Child Support Across State Lines Military
You finally have a California order garnishing your ex’s military pay, then he gets PCS orders to North Carolina and the checks stop cold. Crossing state lines does not erase the duty, but it does shift the enforcement playbook from friendly California courts to a new state that may favor the service member.
Knowing how to register your order under the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act and which federal wage garnishment rules trump state judges will keep the money flowing even when the other parent relocates halfway across the country.
Registering Your CA Order In The New State
- File a certified copy of the California order with the clerk in the service member’s new county
- Send notice to the obligor giving 20 days to contest registration
- Request income withholding directed to the new duty station finance office
- Ask the new state to adopt California’s cost of living adjustments automatically
Last quarter we registered a Santa Monica support order in Jacksonville, Florida within ten days. The sailor contested venue, but the judge upheld California’s continuing jurisdiction because the children still live here, so the garnishment proceeded without modification.
Federal Wage Garnishment Vs State Courts
Once registered, federal law allows up to 65 percent of disposable military pay to be garnished for child support. The new state cannot reduce that cap even if its own statutes top out at 50 percent.
We serve the income withholding order directly on DFAS, bypassing state administrative hearings that might try to lower the amount. DFAS will honor the California order as written as long as it contains the proper federal wording found in 42 U.S.C. §659.
We also include a clause for arrears collection, which lets DFAS tack on an extra 20 percent until back support is paid in full. In one case we collected $14,000 of arrears in eight months by stacking the garnishment, something the new state’s judge called “aggressive but perfectly legal.”
Contempt When Garnishment Is Not Enough
If the service member leaves the military or switches to the Reserves, wages may drop below garnishable levels. We then request the new state to suspend licenses and passports under the same federal statutes.
California can also retain contempt jurisdiction, so we sometimes file a motion here for willful non payment while registration proceeds elsewhere. Dual pressure usually produces a lump sum catch up payment within weeks.
And remember, the service member cannot escape by transferring to a new branch. We simply redirect the income withholding to the new pay center, whether it is Army, Air Force, or Space Force finance.
Stuck chasing support across time zones? Upload your California order here and we will handle registration, garnishment, and contempt in one package so the money follows your kids no matter how many PCS moves the other parent makes.
