Jail Time and Unpaid Child Support in Pennsylvania

If child support is one of the largest payments you have to make, keep reading. Before you decide to ignore child support payments when facing the prospect of going to jail, you need to get a better understanding of how Pennsylvania’s child support system works. 

Getting Arrested for Nonpayment of Child Support

Many Philadelphians are struggling to both keep up with their monthly bills and their child support payments in these financially unstable times. That is why, unfortunately, child support often gets pushed to the back burner. 

While there are many reasons why a parent may get behind on child support payments, not paying child support can potentially lead to jail time. However, many parents facing incarceration are shocked to learn that being incarcerated doesn’t automatically mean that child support payments are going to stop. If someone is put in jail due to failure to pay child support, those payments will still be due while they are incarcerated. In other words – the amount you owe will continue to grow as you stay behind bars.  

When is Child Support Suspended?

There are some cases where child support payments may be suspended or terminated. The courts may choose to put a temporary end to the payments if someone has been arrested for something other than failure to pay child support payments. For instance, if you are arrested for a DUI but are caught up on your child support payments, you may petition the court to pause all payments until you are released. By hiring a family lawyer in addition to your defense lawyer and putting a stop to your payments, you can avoid getting behind financially if you were to go to jail and risking even more legal difficulties. 

What Determines if Child Support is Paused?

The courts will decide if child support is to be paused when the parent is in jail or if payments will continue. A judge will make this decision by carefully reviewing all of the information about the soon-to-be incarcerated parent such as their income and assets. If they have property, these assets may be taken and used to help pay child support while they are behind bars. 

What to Do if You are Facing Incarceration

If you know that an upcoming court case may result in you seeing jail time, you need to start acting now to ensure the best financial safeguards for you and your assets. Talk to a family law attorney today to discover how jail may affect your child support payments, and whether you can have these payments stopped without having your assets collected. 

Sometimes, getting in trouble with authority is just a part of life. Unfortunately, sometimes that comes with consequences that result in jail time. But you can help to prevent your own financial ruin by working with a family law attorney to stop your child support payments during the time you are incarcerated. Contact our offices to learn more about Pennsylvania’s child support laws and for a consultation on your unique case!