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 Pennsylvania Question and Answer Handbook for Noncustodial Parents: A question and answer resource on paternity establishment and child support Acknowledgments The Ford Foundation, Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, and Public Welfare Foundation generously provided support for this handbook. All of the ideas, opinions, and legal interpretations presented in this handbook are explicitly those of the Center on Fathers, Families, and Public Policy. It should not be assumed that the foundations providing support for this work share them. The production of this handbook would not be possible without the help of many individuals who took the time to read and comment on earlier drafts. Ultimately, any errors are solely those of the author. In addition, the Center on Fathers, Families, and Public Policy made the final decision as to whether to include or not include things in this handbook. Most important we would like to thank Impact Services for all of their work on behalf of low-income fathers. The Center conducted a focus group at Impact Services with fathers enrolled in their program, which is part of the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation's Fathers at Work Initiative. We would like to thank those fathers for reviewing part of this handbook. These fathers include Malik Barrett, Damon Butler, James Robinson, Cupid Brookins, Eric Presser, John Cade, Carlos Rodriguez, Joe Clark, Colón George, Michael Lugo, Michael Gagliardi, Robert Brown, and Frankie Sanchez. 
Table of Contents Top Ten Things You Should Know In Negotiating The Pennsylvania Child Support System Questions Surrounding: Paternity Establishment
Child Support
Child Support & Visitation
Employment
Introduction This handbook is based on Pennsylvania law. It was made on February 15, 2002, and does not reflect any changes in the law since that date. This handbook provides only general legal information about the Pennsylvania child support system. It is not advice about your particular legal situation. If you can afford it you should talk with a lawyer for help with your legal problems. This handbook will be about paternity establishment and child support issues. You should understand that you would benefit from help from a lawyer with these issues. The Center on Fathers, Families, and Public Policy (CFFPP) does not represent fathers in Pennsylvania. In fact, CFFPP does not have any lawyers who practice in Pennsylvania. The handbook can be read from cover to cover. If you have a specific question you can just jump to that question. Legal Services Most people would hire a lawyer to handle paternity establishment or child support matters. Yet many fathers cannot afford such help. This handbook gives information for these fathers and for social service professionals who try to help them. This handbook does not replace a lawyer to help you with your legal problems. There is help for low-income parents with family law matters in Philadelphia: Philadelphia Legal Assistance This list does not provide every available legal resource for low-income parents in Pennsylvania. The Center on Fathers, Families, and Public Policy is not responsible for the type of service you receive from this program. Top Ten Things You Should Know In Negotiating The Pennsylvania Child Support System
Paternity Establishment What does the word "paternity" mean? Paternity means fatherhood. Both legally and biologically, the word paternity means who is the father of a child. When a mother gives birth to a child she is almost always the legal mother of that child. She has rights and duties for the child as the child's mother. For a father who was not married to the mother it is different. For these fathers Pennsylvania does not give you any rights or duties for the child as the child's father. For you to have these rights and duties you must establish your paternity for that child. How can the paternity of a child be established? There are two primary ways to establish paternity for a child born to a mother who has never been married. Both parents can sign a legal form. This form is called an Acknowledgment of Paternity. Another way to establish paternity is through going to court or through an administrative proceeding. If you are absolutely sure that you are the father of the child, and the mother agrees, you can both sign the Acknowledgment of Paternity. While the baby is still in the hospital, the mother and the father, if he is present, are given a chance to do this. In addition, you may do this at a later date. You will still need to go to court if you want to have court-ordered visitation with your child. If a mother or the state claims that you are the father of a child in a legal proceeding, you may want to ask for a genetic test (DNA test). A genetic test is the best way to be absolutely sure that you are the biological father. If you are not sure that you are the father, and want to be sure, you should insist on a genetic test. What if, after signing the Acknowledgment of Paternity form, I have reason to think I am not the father? There are limited ways for you to cancel your signing of the form. However, this is most easily done within 60 days of either of you signing it. After 60 days pass, what you have to do is much more difficult. (See next question) Within 60 days, there are specific things you need to do to cancel it. The first option is to go to your local child support enforcement unit and tell them that you may not be the father of the child. Tell them that you wish to "rescind" or take back your signing of the Acknowledgment of Paternity. They should provide you with another form. You need to follow the steps on this form so that you will not be considered the legal father of that child. You must do this within 60 days of your signing the Acknowledgment of Paternity form. There is also a second possibility. If there is a court hearing about the child that you are part of within 60 days from your signing of the Acknowledgment of Paternity, you may ask the court to cancel the Acknowledgment of Paternity. The court will then decide whether to do so. If there is a court proceeding about the child you lose the option to go to the child support office and ask them to rescind your signing the Acknowledgment of Paternity. 60 days have passed since the mother and I signed the Acknowledgment of Paternity. What can I do now that I think I may not be the biological father? After 60 days it is hard to make it so a court or the child support agency will not treat you as the legal father of the child. To make it so you are not treated as the father you will have to go to court. You will have to file a lawsuit to contest the Acknowledgment of Paternity. To contest an acknowledgment you must prove at least one of three things. You must prove that you signed the form under conditions of:
This will likely require the help of a lawyer. I got a document that claims I may be the biological father of a child. This document tells me that there will be a hearing about this matter. Should I just skip the hearing because I know I am not the father? No. If you do not respond to this document you will likely be declared the father of the child and owe child support. You should go to the hearing and say that you are not the father. Perhaps the best thing you can do is to insist that the court order a genetic test (DNA test). In Pennsylvania, if you do not appear at certain stages of a paternity hearing this will result in an order declaring you the father of the child. The only way that it would not result in an order declaring you the father is if the mother or state is unable to show that you had notification of the hearing. This order is called a default order and it will include an order for you to begin to pay child support. I got a document that claims I may be the biological father of a child. This document tells me that there will be a hearing about this matter. Should I just skip the hearing because I know I am the father? No. You should go to the hearing. This will allow you to hear what your rights are. It will also provide you with a chance to tell your financial situation so that if you are declared the father a realistic child support order may be set. Going to the hearing will provide you a chance to know the amount of your child support order. What if a woman says I am the father of her child but I think that I am not the father? If you never signed an Acknowledgment of Paternity and you were never married to the mother of the child, a suit can be brought against you to declare you the father. The mother, the child, or the local child support agency can sue to establish whether you are the biological father. You will get a legal document that will have a date and time for you to appear at a court hearing. It is important that you appear at this hearing. If you do not appear, you may be declared the father of the child and owe child support. I am going to court in the next couple of weeks because a mother says I am the father of her baby and is seeking child support. What should I expect? It is extremely important that you go to all court hearings, appointments for genetic test, and any other event that is a part of this process. If you do not you will likely be declared the father of a child. When you show up you will be given two options:
How important are genetic tests (DNA tests) in paternity cases? If the genetic test shows a 99 percent or higher chance that you are the father, a court will most likely declare you the father. If the genetic test shows you are not the father, the court will rule that you are not the father. Thus, if genetic tests are taken, the genetic test will most likely determine the court's ruling as to whether or not you are the father of the child. Who pays for the genetic tests (DNA tests) in a paternity case? Initially, the government pays for the genetic test. If you are found to be the father of the child, you will be ordered to pay the government back for the cost of the test. Why would a mother force me to go through the legal process of establishing that I am the father? There are many benefits to both the parents and child in knowing who is the father of that child. For instance, it is the only way the child can receive court-ordered child support. In addition, this process is necessary to get court ordered visitation with your child. In some cases paternity establishment is not a choice made by either of the child's parents. For example a mother, who gets welfare services, must help the government to try and establish who is the father of a child. She generally must cooperate to help establish who is the father of the child or the government may not give her welfare benefits. In addition, if she gets welfare services, the government keeps most of the child support. She only gets up to $50 of child support each month that you pay. What if I believe that I am a child's father, but the mother does not let me see the child? For you to have court-ordered visitation with your child, you must be declared the child's father. If you would like to be declared the father, you will need to give (file) legal documents to the court. Pennsylvania law requires that certain things be in your request to be declared the father. You must write this request in a way close to what the law requires. You can also apply for help through the child support enforcement unit. It is possible they may help you to establish the paternity of your child. What are some things I should know about after I start a paternity action? After you have given (filed with) the court, the appropriate papers to start your paternity action a number of things will happen. The first step will be a hearing to determine whether genetic tests should be ordered. You will be responsible for the cost of the genetic test. If the court allows genetic tests you, the mother, and child will be ordered to take them. If the results of the genetic test indicate a 99 percent or higher probability that you are the father, the court will most likely declare you the father. If it is determined that you are the father of the child, and the child lives with her mother (you are the non-custodial parent), you will owe child support. Once paternity has been established, the court may also consider visitation and custody. If you want visitation, it is important that you ask the court to write a visitation order that clearly states where and when you can see your child. As part of a paternity action, whose interest do the various lawyers represent? If you can afford one, it is best to get a lawyer for this matter. If the mother can afford one, she also has the right to have a lawyer. The child support enforcement lawyer does not represent you or the mother; he or she represents the interest of the state of Pennsylvania. I think that I am the father of a child but paternity was never established. I am concerned that the mother may attempt to terminate my parental rights. What should I do? One option is to sign an Acknowledgment of Paternity. If the mother also signs an Acknowledgment of Paternity you will be the legal father of the child. As the father of the child, the government or the mother cannot terminate your parental rights, without following a process, which includes certain constitutional protections If the mother will not sign the Acknowledgment of Paternity, you can still file it with the state with only your signature. If you do this, the government is supposed to notify you before anyone tries to terminate your parental rights. However, you will not be treated as the father of the child until either the mother signs an Acknowledgment of Paternity or a court declares you the father. You should let the child support office know where you live so that they know your address. That way they can notify you if the mother tries to terminate your parental rights. What are some of the legal benefits of me being declared the father of my child? Once paternity has been established, a man becomes the legal father of that child. He has all of the rights and duties of a man who had been married to the mother. The child will be eligible for government dependent benefits and inheritance rights from you. Your name also can be listed on the birth certificate as the father of the child. You will not automatically have a right to custody of or visitation with your child. What you will have a right to is to ask a court for custody of or visitation with the child. If you sign an Acknowledgment of Paternity, you may ask a court for custody or visitation with the child. If you are involved in a court action where it is determined that you are the father, you may ask for visitation or custody of your child. If you were involved in a court action where you were declared the father and visitation was not addressed, you may want to start another court action to ask for visitation. You should ask the court to make an order that says which days and hours you can be with the child. What are some of the legal consequences of establishing paternity? If you are declared the legal father of a child and the mother gets physical custody of the child, you will have to pay child support. You will also owe all of the cost for genetic test if they were ordered as part of the paternity action. You may also owe some of the cost for:
Child Support How do I make my child support payments? The usual method is to have your employer directly take money from your paycheck. The employer then gives it to the custodial parent or child support enforcement office. The law requires that this method be used in most cases. Pennsylvania employers can charge up to two percent of the child support amount for each time that they have to withhold money from your paycheck for child support. The employer cannot take this two- percent from the child support amount but from additional money from your paycheck. Is there another way to make child support payments? You should pay your child support in the way ordered by the court order. If you are unemployed, self-employed, or for some reason cannot pay by having money taken directly from your check, you may pay in a different way. If money is not taken directly from your paycheck, the child support agency should give you a monthly bill and payment coupon. You should mail your payments along with the payment coupons to PA SCDU; P.O. Box 69110; Harrisburg, PA 17106-9110. You may pay by check, money order, credit card and Electronic Funds Transfer. If you do not have a payment coupon, you should include your social security number and PACSES member ID on your check. You may also contact your local child support office to receive more payment coupons. How does the court decide how much child support I should pay? There are guidelines (a formula) to calculate what amount a non-custodial parent should pay for child support. This support amount is mainly based on the financial situation of each parent. If your income is very low, the custodial parent's income is not factored to determine child support. If you have a very low income or no income at all, you may still owe child support. This will happen if a court believes you could make more money. The court will base your child support on an amount that it believes you could make. The court may also order you to seek employment if you are currently not employed. Child support generally continues until the child's 18th birthday. I pay my child support but the mother says that she never gets any of the money that I send. What is happening? In some cases, the mother does not get most of the child support that you pay. If she gets certain forms of government cash assistance, the state will keep most of the child support that you pay (except for up to $50 per month). However, it is important to follow your child support order and make the payments. If you do not pay child support there are many penalties that the government can apply against you. What if I cannot afford to pay the amount that is determined by the child support guidelines? You may ask that the court give you a child support order that is lower than the guideline amount. (The mother can also ask that you be given an order that is higher.) To get either of these changes in the guideline amount a court must be convinced that the guideline amount is unjust or inappropriate in your case. Can a court order me to pay for health insurance for my child? Yes. A court can order a non-custodial parent to pay for the health care coverage if it is available at a reasonable cost. If the health insurance does not cover some health care expenses, the court may order that either parent pay some of these expenses. The court must believe that the health care expenses are reasonable and necessary. Why do I owe so much money in child support? There are many reasons that the amount of money you owe can be larger than what you feel you can pay. First, your current order may not have ever been realistic for you. If you did not appear in court when they set your current order, the amount of the order may be beyond your means to pay. The order may be based on a previous job where you made more money, or you may have been laid off your job at one time or another. If this is the case, you should consider going through the procedures to ask the court for a change in the amount of child support you pay in the future (ask for a child support modification). Second, if you did not ask for a change in your child support order when things changed in your life, the amount you owe may not be realistic for you. You should consider going through the procedures to ask the court for a change in the amount of future child support you pay. Third, if you do not pay your support, you will have to pay your regular amount of support plus an additional amount to begin to cover the past due amount. A court may also order that you be charged 10 percent interest on any past due child support. You may also be charged with the costs of genetic tests (DNA tests) in a paternity action, the mother's pregnancy, postnatal care related to the pregnancy, premiums to obtain health insurance for the child, medical expenses not covered by health insurance, and other costs. All of these costs may be added to the amount that you owe each month. What if I want to decrease the amount of my child support payment because things have changed in my life? Going to court is one way to get a change in the amount of future child support that you pay. You will need to give (file with) the court a legal document known as a "petition" that asks for a decrease in the amount of your child support. At a hearing, the judge may lower your child support if there has been a major change (substantial change) in circumstances that affects your ability to pay child support. If this request is granted it will only lower the amount of support you owe in the future. It will not lower any amount of past due support you may owe. It is best to get a lawyer, if you can afford one, to help you with this. How can my child support order be increased? In Pennsylvania, there are two ways to increase a child support order. The first is by a request for an increase in child support. The court will grant this if the judge believes that there has been a major change (substantial) in circumstances that calls for an increase in support. Your child support can be increased in another way. Pennsylvania has a system that automatically reviews child support orders every three years. The results of this review can be to increase, decrease, or eliminate your child support order. I am about to move or have moved. Should I notify child support? Yes. If you have a child support order, you should tell the child support enforcement unit whenever you move to a new address. If you do not notify the child support office of your new address they may send important notices to your old address. What are some possible penalties for me if I do not pay my child support? Many penalties may be applied to you for not paying child support. Some of these penalties include:
Can they put me in jail for not paying child support? Yes. The legal basis for placing you in jail is "contempt of court." Contempt of court is a legal term that means you did not follow a court order. You have the right to have a lawyer at a hearing (a contempt proceeding) that decides whether you are purposefully refusing to obey a court order. What should I do about my child support order if I am in jail? If you are in jail for any reason, you should consider asking a court for a change in your child support order. You will need to ask the court to make your child support amount less based on what you can earn while in jail or in prison. While this may be hard, it is extremely important that you try to do this. If you are placed in jail your child support order will continue while you are in jail. A court may only lower the amount of future child support that you owe. So it is very important that you notify the court immediately, provide proof that your income is less, and ask for the court to decrease your child support. If you do this, there is a chance that the court may reduce the amount of future payments. Child Support & Visitation The custodial parent doesn't allow me to see the child. Why do I have to pay support? Child support and visitation are two separate issues. You must pay your child support whether or not you see your child. However, you may go to court and ask for a specific visitation schedule. If there is a visitation schedule and the child's mother does not follow it, you can ask the court to order her to follow the schedule. This may be a hard process, but it is possible that it can help you get visitation with your child. How does not paying my child support impact my right to see my child? Your not paying child support should not affect your visitation with your child. When faced with the question of whether or not to allow you to see your child, a court should only be concerned with the best interest of the child. Still, the reality is that if you have not paid your child support, it is not likely to help your chances to spend time with your child. Employment What if I do not have a job when they set the child support order? If a court decides you are choosing to not work, support orders can be based on what the court thinks you could make if you were employed. This can happen even if you tell the court that you are unable to get a job. I switched jobs. Should I notify child support? Yes. If you have a child support order anytime that you change jobs you should tell the child support office. In addition, if you are making less money in your new job, you should consider asking the court for a change in your child support order. I work at a job where I am only employed seasonally, such as a construction job. How will the court determine how much child support I should pay? The court is supposed to take the average of your yearly income. It is important that you make the court aware that you work in a field with only seasonal employment. I just got a new job. What information is my employer going to need from the child support enforcement agency? Some of the information an employer must obtain from you and give to the government includes your:
Your employer must generally give this information to the child support agency within 20 days of hiring you. Money is taken from my paycheck to pay child support. Can my employer charge me for taking this money? Yes. Your employer may charge 2 percent of the total amount that the employer takes from your paycheck. For instance, if you pay $100 in child support every week, your employer must deduct $100 and also may charge you an additional $2 every week. This fee is for the employer following the court order and giving your money to the child support unit. What if I lose my job or I am unable to pay child support? If you lose your job or make less money than you used to, you should notify the child support enforcement unit immediately. You should also give to (file with) the court a legal document known as a "petition" that asks for a decrease in the amount of future support that you owe. A court cannot reduce the amount of past due child support that you owe. At a hearing, the court may change the amount of child support you will pay in the future. The court will do this if there has been a major change (substantial change) in your financial circumstances. The court will not decrease your child support order if it believes that you voluntarily quit your job or that you were fired because you were not doing a good job. If the mother receives cash or medical assistance from Pennsylvania, the court may order you to get a job, attend work-training programs, attend classes that will lead to employment, or obtain a high school diploma or a GED. |
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