Know Your Legal Rights is a bi-monthly column distributed by the State Bar of Wisconsin. It is sponsored by the State Bar of Wisconsin’s Lawyer Referral Service (LRS), which connects Wisconsin residents with lawyers throughout the state. To find an attorney in your area, visit wislaw.org.
By Atty. Jacob Birenbaum
You started a new job. Your pay is about the same, and child support was automatically deducted from your old paycheck. Do you still have to report the change?
You may have to. Wisconsin law treats a change of employer and what the law calls a “substantial change” in gross income as separate events.
In applicable cases, both the person paying support and the person receiving it must report either change within 10 business days. Notice generally must be given to the other parent and the county child support agency.
Doesn’t my new employer report the change?
Employers report new hires to the state, generally within 20 days. But that report does not include the employee’s wages or replace a parent’s duty under a support order.
A parent may have only 10 business days to report the change. Prompt notice also helps the child support agency send wage-withholding instructions to the correct employer.
What changed?
Previously, Wisconsin law generally required the person paying support to report a substantial income change promptly. The person receiving support might not have had to report a change until the parents exchanged their yearly financial information.
That difference could matter when parents share placement and both incomes are used to calculate support. One parent might receive a large raise, but the other might not learn about it for months.
Wisconsin Act 82 expanded the reporting requirement to both parents in certain cases. It also clarified that the requirement applies to gross income.
What is a substantial change?
Wisconsin law does not provide a dollar amount or percentage that makes an income change substantial.
The answer may depend on the size and length of the change and how the parents share placement. A new job, job loss, large raise or lasting reduction in work hours may qualify. A small or temporary change may not.
Because the deadline may be only 10 business days, you may wish to seek legal advice promptly if you are unsure whether you must report a change.
What counts as gross income?
Gross income may include more than wages. It may include interest and investment income, Social Security benefits, unemployment insurance, certain workers’ compensation or personal injury payments, veterans benefits, military allowances and business income.
The rules may be more complicated if you are self-employed, receive bonuses or have several sources of income.
Some payments do not count as gross income. Examples include child support received for another child, foster care and kinship care payments, Supplemental Security Income, food assistance and certain public benefits.
Different rules may apply when an order includes maintenance or family support.
Does every parent receiving child support have to report a change?
Not necessarily.
A parent receiving child support generally does not have to report an income change when the other parent does not have shared placement. Wisconsin generally considers placement shared when each parent has the child at least 25% of the time.
When placement is not shared, the receiving parent’s income generally is not used to calculate support.
Does reporting a change modify child support?
Reporting the change is required. Changing the payment is another matter.
The current amount generally remains in effect until a court approves a change. A parent should not reduce or stop payments simply because an income change occurred.
The notice requirement also does not replace any yearly financial exchange required by Wisconsin law or the support order.
What if the other parent does not report a change?
Keep records of written requests for income information and when you learned about the possible change. An attorney can explain whether to contact the child support agency or ask the court to review the order.
Acting promptly may be important because a court may be limited in how far back it can change support.
A new job does not always mean a large change in income. But it may still trigger a duty to report the new employer.
Attorney Jacob Birenbaum of HKK Law Offices in Sheboygan focuses his practice on family law and has served as a guardian ad litem representing children in divorce, CHIPS and guardianship cases. A Random Lake native, he earned his law degree from Marquette University Law School in 2017.
Know Your Legal Rights is sponsored by the State Bar of Wisconsin’s Lawyer Referral Service, which helps connect the public with appropriate legal counsel. Learn more at wislaw.org.
This column provides general legal information, not legal advice. Laws may change. Consult an attorney about your specific situation.
