Child support in Maine is set by an income-based formula that uses both parents’ earnings, collected most often through automatic wage withholding, and backed by state and federal enforcement tools when payments stop. The Division of Support Enforcement and Recovery (DSER), part of the Department of Health and Human Services, runs the collection system and can reach wages, tax refunds, driver’s and professional licenses, passports, and credit reports to force payment.
Who Owes Child Support
Every biological and adoptive parent in Maine is required to support their children financially. It makes no difference whether the parents were married, separated, or never in a relationship. Once parentage is established — by acknowledgment, court order, or genetic testing when it’s disputed1Maine State Legislature. Maine Code Title 19-A 1911 – Court Order for Testing — the obligation attaches regardless of whether the parent has any relationship with the child.
In most cases the noncustodial parent, meaning the one without primary physical custody, pays directly. The custodial parent is assumed to meet their share through the daily costs of raising the child. When a child lives with a grandparent or other guardian, the court can order both biological parents to pay.
Moving out of state does not end the obligation. Under the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act, Maine can establish, modify, and enforce support orders when parents live in different states.2Maine State Legislature. Maine Code Title 19-A Chapter 67 – Uniform Interstate Family Support Act For a Maine court to open an initial support case, the child generally must have lived in Maine for at least six consecutive months.
How the Payment Amount Is Calculated
Maine uses an income shares model. The court combines both parents’ gross incomes, finds the total obligation for a child at that income level on the state’s support table, and then splits that amount in proportion to each parent’s share of the combined income.3Maine State Legislature. Maine Code Title 19-A 2006 – Support Guidelines A parent earning 65% of the combined income is responsible for 65% of the calculated need. Childcare costs, the child’s health insurance premiums, and extraordinary medical expenses are built into the formula, so the parent carrying the child’s insurance gets credit that reduces their direct payment.
What Counts as Income
The definition of gross income is broad. It takes in wages, salaries, commissions, bonuses, pensions, interest, dividends, trust distributions, Social Security, disability benefits, workers’ compensation, and capital gains. Self-employment income is counted as gross receipts minus ordinary and necessary business expenses. Reimbursements and in-kind payments from a job count when they reduce personal living costs, which is why military housing and food allowances are typically included.4Maine State Legislature. Maine Code Title 19-A 2001 – Definitions
When Income Is Imputed
A parent who is voluntarily unemployed or underemployed can have income assigned to them based on what they could reasonably earn, so quitting a job or dropping to part-time does not quietly lower a support obligation.4Maine State Legislature. Maine Code Title 19-A 2001 – Definitions There are exceptions. A parent providing primary care for a child under 24 months old is presumed unavailable to work. For a child between 24 months and 12 years, the court weighs anticipated childcare and work-related costs before deciding whether to impute, and how much. An incarcerated parent is treated as available only for the employment the facility actually offers.
Shared Care
When both parents provide substantially equal care, a different calculation applies to reflect that both households are absorbing significant direct costs. Maine doesn’t fix this by a specific overnight percentage; the court looks at residential time together with educational involvement, childcare, medical needs, and recreational responsibilities. Parents complete a Supplemental Child Support Worksheet, and the higher-earning parent generally pays the other the difference between their respective obligations.5Maine Judicial Branch. Child Support in Maine If both parents earn the same and share care equally, neither pays the other; they just split childcare, insurance, and uninsured medical costs.
How Payments Are Made
Income withholding handles most child support in Maine. DSER sends a withholding order to the paying parent’s employer, who then deducts the support amount from each paycheck and forwards it.6Maine State Legislature. Maine Code Title 22 3816 – Income Withholding Employers face penalties for ignoring these orders.
Parents without regular employment can pay through DSER’s online system by bank transfer, credit card, or debit card, or send a money order or check. Receiving parents can take payments by direct deposit or on a federal Electronic Payment Card.
Handing cash to the other parent is a trap. Payments made outside the official channel generally do not count toward the obligation unless they are documented and court-approved, which catches more parents than you might expect. Keep every payment inside the system.
One cost worth knowing about: federal law requires a $35 annual fee for child support services in cases where the custodial parent has never received public assistance and at least $550 has been collected in the year. The fee is taken from collected support rather than billed separately, so an annual payment will look $35 short once a year.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 USC 654 – State Plan for Child and Spousal Support
What Happens When Payments Fall Behind
DSER escalates quickly when support goes unpaid.
Tax Refund Intercepts
State and federal tax refunds can be seized to cover past-due support. The Federal Tax Refund Offset Program kicks in once arrears reach $500, or $150 if the custodial parent receives public assistance.8Administration for Children and Families. When Is a Child Support Case Eligible for the Federal Tax Refund Offset Program? A parent expecting a refund who owes back support should assume the refund is going to the child first.
License Suspensions
Maine courts can suspend a delinquent parent’s driver’s license and revoke professional, occupational, hunting, fishing, boating, and other recreational licenses, and can block their issuance or renewal. The court must first find the parent actually has the ability to pay some or all of what is owed; the aim is to compel compliance, not to punish inability to pay.9Maine State Legislature. Maine Code Title 19-A 2603-A – License Revocation for Nonpayment of Child Support Getting a license back takes both a court order and a reinstatement fee paid to the Secretary of State.
Passport Denial
At the federal level, a parent who owes more than $2,500 in past-due support is denied a U.S. passport. State agencies certify qualifying cases to the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement, which passes the information to the State Department.10Congressional Research Service. The Child Support Enforcement Passport Denial Program New passports and renewals both stop until the debt is resolved.
Credit Reporting, Garnishment, and Contempt
Overdue support can be reported to credit bureaus, which can block loans, housing, and some jobs. DSER can also garnish bank accounts and other financial assets beyond the standard wage order. In serious cases DSER can pursue contempt of court, where a judge may impose fines or jail time for willful nonpayment. Willful is the key word: a parent who genuinely cannot pay is treated differently from one who chooses not to.
Changing a Support Order
Child support orders are not permanent. Either parent, or DSER, can file to modify an order when circumstances change.11Maine State Legislature. Maine Code Title 19-A 2009 – Modification of Existing Support Orders Maine uses a numerical trigger. If applying the current guidelines produces a number more than 15% different from the existing order, that counts as a substantial change of circumstances. For orders less than three years old, the 15% variance is required. For orders three years or older, the court reviews the order without requiring proof of changed circumstances and modifies if the numbers now differ.
Typical reasons to seek a modification:
- A job loss, significant raise, or new disability affecting earning capacity.
- A custody change, including a shift to or away from shared care.
- New medical, educational, or childcare costs for the child.
A motion goes to the court or to DSER depending on whether the original order was judicial or administrative, and the filing parent needs tax returns, pay stubs, and other financial documentation. Joint agreements move faster. Simply paying less without a court order creates arrears, even if the parents have an informal understanding.
When Child Support Ends
Support normally runs until the child turns 18. If the child is still in high school at 18 and making satisfactory progress, support continues until graduation or the child’s 19th birthday, whichever comes first.3Maine State Legislature. Maine Code Title 19-A 2006 – Support Guidelines Courts can order continued support for adult children with disabilities who cannot become financially independent.
Support can end earlier through legal emancipation, which includes marriage, joining the military, or a court-ordered emancipation. A child simply choosing not to live with the custodial parent does not end the obligation, and turning 18 does not end it if high school is still in progress. Until a court formally ends or modifies the order, payments remain due and unpaid amounts accumulate as enforceable debt.
Taxes and Bankruptcy
Child support has no tax effect for either side. The receiving parent does not report it as income, and the paying parent cannot deduct it.12Internal Revenue Service. Alimony, Child Support, Court Awards, Damages
Bankruptcy does not wipe out child support. Federal law treats it as a domestic support obligation, which is non-dischargeable under any chapter.13Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 523 – Exceptions to Discharge A Chapter 13 plan has to repay 100% of child support arrears over the life of the plan, and filing bankruptcy does not pause ongoing payments either. Child support debt follows a parent until it is paid.