If the parent who owes you child support has moved to Georgia, or you have moved here with an order from another state, the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act, OCGA 19-11-100 et seq., is how that order gets enforced.
One Order Controls
Under OCGA 19-11-116(a), when only one court has issued a child support order, “the order of that tribunal controls and must be recognized,” and a Georgia court keeps jurisdiction over its own order while a parent or the child lives here. In Baars v. Freeman, 288 Ga. 835 (2011), a trial court refused to rule on a father’s arrearage because the mother had started enforcement in the United Kingdom. The Georgia Supreme Court reversed: the mother and child lived here, and UIFSA remedies “are cumulative and do not affect the availability of remedies under other law.”
Registering an Out-of-State Order
Under OCGA 19-11-161, registration means sending the Georgia court a letter of transmittal, two copies of the order, and a sworn statement of the arrearage. The other parent has 20 days to request a hearing; if none is requested, under OCGA 19-11-165(b) “the order is confirmed by operation of law.” Under OCGA 19-11-162, a registered order is enforced like a Georgia order, but Georgia “may not modify” it.
Registration is needed to modify, not to enforce. In Kerr v. Wilson, 359 Ga. App. 111 (2021), a father was held in contempt of a Tennessee child support order, and the Court of Appeals held that the decree “may be enforced, however, upon the filing of a certified copy.”
Wage Withholding Without a Lawsuit
Under OCGA 19-11-150, another state’s withholding order may be sent to the Georgia employer “without first filing a petition or comparable pleading or registering the order,” and under OCGA 19-11-151 the employer must honor it as if a Georgia court had issued it.
Personal jurisdiction over an out-of-state parent, and modifying another state’s order, are separate topics.
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This post is a quick overview of the law and is not intended as legal advice. Please feel free to contact our office for a consultation if you have questions about this or any other legal aspects regarding your case!