through my.delaware.gov, where parents can view case information, payment histories, and other important details about their child support cases. The division also maintains a social media presence and educational videos to help parents understand the system.
Legal assistance is available through Delaware Legal Help Link and other organizations that provide free or low-cost legal services to families who cannot afford private attorneys. These resources can be particularly valuable for parents navigating complex child support issues or appeals.
Common Challenges and Solutions
Parents often face challenges with Delaware child support, including difficulties locating absent parents, disputes over income calculations, problems with irregular income from self-employment, and complications arising from remarriage or additional children with different partners.
DCSS has specialized tools and resources to address these challenges, including skip-tracing services to locate absent parents, forensic accounting capabilities to analyze complex income situations, and procedures for handling cases involving multiple support orders or blended families.
Communication between parents can significantly impact the success of child support arrangements. While DCSS handles the administrative aspects of support collection and distribution, parents who can communicate effectively about their children's needs often find that support arrangements work more smoothly and require fewer enforcement actions.
Rights and Responsibilities
Both custodial and non-custodial parents have specific rights and responsibilities under Delaware child support law. Custodial parents have the right to receive timely support payments and to request enforcement assistance when payments are not made. They also have responsibilities to notify DCSS of address changes and to use support payments for children's needs.
Non-custodial parents have the right to fair calculation of support amounts based on accurate income information, to request modifications when circumstances change, and to receive credit for all payments made. They have responsibilities to make payments as ordered, to report income and address changes, and to notify DCSS of circumstances that might affect their ability to pay.
Children are the ultimate beneficiaries of the child support system and have the right to receive financial support from both parents. This right belongs to the child, not the custodial parent, which is why support obligations typically cannot be waived by agreement between parents.