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The Office of Child Support Services, a division of the Chatham County District Attorney’s Office, enforces all child support cases on behalf of children and families living in Chatham County.  This division collects more than $32 million annually.  Child Support Services staff, which includes investigators and an Assistant District Attorney, work diligently to provide quality services that include:

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•            Locating non-custodial parents

•            Establishing paternity and court orders for child support

•            Enforcing court orders for child support

•            Collecting and distributing child support funds

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Information on child support accounts and child support cases can be obtained by contacting the

Child Support Contact Center at (877)- 423-4746.    The Office accepts payments via cash or credit card at the payment kiosk.  Payments made through this kiosk are credited in three (3) business days.  The offices is located at:

 

Office of Child Support Services

Pete Liakakis Government Building

222 West Oglethorpe Ave.

(Entrance is on Jefferson St.)

Savannah, GA 31401

Fax: (912) 652-7374

Email: SavannahCSE@dhs.ga.gov

Hours of Operation:   8am to 5pm, Monday through Friday, except holidays.

 

To open an account online, visit: www.georgia.gov (client ID number is required for registration). The DCSS mobile app, DCSS on the Go, is available on Apple and Android. The app allows for payments, case information, and chat with a customer service representative.

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These are some of the most common issues that are misunderstood.

 

• Either party can apply.  If the non-custodial parent applies, the custodial parent will be sent paperwork to confirm acceptance of the case.  If there is domestic violence or family violence, you can claim good cause.  Good cause means there is good cause not to open the case.  You will need to provide proof (police report, protective order, etc.).

 

• A $25 application fee is collected by the Georgia Division of Child Support Services for processing fees.  This money is not retained by Chatham County Child Support Services.  Grandparents raising grandchildren do not pay the fee.  If you receive TANF or Parent/Caretaker with Child Medicaid, you do not pay the fee.

 

 

• Effective July 1, 2015, Georgia law was amended to require the Division of Child Support Services (DCSS) to order genetic testing in all IV-D cases in which the paternity of a child or children has not been established or in which the individual receiving services alleges paternity rests in a person other than the previously established father. The law was established in an effort to prevent a non-biological father of a child(ren) from being obligated to pay child support. It also allows Non-Custodial Parents who are obligated to pay support and who are later excluded through paternity testing to petition the court to set aside the determination of paternity and relieve them of the obligation for any future and/or past due amounts owed to the state or to the Custodial Parent / Custodian of a child(ren). The law further clarifies the process by which a determination can be made regarding the responsibility of providing child support between fathers involved in situations where both a legal and a biological father of a child appear.

Testing IS NOT mandatory when:

1. Paternity has been established, for example:

a. The Custodial Parent names her husband and he does not deny paternity.

b. The Custodial Parent names the father who signed a Paternity Acknowledgment, and he does not deny paternity.

c. The child was adopted.

d. The child was conceived via artificial insemination.

e. A court order establishing paternity and/or support exists.

f. The Non-Custodial Parent/ Alleged Father applies for services and paternity has been established.

Paternity testing may be requested in cases under these circumstances, but they should be reviewed by a judge.  Meaning the non-custodial parent would need to request that the judge order testing at the hearing.

Paternity testing IS mandatory when:

1. Paternity is not established, and no court order exists, for example:

a. The child was born out-of-wedlock and paternity has not been established.

b. The Custodial Parent names someone other than her husband

c. The Custodial Parent names someone other than the father who signed a Paternity Acknowledgment

Testing can be done in the office, at the lab (DDC), or in court.  Testing is done with a mouth swab.

 

Legitimation is a legal action which is the only way, other than by marrying the mother of a child, that the father of a child born out of wedlock in the State of Georgia may establish legal rights to his child. Without legitimation, these fathers have no right to custody or visitation with the children (although the laws say they have the obligation to support them financially). Without legitimation, mothers have sole custody of children born out of wedlock. Also, children born out of wedlock do not automatically have the right to inherit from their fathers.

Here are some examples of things that are NOT a legitimation:

• enrolling the child in school

• being named the father in a paternity test

• agreeing to or being ordered to pay child support

• naming the child in the father’s last will and testament

• signing the child’s birth certificate

You have the right to file a petition for legitimation. If your petition for legitimation is granted, you have the right to ask the court for custody and visitation and your child has the right to your inheritance. The father can file a Petition.

 

• Our office does not release any personal information (address, phone number, etc.) about any of the parties to any of the parties.

 

• Child Support is a civil matter, not a criminal matter.  Law Enforcement Officers will not enter a home without permission for arrests or service.

 

• GA Guidelines = Both parties’ income (mother and father of the child) is considered.  There is no retro support in GA.  If the NCP is in another state, that state’s guidelines apply.

 

• What will be in your order: child support and health insurance.  Health insurance can only be enforced if it is available to the non-custodial parent at a reasonable cost (no more than 5% of gross income) through an employer or union.  What will not be in your order: visitation.  Child support and visitation are two separate issues and the Child Support Office does not establish or enforce visitation.  A referral can be made to A Child’s World, LLC if you need assistance with visitation,

 

• Due to the volume of cases, it can take 6 months or more for a case to be scheduled for court.

 

• The Non-Custodial Parent can be personally served, residentially served or unable to locate.  If the Non-Custodial Parent is personally served and does not show, a Default Order or an Arrest Warrant can be issued.  If the Non-Custodial Parent is residentially served and does not show, the case will be rescheduled.  If the Non-Custodial Parent is unable to be located, the case will be rescheduled if new information can be found or can be reassigned to our Locate HUB.

The Non-Custodial Parent must be in willful contempt – able to pay but choosing not to.

 

• The Assistant District Attorney assigned to the case represents the best interest of the child, not the custodial or non-custodial parent.

 

• A review and modification can be requested every 3 years or if there is a substantial change in circumstances (must provide proof).  The review can be requested by sending an email to SavannahCSE@dhs.ga.gov.

 

• A child support payment can only be disbursed when the Non-Custodial Parent makes a payment. There is no pool of funds available to cover payments when the Non-Custodial Parent does not pay. 

 

• The Non-Custodial Parent will receive a notice in the mail of the intent to suspend the driver’s license and a second notice of the suspension of the driver’s license.  The Georgia Department of Driver Services will also mail a notice to the Non-Custodial Parent upon suspension of the driver’s license. 

 

• The Custodial Parent and Non-Custodial Parent must notify the Child Support Office of any change in address.  This can be done by emailing SavannahCSE@dhs.ga.gov or using the mobile app DCSS on the Go.

 

• If you enter into a new order and the Child Support Office is not involved, you must provide a copy of your order to our office so any adjustments to your case can be made.  The Child Support Office does not receive orders directly from the court on private matters.