When a co-parent falls behind on child support, making the children unavailable for parenting time until the money arrives can feel like the only leverage left. In Arizona, that approach can backfire.
Arizona courts treat parenting time and child support as two separate obligations, and a parent who withholds one to enforce the other risks sanctions of their own. Consulting an experienced family law attorney can help you choose between DCSS enforcement, a court petition, or a negotiated solution.
Arizona Keeps Parenting Time and Child Support Separate
Arizona family law does not tie a parent’s right to spend time with a child to whether that parent is current on support payments. Falling short on financial support does not entitle the other parent to cut off parenting time, and the converse is true: a parent who is being denied time cannot stop paying in response.
Both obligations exist for the child’s benefit, so cutting off contact to punish the other parent ultimately punishes the child.
Withholding Parenting Time Can Lead to Penalties
If a court finds after notice and a hearing that a parent refused without good cause to follow a parenting time order, the judge must impose at least one remedy. The options include:
- holding the violating parent in contempt
- ordering make-up parenting time
- requiring parent education or family counseling at the violating parent’s expense
- imposing civil penalties of up to $100 per violation
The violating parent must also cover the other parent’s court costs and attorney fees for the proceeding. Unpaid support does not count as good cause. Courts must hold a hearing within 25 days after the petition is served, and the Arizona Rules of Family Law Procedure call for a ruling no later than 21 days after that hearing concludes.
When deciding legal decision-making and parenting time, the law directs courts to consider which parent is more likely to allow the child frequent, meaningful, and continuing contact with the other parent. A pattern of interfering with the other parent’s time can also support a later request to modify the parenting plan.
Collecting Unpaid Child Support the Right Way
Parents can enforce support through the state Division of Child Support Services (DCSS) or in superior court. Tools include:
- Income withholding, which Arizona courts issue as a standard part of a support order
- Interception of state tax refunds once past-due support reaches $50, federal tax refund offsets, and passport denial when arrears exceed $2,500
- Suspension of driver’s, professional, and recreational licenses once a parent is at least six months behind and the nonpayment is found to be willful
- Liens on real and personal property, bank account seizures, and reporting to credit bureaus
- Contempt proceedings, which can result in fines or jail time
When Limiting Contact May Be Appropriate
If a parent genuinely believes a child is at risk, they must ask the court for help rather than act alone. Arizona courts can order supervised parenting time, or no parenting time at all, when unsupervised contact would seriously endanger the child. If danger is immediate, a parent can ask the court for emergency temporary orders, which can be issued quickly.
Practical Steps for Arizona Parents
If you are owed support, keep following the parenting time order, record missed payments, and contact DCSS. If your time is being withheld, document each incident and consider a petition to enforce.
If you are the parent paying support and your income has dropped, don’t simply stop paying. Ask the court to modify the support order, which requires a substantial and continuing change in circumstances. Because a modification usually isn’t retroactive, delay can leave you owing the full amount.
Talk to an Arizona Family Law Attorney
Whether you need to collect overdue support or enforce your parenting time, Webster Family Law helps Arizona parents pursue the remedies the law provides. Call today to schedule a consultation.