Unpaid child support in Texas doesn't quietly disappear — it becomes arrears: a debt that accrues interest, survives the child's 18th birthday, survives bankruptcy, and can be collected through a wide set of enforcement tools, most of them run by the Office of the Attorney General Child Support Division. Here's the full toolkit, roughly in the order it tends to arrive — and the right move whether you're the parent owed money or the one falling behind.
1. Interest keeps adding up
Past-due support carries simple interest by statute (Family Code §157.265). Note a recent change: the rate is 6% per year on arrears that accrued before January 1, 2026, and 3% per year on arrears arising on or after January 1, 2026. "Simple" means interest is charged on the unpaid principal only, not on prior interest — but over years it still adds up substantially.
Concretely: a $10,000 balance of pre-2026 arrears grows at 6%, which is $600 a year — $50 every month, on top of whatever current support is still coming due. Left alone for three years, that single balance adds $1,800 in interest. When arrears are reduced to a court judgment, the judgment accrues the same statutory simple interest until paid.
2. Wage withholding
Most Texas support is already collected by an income-withholding order sent to the employer, and for arrears the order can take an additional amount from each check until the balance clears. There are limits on how much of a paycheck can be reached — withholding for support is generally capped at around half of disposable earnings — but within those limits the deduction is automatic, arrives before the money ever hits your account, and follows you to a new employer.
3. License suspension
The Attorney General can move to suspend a delinquent parent's driver's license, professional and occupational licenses, and hunting/fishing licenses once they fall significantly behind (generally around 90+ days delinquent). For a nurse, electrician, real-estate agent, or commercial driver, this is often the tool that bites first — the license that earns the income is the one at risk.
4. Tax refunds, liens, passports, and credit
- Federal tax refund interception — your IRS refund can be seized and applied to arrears. Lottery winnings can be intercepted the same way.
- Liens on real estate, vehicles, bank accounts, retirement accounts, and other property — the debt attaches to the asset until paid.
- Bank account levies to pull funds directly.
- Passport denial — under the federal program, arrears over $2,500 can block issuance or renewal of a U.S. passport.
- Credit-bureau reporting of the delinquency, which follows you into every loan, lease, and background check.
5. Contempt of court — including jail
A parent who can pay but willfully refuses can be held in contempt, which can mean fines and up to 180 days in jail per violation. Courts generally reserve jail for clear, willful non-payment — which is exactly why filing to modify the order when you genuinely can't pay is so important. A documented, early modification filing is the difference between "a parent whose income fell" and "a parent defying a court order."
Three things arrears will never do
Parents on both sides tend to misjudge how permanent this debt is. In Texas, child support arrears:
- Don't expire when the child ages out. Support ending at 18 or graduation stops future payments only — the back balance remains collectible until paid. The end-date guide covers the cutoff itself.
- Can't be discharged in bankruptcy. The balance rides through the case untouched.
- Can't be retroactively reduced. Under §157.008, no judge can erase support that has already come due. A modification only changes what accrues going forward, from around the date the other parent is served.
If you owe and can't pay: the playbook
Falling behind is recoverable; ignoring it is not. Three moves matter:
- File to modify immediately. If your income genuinely dropped, the guideline amount is lower than your order — but only a new signed order changes what accrues, and it reaches back only to the date of service. The income chart and the calculator show what today's guideline figure would be. A parent with no income at all isn't off the hook either — Texas presumes minimum-wage earnings, as the unemployment guide explains.
- Keep paying what you can — through the registry. Every payment should flow through the Texas State Disbursement Unit so it's credited on the official record. Cash handed over in a parking lot or money sent by app may not count against the balance if a court ever tallies the arrears.
- Show up. Enforcement hearings go far worse in absentia. A parent who appears with pay records and a pending modification petition looks nothing like one who vanished.
If you're owed support
The receiving parent can open a free enforcement case with the Texas Attorney General Child Support Division — the OAG runs the withholding, interception, license-suspension, and lien machinery described above — or file a motion for enforcement in court, where arrears can be confirmed as a money judgment that accrues statutory interest until collected. Either way, records win these cases: keep a simple log of every payment received and missed, with dates and amounts, and let the State Disbursement Unit's official record do the rest. Payments made outside the registry are the usual source of disputes.
Frequently asked questions
Can you go to jail for not paying child support in Texas?
Yes. Willful non-payment by a parent who has the ability to pay is contempt of court, punishable by fines and up to 180 days in jail per violation. Judges distinguish sharply between can't-pay and won't-pay — which is why documenting a real drop in income, and filing to modify, protects you.
Does the debt go away when my child turns 18?
No. Termination of support ends future payments only. Arrears — plus interest — survive graduation, survive the child becoming an adult, and remain collectible until paid in full.
Can bankruptcy clear child support arrears?
No. Child support is one of the debts bankruptcy cannot discharge. The balance, and the enforcement tools attached to it, come out the other side of the case intact.
Can a judge reduce the arrears I already owe?
No. Section 157.008 bars retroactive reduction of support that has already accrued. A modification can lower future payments — but only from around the date of service forward, which is why filing early matters so much.
When does unpaid support block a passport?
Under the federal passport-denial program, arrears over $2,500 can prevent a passport from being issued or renewed until the balance is addressed.
What counts as my income if I've lost my job?
Texas won't set support at zero just because income stopped. With no provable income, the court presumes minimum-wage earnings; a parent found intentionally unemployed can be assessed on full earning potential. The net-resources guide explains what counts as income in the first place.