How to Deal With Child Support Arrears in British Columbia

Unpaid child support can feel overwhelming whichever side you are on. If you pay, a drop in income may have left you behind. If you receive support, missed payments make it hard to plan.

This article explains how arrears build, when they might be reduced, and the main ways they are collected in British Columbia. Your situation depends on the wording of your order or agreement and which law it was made under, so a lawyer can confirm the details.

This article covers the law of British Columbia.

How arrears build up

Every parent and guardian has a duty to provide support for a child. When there is an order, the obligation continues until a court changes, suspends or terminates it, and a payor cannot end it by their own decision.

That means losing a job, or agreeing informally with the other parent to pay less, does not change what the order says. Unpaid amounts keep adding up as arrears. Arrears owed under a maintenance order bear simple interest at the rate set by regulation.

Can arrears be reduced or forgiven?

Generally, the court cannot reduce or cancel arrears except as the Family Maintenance Enforcement Act allows, and when it varies an order it may do so without reducing or cancelling the total of the arrears.

There is an important exception. The court may reduce or cancel arrears when they are reduced or cancelled in a proceeding to change the order, so a payor who applies promptly may get a retroactive reduction, while one who waits risks arrears and interest continuing to accumulate.

A court may change, suspend or terminate a child support order, prospectively or retroactively, if there has been a change in circumstances as provided for in the child support guidelines since the order was made. It can also act on substantial new evidence that was unavailable at the earlier hearing, or on later-discovered non-disclosure. Orders made under the Divorce Act are changed under that Act, which also allows a retroactive or prospective variation.

Where the amount was set using the tables, a change of circumstances is any change that would result in a different child support order or any provision of it. Whether your change qualifies is a question to take to a lawyer.

How arrears are collected

Collection often runs through the Family Maintenance Enforcement Act. The tools below are the main ones.

The court must make an attachment order unless it would be unfair to the debtor. An employer may not dismiss, discipline or otherwise penalize an employee because of a notice of attachment or a related order.

Federal enforcement and its limits

Federal money designated by regulation may be garnished for support enforcement. Whether a particular federal payment, such as a tax refund, is covered depends on those regulations, so confirm this before you rely on it.

If a debtor is in persistent arrears, meaning arrears in any three payment periods or accumulated arrears of $3,000 or more, a provincial enforcement service may apply to have a federal licence, including a passport, suspended or refused. No appeal lies from action under that part of the federal Act.

An enforcement proceeding under the Family Maintenance Enforcement Act is not itself a way to change support. If you need the amount changed, you must apply to change the order.

What to do next

• Gather your order or agreement and a record of what has been paid and missed.
• If you are a payor whose circumstances have changed, get advice about applying to change the order promptly.
• In Provincial Court, an application to change an order under the Family Law Act is made on Form 3 with the schedule for child support, and a copy of the order is attached.
• If you are a recipient, ask the enforcement program or a lawyer which collection tools suit your case.
• Do not stop paying on your own, because the order stays in force until a court changes it.

Frequently asked questions